92

Oh man, I have plowed through so much tea today. I went out of my way to squeeze in a gongfu session with this oolong earlier in the evening. I had been meaning to try this one for some time. I wish I had not put it off for so long because I found this to be a very nice tea.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a quick rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 195 F water for 10 seconds. This infusion was chased by 11 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 15 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, I detected mild aromas of cream, butter, vanilla, sweetgrass, and fresh flowers on the nose. After the rinse, I detected stronger vanilla, cream, and butter scents coupled with custard and considerably more defined aromas of orchid, lilac, violet, and honeysuckle. The first infusion produced a similar aroma that also began to reveal hints of cucumber and citrus. In the mouth, I mostly detected vanilla, cream, butter, custard, and sweetgrass balanced by touches of flowers and cucumber. Subsequent infusions brought out notes of cinnamon, pear, tangerine, green apple, and pineapple, as well as what struck me briefly as a mix of coconut, cantaloupe, and honeydew. Minerals also began to emerge on several of these infusions. The later infusions displayed a stronger mineral presence, but remained mostly savory, somewhat vegetal, and smooth. Hints of fruit and flowers were still detectable in the background at points.

This was a nice oolong. It had a ton of character and depth. The fruitiness and the strong savory notes, in particular, were impossible for me to dislike. If you are a fan of Taiwanese oolongs, this one is definitely worth trying.

Flavors: Butter, Cantaloupe, Cinnamon, Citrus, Coconut, Cream, Cucumber, Custard, Floral, Grass, Green Apple, Honeydew, Honeysuckle, Mineral, Orchid, Pear, Pineapple, Vanilla, Violet

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 118 ML

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Bio

My grading criteria for tea is as follows:

90-100: Exceptional. I love this stuff. If I can get it, I will drink it pretty much every day.

80-89: Very good. I really like this stuff and wouldn’t mind keeping it around for regular consumption.

70-79: Good. I like this stuff, but may or may not reach for it regularly.

60-69: Solid. I rather like this stuff and think it’s a little bit better-than-average. I’ll drink it with no complaints, but am more likely to reach for something I find more enjoyable than revisit it with regularity.

50-59: Average. I find this stuff to be more or less okay, but it is highly doubtful that I will revisit it in the near future if at all.

40-49: A little below average. I don’t really care for this tea and likely won’t have it again.

39 and lower: Varying degrees of yucky.

Don’t be surprised if my average scores are a bit on the high side because I tend to know what I like and what I dislike and will steer clear of teas I am likely to find unappealing.

Location

KY

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