Rou Gui Light Roast

(Gongfu, 5g/125 ml/205 F/5 sec rinse/6 sec + 2ff)
Dry leaves: Fruity, malty, toasty, light tobacco
Wet leaves after rinse: Roasted notes much stronger, raisin
Steep 1 (6 sec): Deep golden color, smell malty sweetness and toast. Taste is close to an exceptionally smooth black tea with light raisin, malt, touch of mineral. Overall smooth, pleasant; no dryness, astringency, bitterness.
2 (8 sec): Color is lovely, even darker gold, aroma sweeter & malty, less toast. Tastes a little thinner & lighter, still malty dried fruit, a little less smooth. Hint of dryness in finish.
3 (10 sec): Slightly lighter color & a bit sweeter in aroma, more like golden raisin, less toasty but still a hint of tobacco; maybe even a hint floral? Taste is about same, though texture is thinner, more dryness to finish, a little less smooth.
4-6 (15, 20, 25 sec, reduced water to 100ml): Keeping same trend with each infusion feeling a little thinner, dryer (definitely picking up that tannin dryness in mouth), though still lightly sweet with malt & raisin.
-I don’t pick up more/different flavors with each steep, just feels like each one is a little “less” than the one before – not weaker, just thinner. Leaves stayed fairly tightly rolled until at least fifth infusion.-
7-10 (30, 45, 60, 120 sec): Much less fruit/raisin in aroma, still sweet, but maybe a touch more earthiness rather than tobacco. Gradually lost strength, though even steep 10 wasn’t weak. Put spent leaves in 8 oz water for cold brew.

I’ve needed to review this tea for a long time. I had quite a bit of it, started it last month, and even logged a review session, but never got around to posting my thoughts. I’ve spent the last couple of days working my way through the majority of the remaining amount (I only have three or four grams left), and I have to say that this is one enjoyable tea.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. After an approximately 10 second rinse, I steeped 5 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 205 F water for 6 seconds. This infusion was followed by 13 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 8 seconds, 10 seconds, 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, the dry tea leaves emitted intriguing aromas of cinnamon, wood, camphor, char, and rock sugar. After the rinse, I began to detect aromas of ginger and roasted almond coupled with something of an unexpected creaminess. Verdant described it as resembling creme brulee, but at this point, I was not so sure. The first infusion produced robust aromas of cinnamon, wood, camphor, ginger, roasted almond, cream, char, and rock sugar. I pretty much picked up the same notes in the mouth. Subsequent infusions brought out hazelnut, golden raisin, and minerals on the nose and in the mouth. The creaminess began to most clearly resemble creme brulee around this time. The later infusions were heavy on mineral, wood, roasted almond, and creme brulee impressions underscored by touches of golden raisin, hazelnut, and mild spice.

Like most of the Li Xiangxi teas I have tried, this one peaked quickly and faded just as quickly in order to emphasize the expected Wuyi minerality. Still, it managed to hold it all together admirably. The roast here was just light enough to allow the tea’s natural character to shine through and just noticeable enough to provide balance and depth. Compared to the Rou Gui Medium Roast offered by Verdant Tea, this was a much more pleasant and much more interesting tea overall. Heck, I’m not even that huge of a fan of Rou Gui as a cultivar and I still greatly enjoyed this tea. I would definitely not hesitate to recommend it to anyone looking for a more approachable example of Rou Gui or traditional Wuyi oolongs in general.

Oh this is good. I still taste that roasty char flavor that I love so much in my high roasted oolongs but it is just a little bit lighter handed so as to be not so intense. This would be especially good for new comers who are interested in the roasted flavor.

Aside from the roast, I am also getting a very light background floral bouquet as well as some sort of light spice note. Perhaps cinnamon?

This is something I will considering buying more of in the future.

This tea is a lightly roasted oolong that is light amber in color with an inviting aroma. This tea is a little spicy with a hint of cinnamon and has a little creaminess to it. The flavor is unique to me and I am a little on the fence of rather I liked it a little or a lot. It also has a nice lingering aftertaste.