Teng Chong Hui Long Zhai Yunnan Green tea

Spring 2023: The dry leaves don’t have much aroma but look very nice. The tea does smell like stewed fruit once brewed, but not a lot of fruit in the taste. This tea leans more vegetal/herbal. Strong notes of celery and herbs like parsley and oregano. Nuttiness in the background, with a good amount of sweetness which is kind of masked by the herbal notes. Maybe some lemongrass. I can agree with previous reviewer that there are flavors of grilled vegetables, green pepper, and a whisper of smoke.

This is a very interesting tea overall, as I haven’t had too many with this kind of flavor profile. I can see why maybe puerh drinkers would enjoy this, and I would venture to guess that the parsley/oregano herbal notes in this tea are the same kind of notes which translate into the “medicinal” notes commonly found in puerh teas. I think I see a similarity there.

I’ve seen a few reviews that say this a good tea for young sheng lovers and they are right. I do like young sheng and still I would pass up this tea every year when I placed my order with Yunnan Sourcing. I LOVED my green teas. Why would I want to buy a green tea that didn’t taste like a green tea? Or would I? Curiosity got the better of me and it ended up in my cart. Strange thing is, Scott sent a sample as well. There’s no date on the sample so I figure it’s from the 2018 harvest and the one I bought is 2019. I suppose it will give me a good idea if there were any differences in the harvests.

I brewed this at 80C. I didn’t measure my tea this time , just put in a teaspoon (David’s Teaspoon which is more like a tablespoon – actually in most teas is approximately 3 grams). It was very savory and nutty in the first infusion. There was no fresh green spring flavour I get from green teas. It got stronger in the next infusions with a faint bitterness and a strong honey sweetness. It felt thick on the tongue like some shengs are and there was also a corn taste.

So as I have been enjoying having some of my new teas for the week, I desperately need this break in my day from looking after my cat with kidney disease. It’s been months of pills, subQ fluids under the skin, at least 10+ feedings a day, Vit B 12 injections, other meds, & vet visits. Some days I get pretty strung out and one day in preparing her food while making my tea I ended up getting cat food on my Yixing teapot. I was so upset! NOT THE TEAPOT!!!!! I’ve gotten cat food on my clothes and just about everywhere because when I feed her she might not like it so it can take 3 or more tries to find something she will eat. Then she must be finger fed.

So I found this song on YouTube (had dreamed about a Harpsicord and went looking on YouTube to find this amazing performer). The way this guy plays this music, the harpsichord, & the piece of music are all perfection. This piece “Vertigo” is how I feel when I am looking after my cat with kidney disease. It’s got the full range of emotions I go through. I sit back, sip my tea, and listen to this song ALL the time. So here it is for some of you to enjoy while having your tea:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzxlMfUzqIM

[Spring 2018 harvest]

This is a green tea for young sheng lovers. It has a thick and full bodied liquor, complex profile and it can withstand high temperatures very well too. Even the dry leaf aroma is a bit like raw pu-erh. I can smell stewed fruits, meadow, honey, nuts and wheat. Once hit with water, the smell is more savoury with hints of meat and popcorn later on. In the empty cup on the other hand, flowery tones dominate.

The taste has unusually bitter onset for a green tea, even if brewed at lower temperatures. There is very little of astringency though, unless you push the temperature over 90 degrees. The taste profile is vegetal with notes of cabbage, celery, grapefruit, grilled vegetables and green pepper. It has hints of smoke and a sweet finish. Aftertaste is very crisp and tart and characterized by a strong huigan. It is a touch drying, especially in the throat. I found it to be quite herbal and displaying more of vegetable notes like bok choy and cauliflower.

The tea definitely doesn’t disappoint in the mouthfeel department either. It is smooth, mouth-watering, coating and slimy.

This ranks among my favourite green teas for sure, but it’s by no means a standard green tea. I recommend you to try out various brewing methods and parameters for this tea. Not only it is versatile, but that way you can explore its many facets. You can even try pu-erh like parameters. The bitterness will be strong, but I find that it transforms quickly, just like in a good sheng.