I had been following this tea when I came across this tea 3 years ago in the tea markets. This is the 2014 Xiaguan special edition of the Yuan Ye. Based on the description slip enclosed with the cake, Xiaguan tea factory had harvested the tea from old gushu tea trees in high altitudes of above 2200 ft in Yunnan. In addition, Xiaguan had stored away this tea for 7 years and only releasing this tea for sale in 2014.
The tea leaves are unique. The leaves, when I broke up the tea cake, looked glossy and shiny. I thought the leaves were damp. It was not. The leaves felt oily and closer examination of the leaves showed that they are quite big and (believe it or not) furry.....like little shiny hairs on the leaves. '
When I brewed the tea, the tea was clean and clear. Nothing oily in the tea and taste. Some smokiness but the tea was smooth with hints of smoky pine wood. There were some nice fruity aroma like plums and dried berries. A tea session of this tea can get me 10 strong, slightly intoxicating infusions.
An interesting and strong tea. I think this tea will even be more impressive after a few more years of storage in Singapore. I will try to add more of this tea to my collection.
2 comments:
Have you checked in on this recently? Hows it coming along?
hello Micah,
Had a few sessions with it last week. Smokiness is ever so strong and the smoke reminds me of a smoky islay scotch whisky. I like it.
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