Cameron B. select Send Message

342 Followers / 338 Following

Recommended

Cameron B. drank Wu Liang Hong Mao Feng Yunnan Black Tea by Yunnan Sourcing

4010 tasting notes

Happy Sunday, tea fiends! A lovely Steepster friend (who would rather remain anonymous) sent me a box with ten different Yunnan Sourcing samples. I was very excited to see that a lot of them are the more uncommon varieties (a lot of people have their pure bud teas). This was actually one of the YS teas I was most excited to try! The leaves are huge and twisty, and I would say they’re about half gold and half muted grey/brown. Dry scent is malty and surprisingly tart with stonefruit aroma.

The steeped tea also smells very fruity, specifically stonefruit-y. This tea definitely has the strongest natural stonefruit flavor I’ve ever found in a tea, and it’s somewhat tart because of that. I think I may have overleafed a bit (it’s always hard to tell with very large leaves) so it has a rather intense malty/sweet potato taste. It’s not bitter, though. There’s a little hint of earthiness as well which helps to sort of “anchor” everything and cut through the tart fruitiness a bit. Unlike any other Yunnan black tea I’ve had! :)

Flavors: Apricot, Earth, Malt, Smooth, Stonefruit, Sweet Potatoes, Tart

Preparation

200 °F / 93 °C 3 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

I Like This

16 likes

0 comments

People who liked this

Profile

Bio

Hi, I’m Cameron!

I’m a 30-something software engineer currently living in Austin, Texas with my husband and our two pugs, Gobo and Ume. I tend to cycle between my different hobbies, and they include piano, knitting, video games, board games, miniature painting, planners, bento, KBeauty, and – of course – TEA! But really, what I’m best at is “collecting” hobby-related things… ;)

~ 2024 SIPDOWN CHALLENGE! ~
- May Sipdowns: 13
- Total 2024 Sipdowns: 26

I prefer my tea lukewarm or at room temperature and without milk or sugar. I steep Western style, and fluctuate between using big mugs or small teapots depending on the season.

I am always up for a swap! Just let me know if you’d like to try something in my cupboard.

Tea Preferences:
I enjoy both flavored and unflavored teas in many forms. These days, I drink mostly flavored teas, and I tend to gravitate most toward black, green, oolong, and herbal varieties. I do have a special fondness for straight Japanese green teas, however.

I do not sweeten my teas, and pre-sweetened teas are usually too sweet for me. I also do not enjoy stevia.

I tend to reach for fruitier flavors rather than desserty ones these days, but I do have favorites from both categories. Willing to try anything once! There are a few ingredients/flavors that aren’t generally my jam, such as coconut, rose, lavender, and chocolate flavoring. But I also have teas that I love with some of those things, too! :)

Favorite Companies:
3 Leaf
Bird & Blend
Dammann Frères
Harney & Sons
Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms
Lupicia
Old Barrel Tea Co
Simpson & Vail
Taiwan Tea Crafts
TeaVivre

Tea Rating Scale:
90-100: Outstanding! Permanent cupboard resident
80-89: Great – a possible staple
70-79: Good, but I wouldn’t buy it
60-69: It’s decent
50-59: Meh… I may or may not have finished the cup
40-49: Ick. Couldn’t finish it.
00-39: Repulsive, I spat it out

I will sometimes refrain from rating a tea if I feel I’m too biased due to my personal dislikes, or if I suspect the sample has been compromised by age or scent contamination.

Cupboard Spreadsheet:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZEuKf1-ppR-VXajO4vV39zU1N3zjFJteEPAynqD2yl0/edit?usp=sharing