I have just had a relaxing bath and the perfect way to end my day would be to try this amazing looking Fengqing Dragon Pearl Black Tea. The pearls themselves are so tightly packed with dark brown and golden yellow leaves and are also uber cute with virtually no fragrance.
Again I am using my gaiwan and the instructions are as follows:
Gaiwan 3oz Tea: 5p 5 steeps: rinse, 30s,50s,1m10s,1m30s,2m 100ºC/212ºF
Steep 1 – Once the water was introduced the pearls have loosened up somewhat but are still keeping their shape. The tea now smells slightly dark and smoky with a little tinge of dark chocolate. Colour is dark brown but remains opaque. First few sips are refreshing and very subtle but there is a sweet background, florally sweet rather than sugar sweet. About finished now and there is a slight malty taste that only comes up in the last remaining dregs.
Steep 2 – The pearls have now finally given in and have split up completely resembling the look of any normal loose tea. Colour is the same but smell is slightly thicker and somewhat more like dark chocolate or cocoa. The taste is more prominent now with a mixture of malty smoke with subtle cocoa sweetness. Much nicer than the first steep as the chocolate flavour is stronger. It’s also very smooth with no bitterness.
Steep 3 – Again the colour is about the same but the smell is stronger again, this time very malty and dark but still chocolatey. The taste is still a very similar strength but now we have a touch of bitterness (only slight) but a little noticeable at the bottom of the cup.
Steep 4 – I am starting to feel that the description of dark brown is not good enough for the colour. It remains the same throughout the steep but It’s more than just a dark brown, it’s brown with red and gold tinges and delicious looking. The smell is still getting stronger with malty chocolate being the main characters. Taste is still fantastic but it’s a touch lighter than my previous cup, that will make it my last steep. It’s been absolutely delicious from start to end and I will definitely be buying more of this.
To summarize: Key words – Smoky, chocolate, malt, floral, astringent, sweet.
