This is the very top quality of Taiping Hou Kui. It is not sold on Vicony Tea Company’s website, and had to be specially ordered. I understand that only 10kg of this tea was produced for this company. Taiping Hou Kui is one of my favorite teas, so it will be nice to try some in the top quality.
Leaf Quality:
These leaves were 100% hand-plucked, and hand made. They are more dark green than the ‘Superfine Hou Kui Tea’, and have more prominent grate marks on one side. The other side does not have as much grate marks, but shows the leaf’s veins near the stem. The leaves are very thin, but not as flat and brittle as the ‘Superfine Hou Kui Tea’, which was almost transparent. There were slight variations in height, and all of the tea consisted of the top two leaves of the plant. The dried leaves smelled very floral, and very sweet. It reminded me of honey suckle. This was much different than any other Taiping Hou Kui I have tried before; it was a stronger floral smell. The brewed leaves were very elastic, and smelled vegetal, but floral as well. The stems were more red, and had a reddish-green hue to them.
Brewed Tea:
The brewed tea was an extremely clear, medium-yellow color. The brew smelled vegetal, and was actually hard for me to detect. The initial taste was sweet, but turned into a floral, honey suckle taste. Nectar; there was a light vegetal flavor, overcome by nectar. This tea is very sweet, and has a very floral aftertaste. It was a very nice tea.
Second Steeping:
This steeping yielded a very floral cup. I actually found this steeping to be more sweet! This one retains all of the characteristics of the first one, but more pronounced. Very good.
I could tell that much care had gone into making this tea. It was not pressed by machines, as other Hou Kui teas are. I love the look of the leaves when they brew in a tall glass, and love the delicate flavor. I can see why this is classified as a rare, and ‘’Luxury” tea. I’ll be ordering my Nie Jian Hou Kui from this company again.
