162/365
I’ve been saving this for cold brewing pretty much since I bought it. Probably it should have seen the light of day last year, but since that was a write off…
I’m really glad I pulled this one out today, though. The dry leaf (and even the brewed tea) don’t have much in the way of scent about them, so it was impossible to judge before tasting. I was expecting mostly oolong, since I’ve left it so long, but fortunately that’s not the case.
This is so good. Now that I’ve tried it, I’m more than a little sad that it’s no longer available. It reminds me a lot of Butiki’s Watermelon Xylophone, which is something I never thought I’d say. No watermelon tea has ever struck that natural, fresh, pulpy watermelon flavour so accurately before, until now. This one captures it just as well – absolutely no artificiality here!
Cold brewing was the right way to go, I think. The cold water adds to the “fridge fresh watermelon” vibe, to the point where it almost could be mistaken for watermelon juice. The base is perfect – maybe even better than Butiki’s! I love the buttery creaminess the baozhong oolong contributes; it just works so well, and is totally delicious to boot!
I’m glad I’ve got some more of this one, but I’m going to save it for the really hot days we’ll get later in the summer. It’ll be a joy, pure and simple, to drink this when it’s 30 degrees outside.
