This is a very unique, interesting white tea.
Thanks Gingko, for the sample, I enjoyed it both times (I think it was two 3.5g bags)!
The liquor was a light brown somewhat gold color. Honestly, this tea really felt like a black tea, rather than a white tea. The color wasn’t light (green or yellow tinted), the wet leaves were dark brown (again, like a black tea after infusion; not as dark as houjicha or anything), and the first pot I had of this was slightly astringent and had some malty notes!
For the first time a few days ago, I went by the directions; boiled water for 3 minutes. This afternoon, however, for the 2nd bag, I tried slightly under boiling, probably between 190-200 or so, for the same amount of time.
The astringency and drying sensation from the first pot were gone. Instead, the honey-sweetness was much more pronounced! (This was present the first time, but far less obvious). This really reminds me of a less complex Yunnan Gold. It is from the same region, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by that.
For a white tea, this was very surprising – it wasn’t too light, flowery, buttery — the honey-sweetness was quite enjoyable, but I can’t remember there being much else to it. I think I would go for Life in Teacup’s Yunnan Golden Buds over this, but that’s just my personal preference!
