Thank you to David Duckler & Verdant Tea for this sample!
I’ve actually had this sample for awhile. It was included in one of my purchases, some weeks ago, & today seemed like a good day for sampling. I’ve been just chilling out most of the day, recuperating from all of my early morning gigs & late night tea parties (more on that in a bit). Usually on Wednesdays I have private students from 10 am to 8pm. Today I only had 3. My first student (an adult) came at 11:30, during her lesson we drank Watermelon Xylo (Butiki). After her lesson we hung out for another hour, just gabbing & drinking a pot of Yun Nan Dian Hong Black (TeaVivre). She loved both of those teas!
Then I had some free time to work at my desk, answering emails & phone calls (I bid a new year’s eve gig, and booked another gig for march 2).
I had a student at 4:00. (I polished of the last of my Adagio English Breakfast during that lesson).
Now I’m relaxing with this Dancong. I have another student at 7:30, but for this moment, I have tea.
The initial smell of the dry leaf was vaguely familiar. I had to carry on passive smelling for a few minutes, and then I got it! Hain Carrot chips!! When my children were young, I ran a food coop (for about 17 years actually). Among other things, I often ordered cases of Hain Carrot Chips. They had a sweet toasted carrot flavor & the kids loved them. So the smell of this leaf is mildly sweet & reminiscent of those.
Wet, the leaf continues with that sweet roasted root veggie aroma.
My Formula: 4 G + 4 oz (rinse 2X) + 3 secs = a sunny yellow liquor.
!. Steeps 1 – 4: In order to kick back & relax, I brewed them back to back, and combined them in a little pitcher. The tea has a luscious quality to it, it’s mouth watering, & I’m thinking of a cream of roasted carrot soup, sweet & savory. There is also a floral element.
2. Steeps 5 – 8: These brewings smell like sugar, or some kind of nectar, its a sweet & floral smell. Actually, it kind of reminds me of honeysuckle blossoms. It’s a mild tasting, slightly fruity nectar. My taste buds are taking turns flashing on and off, what I think of as a ‘sparkling’ sensation, that is always followed by a subtle taste of salt, or at least the sensation of it, if that makes sense.
I’m also getting the honeydew melon reference, & it is mildly sweet & mouth watering.
