yep, I am a sucker for any store that says it has a free tea tasting. This is a very large shop in Chinatown here in SF that has quite a wide selection of tea and a very friendly staff. This was the boyfriend’s selection so we brewed it up this morning in the Gaiwan.
I can’t say that I know enough about red robes to really say that this one is really so much better than any other one but I am enjoying it this morning. When the leaves are wet they are intensely smoky and smell of cherries and plums. This brews up to a nice reddish color – in the shop they call it “red tea” and not an oolong but I digress. Here is a nice composition of flavors with some fruitiness, some nuttiness, a bit of smoke and a tiny bit of sourness. It is holding a nice fizzy aftertaste on my tongue.
