Finally got around to getting my Teavivre order from the post office and this was the first tea that the boyfriend wanted to try. I think that the name, and the rolled leaves, had a huge part in his choice. :) Oh, and this is the 3rd round of tea samples from Angel – who I can’t thank enough for her generosity and the education I’m getting!
I really need to learn more about Chinese black teas. Luckily I got a ton of Barnes and Noble gift cards for Christmas so I ordered a few books, but mostly I’m confused about the tea names/places. Clearly I need to research more of Chinese geography to get a better understanding of a teas’ origins, so I’m going to try and make that a goal for all of my pure samples from now on.
Okay, so Fengqing is in western Yunnan, which is a southern province according to the maps. I’ll have to go back and specifically read any Yunnan tasting notes to compare, but what I get from this dry is a very chocolatey, malty smell. It definitely seems like more of a delicate black – what I mean is that it’s not quite as heavy or earthy as an Assam is, which the brewing parameters seem to confirm.
I went for 2 minutes on the steeping because I do like a strong tea, and that was enough time to give it a pretty honeyed brown liquor. I say honeyed specifically because I really think this had a sweet nectary note in the taste and texture. There was the chocolate also, which was more noticeable as the tea cooled. And whenever I get a malty note in the scent I get a chewy texture, so that was wonderful!
This is a solid tea- not super heavy but not as delicate/fussy as a Darjeeling, which are usually a little too light for my tastes. It is quite unassuming, but it grows on you so that when you get to the bottom of your cup you find yourself wanting more.
I’m on a self-imposed tea buying moratorium until February 24 (1.5 months from today, gah!) but once I get through it, and try all of these samples I’ll be making a huge TeaVivre order, I expect!
