I opened up my tin of this again, after leaving it alone for a few weeks, and was greeted with the vivid roasted aroma with chocolate undertones. The aroma of the steeped tea is more subtle, but the roasted smell is still very prominent. The first infusion is rather dark, comparable to a black tea, but the taste is much subtler. There are nutty and chocolatey notes flavors present, which have really aged well, and produce a very smooth flavor with a hint of sweetness. The aftertaste of the tea is also really interesting, as it merely leaves a kind of tingling on the back of the tongue which is rather pleasant.
The only thing that I have to complain about is that it looks like a heavily-roasted Wuyi Oolong, and the taste is remarkably similar to a Wuyi Oolong, so I find myself comparing it to my Da Hong Pao, which is a bit unfair. Regardless, it is a rather nice tea, and I think it will enjoy it for quite a while.
The later infusions were interesting, especially how the sweetness that began to assert its self complemented the nutty flavors, and yet it didn’t affect the smoothness of the tea. As much as I hate to say it, this tea once again draws a comparison to Wuyi Oolongs, but it matches up better than some of the cheaper fares from that region. I got 6 infusions out of this tea, which is really a testament to how heavily roasted it was.
Anyway, the executive summary is that it’s a good tea, very smooth, nutty flavors, and something to look forward to drinking again.