Write a tea journal, see what others are drinking and get recommendations from people you trust. Sign Up or Learn More
This exquisite black tea hails from the Jing Mai Mangjing region of China’s southwestern Yunnan province, made from the 1300-year-old tea trees found there – some of the oldest living tea trees in the world. The people of Jing Mai Mangjing’s high mountain tea villages climb their ancient tea trees to harvest the new growth leaves and buds used to create this organic and Fair Trade Certified tea. It is quite tippy, rich with golden buds and large, delicately twisted leaves. The full-bodied infusion is deep red with a molasses-like sweetness, a subtle milkiness and light coppery finish.
Sustainability is a cornerstone of Arbor Teas’ business philosophy. In addition to offering an exclusively organic selection of teas, they recently became the first tea company to offer their whole catalog in 100% backyard compostable packaging. They’ve also carbon-offset the entire supply chain of their products, from origin to the customer, making Arbor Teas the greenest option for Earth-conscious tea drinkers, and one of few tea companies recognized by Green America.
This is a lovely Yunnan. The taste is smooth and there is an underlying creamy, caramel-y sweetness that is very nicely played against the other notes in this tea. I am tasting notes of spice – almost peppery. Beautifully autumnal.
I’m off to write a review for this for the SororiTEA Sisters blog!
Going on vacation totally messed with my normal tea-drinking schedule so I’m happy to get back home if only for the chance to dig back into some teas I’ve been wanting to try. (Mind you, lack of my regular tea brewing ability was about the only thing close to negative for my vacation and the beach being half a block from my apartment? Made it fairly worth it.)
This one is another sample provided by Arbor Teas. I generally enjoy Yunnans lots so I’m looking forward to it. The smell of the dry leaf is nicely promising – sweet and malty and thick and yummy. Mmm. The steeped tea has the same great smell but with an added creamy undertone and something almost red-wine-like.
Initially, the taste struck me as a bit watery and thin on the front end; sweetness and malt and a hint of tasty (tasty, mind you, not icky) cardboard came next in at the middle of the sip, then a delightfully sweet and almost floral taste hit at the end of the sip and expanded through the aftertaste. The sweet flavor was more of a caramelized sugar sweetness than the raisin- or fig-like sweetness I typically get from Yunnans. After the tea cooled a little more, the initial taste no longer felt watery, just smooth and with a thinner mouthfeel, which I think threw me off a little at the first.
Second steep (4min) is smooth, sweet and has a touch more texture. The hint of cardboard-ish starch is gone, as is most of the malty except in the aftertaste and I’m left with a nicely sweet, smooth, tasty tea. Very nice.
2.7g/7oz
Sample package label:
Ingredients: Organic Chinese Black Tea, Fair-Trade Certified, USDA Organic
Steep 212*F, 3 – 5 minutes.
8-oz water with total dissolved solids (TDS) of 23 ppm, boiled
1 level Tevanna teaspoon, no sweeteners, milk or cream
This tea has a subtle earthy fragrance.
Dark reddish hue
First Infusion:
3-min: Initial taste – Very smooth. I then steeped it an additional 2-min.
5-min: Very smooth & rich, with a wonderful cream-like mouthfeel. There was zero hint of bitterness or astringency.
2nd Infusion (5-min): Very close to the first cup.
3rd Infusion (6-min): Similar to the 2nd cup, but with lighter body
Impression: This is my first Golden Yunnan and it’s excellent! I enjoyed the first cup even more than the Arbor Teas Assam I drank yesterday. It has a soft mouth-feel that I didn’t experience with yesterday’s Assam. It also has a subtle wine-like taste similar to Keemun tea and a light natural sweetness – no sweetener needed.
Plan on re-steeping – your teacup will be empty before you know it and it’s too good to waste after only a single infusion.
Thanks to Arbor Teas for providing this generous size free sample.
3/12/13 Update: My wife and I re-steeped this tea today and we both independently came to the conclusion that it wasn’t as satisfying as today’s original infusion.
