Yunnan Impérial

After seeing a comment I made regarding rhubarb pie Sil generously sent some very fancy samples my way, two of which are rhubarb pie flavoured. I’m not very good with words but I’m (figuratively) oozing gratitude.. oozing is probably not the kind of imagery I want to convey but hopefully you get the point! My day was made.

I decided to try the Yunnan sample first because I can be a pretty flustered individual when I care and this kind of tea is usually a lenient one. It takes multiple steeps well, tastes light, and is fine with or without milk.

The flavour is sweet and smooth with a bit more of a build than the other Yunnan teas I’ve had. I’m not getting the pepperiness that I sometimes get from the others. Zhu Rong Yunnan is the same kind of tea as this, right? That was a fiery one, while this Yunnan is more refined with a smooth astringency that makes it an ideal cup for a light breakfast.

I don’t think I’ve coaxed everything out of it yet. Maybe a gongfu session will trick some of the other flavours out. Thanks again for giving me the chance to try this, Sil!

Thanks to Sil for this sample.

I can’t recall if I have ever had a straight yunnan before. I find this taste to be odd. Not odd in a bad way, it’s just different than what I expected. I did brew it at work so I have no control over the temp of the water I used but it was probably under boiling point.

The tea brews a nice golden colour. It smells sweet and maybe a hint of vanilla. The tea tastes light and kind of sweet and earthy. There is a bit of an astringent aftertaste but it not too bad.

This is a nice light breakfast tea in comparison to a strong one like English breakfast.