Panyang Tippy Golden Needles - ZP79 Tea by Upton Tea Imports

4 Tasting Notes

SimplyJenW 3 tasting notes

Tea of the afternoon…..

I have been back and forth whether to order this one in a full size or a sample, and just went for the 125g pouch when I needed a refill on Rose Congou. It is no secret that this is my ideal profile for tea, and I am not disappointed. It is less malty than a golden monkey, but has the characteristic Fujian cocoa notes. It also does not have the smoke of a Keemun. There is definitely a decent amount of heaviness as far as mouthfeel. While I don’t think it is quite as good as Tan Yang Te Ji from TeaSpring, it is certainly less expensive (~$3.70 per oz compared to ~$5.80 per oz). It is almost in the range of an everyday tea for me. I can live with that! I will have to try a resteep!

Usual mug/tiny teapot method.

2012-08-30 17:11:11 -0400

Boiling

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Tea of the morning…..

This one is nearing the bottom of the tin as I am making an effort to reduce the stash before acquiring more tea. I was intending to not repurchase this, but I am seriously reconsidering. I would call this more of an everyday Tanyang/Panyang, where my TeaSpring Tanyang is more of a special day tea. I know every day should be a special day, but that gets to be very taxing on the tea budget. It is just under 2/3 the price of my special day version.

I think it needs just slightly cooler water than boiling to get the best results. It cuts the slight earthiness I get when I brew according to my standard method for black teas. Heavy mouthfeel, cocoa notes, slight maltiness, and even a little roastyness. While it is not what I would call a bargain tea, it is well priced for what you get.

Usual teapot method with a slightly cooler water temp.

2013-03-08 12:16:43 -0500

200 °F / 93 °C

4 min 0 sec

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Tea of the morning…..

I had completely forgotten about this one. (Yes, admittedly, my stash is a little cumbersome at this point!) I think I am at the point where I need to take inventory again. I have given quite a bit of tea away (due to the fact I can’t drink as much tea as I used to) and I have added a select few things here and there to my stash. I have almost given up on green teas and oolongs because black teas are where my heart lies. It is not that I don’t appreciate them, I just can’t seem to make myself crave them. It is time to just accept that I will always be a black tea lover/western brewer. I am also at the point where I need to just drink all the expensive stuff by the pot instead of saving it for a rainy day.

Notes of light cocoa (as opposed to dark cocoa), slight caramel, and a hint of astringency at the end. Definitely something fruity in there, too. I am pretty sure it will not become a staple, but I am happy with the purchase.

Usual teapot method.

2013-01-27 10:16:28 -0500

Boiling

4 min 0 sec

Dinosara

Oh Monday morning, you come so quickly. I needed a nice strong black tea to wake me up (and I will likely need another to keep me away during lecture this afternoon) so I chose this one, which came to me recently from SimplyJenW! She knows that I’ve been really into Panyang/Tanyangs and other related blacks lately, so she generously sent me a sample of this one along with the Dammann Fréres Earl Grey.

The dry leaf smells promising; a bit caramelly, a bit alfalfa-ish, a bit cocoa-y. Steeped the cocoa notes come way further, and it’s a bit roasted cacao nibs in character. This is a pretty tasty panyang. It doesn’t totally bowl me over but it is a very pleasant tea to be sipping on this morning while I am writing exam questions. It’s got a slight astringency to it and I’m wondering if it wouldn’t be benefited by a slightly lower steep temp, though it isn’t really bitter bitter, just kind of like cacao nibs or maybe cocoa powder. I don’t really find many caramel or honey notes but those can be pretty elusive. It does remind me of the base of their Rose Congou and I can almost taste phantom rose, though maybe that’s left over from the rose petal confit I had with my yogurt and granola this morning. Thanks again for the sample, Jen!

Taking a page from tunes&tea’s book, this tea was consumed while listening to the new Divine Fits album.

2012-09-10 08:26:27 -0400

Boiling

3 min 0 sec

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