Golden Fleece

I guess I’ll be the first civilian foolish enough to talk about this tea.

As soon as you unseal the bag and get that heady aroma that’s been trapped in there, you know you’re in for something different.

I actually got out a kitchen scale, weighed my gaiwan, and then weighed in David’s recommended gram of leaf per fluid ounce of the vessel.

Uncharacteristic of myself, I even gave the leaves a rinse so that I could ensure the first steeping I drank came off “awake” leaves.

The aroma off the wet leaves will leave you speechless. It is like that sensation you get when you walk into a humidor. I don’t mean the tea smells like cigars, although, to some extent I think perhaps it does, what I mean is that there is a particular physical sensation that goes beyond smell, when you walk into the damp, close, still, thickly scented air of a humidor. And smelling this tea leaf once wet, is like that.

With the first steep I understand what Geoffrey and David have been describing in terms of texture. Drinking this tea reminds me of the sensation one gets in the mouth after engaging in wuji qigong for the better part of an hour. There is at the same time a thickness of the mouth but your mouth is watering at the same time. I’ve now been typing, and taking a conference call, and haven’t sipped the tea for perhaps ten minutes and my sinuses are still registering all the aromas and tingling sensations and my mouth is still watering and thick.

I can actually feel the small heavenly circle flowing rapidly and if I were to stand up and correct my posture, I suspect the grand heavenly circle would open up almost immediately.

My ears are ringing.

I actually need to wait a few steeps to even begin using adjectives to describe the aromas off the leaf or the cup or the flavors from the liqueur. Neither my mouth nor my brain are entirely awake right now and I know that strictly speaking neither is this tea. So, expect a follow up later today with all kinds of pretentious wine tasting words in it.

I finally opened this one today, I have been saving it for some precious uninterrupted time alone or for guests. Well the guests came first ;) I finally had a tea date with one of my former co-workers Michelle, we’ve been meaning to get together for forever and I’m so glad we made the time for it! I had selected a number of teas for her to chose from for after lunch, we went with Peacock Village Shu for after the cous-cous then after five or six infusions, she suggested we try the one I hadn’t had, just the motivation I needed!. I decided against a rinse, feeling all the infusions on this would be very special and I didn’t want to waste a drop.

Oh my this was incredibly silky, like mushroom or eggdrop soup minus the spice and bits of things. Very delicate and airy and so unlike any black tea I’ve ever had. The second and third infusions brought new mouth feel, tingling at the sides then the tip of the tongue and toward the bottom of the cup a cool sensation at the center, reminding me of powdered sugar or camphor, the ghosts of cinnamon and honey came to visit as well. We found our selves oooing and ahhing after sips, mid-conversation as new sensations occurred in our mouths.

We enjoyed five infusions before she had to leave for an appointment and I have started reinfusing again. I think I could have used a bit more leaf but it is lovely. I sent her off with a toucha each of Cornfields Shu and Chicago Tea Garden’s Sticky Rice Pu’erh as well as my last single serving packet of Teavirve’s Bailin Gongfu to enjoy at home. Next tea date we shall get to the Taiwanese Orchid Oolong and perhaps some Yabao.

I just received my first order from Verdant and I’m very excited to try out all of the teas I received. After reading the extremely fond, well written reviews I was most excited to try this one. I don’t have what you would call a “refined” palate, I’m sure there’s a lot that I miss in my inexperience but I’ll try my best. Let me start off by saying that the dry leaf smells fantastic. I honestly cannot think of proper words to describe the smell, but it was more pungent than I had imagined and very pleasant. Once brewed and allowed to cool off a bit, it was time to taste this wonderful tea. After reading the reviews, I knew I had to pay close attention to the texture of the tea, something I’m not used to doing. To me, it seems best described as a little bit thick or syrupy, and it’s a very pleasant sensation. On top of that, I get a drying sensation like that of silver needles I have tried. It’s as if I feel the little downy hairs of the tea buds dancing around on my tongue. The taste is primarily malty in a “bright” kind of way, with honey flavors comparable to Teavivre’s Yunnan Dian Hong Golden Tip. I’m enjoying this tea very much so far and I feel lucky to have been able to try it.

When I first received this tea I was actually heading out the door to do errands or golf. I do not remember nor is it important. I hastily tore into the package and smelled the aroma. I knew it was special. So I put some of the leaf into my tiny Celestial Seasons Sleepytime tin and figured there would be hot water somewhere. Still not conquering my haste I decided to sample the dry leaf between my cheek and gum. It was utterly intoxicating. My first brewing of the tea was done according to the video of David on Verdants site. Everything about this tea is true. Truly sublime.
I began to feel sick later that week and really could not stomach anything. Even tea. Even Golden Fleece. I know many of you read about my hospital stay with Ehrlichiosis so I will fast-forward to now….
As you all know I love to cold-brew. I took a tiny jar that held YS Eco Bee Farms Antioxidant Power Honey and gave it a 4 day steep. Words cannot do this golden nectar justice. I do not want to start rambling about the present here and now which is where this tea shines. This a very special tea leaf….

Dry Leaf – Sweet bread, sugary.
Wet Leaf – Raw sugar, cinnamon and vanilla scents.

1st Steep – Sugary clean taste with vanilla scent smooth and clean feeling. There is a molasses/raw sugar taste with hints of spices.

2nd Steep – Sweet vanilla, molasses/raw sugar scent. The molasses becomes more apparent as does the vanilla flavor (like vanilla bean), hints of spiciness that I can’t yet identify clearly. Clean fresh feeling.

3rd Steep – Leaves smell like caramel an molasses/raw/brown sugar. Its sweetness is still apparent with the tanginess of molasses; the spiciness comes back and then cleans away into that freshness. My cup smells like raw sugar and cooked cinnamon.

4th Steep – Slight sweetness with apparent cinnamon/clove taste, incredibly smooth for and clean feeling. Some clove aftertaste that cleans away.

5th Steep – Some of the sweetness fades and the spice notes become more apparent to the taste. I got a hint of the ‘morel’, a slight earthiness that can also be found in the clove and vanilla (if you eat from the bean).

I made several other steeps; to me they kept that slight sweetness but the spice notes and slight earthiness/woodiness of the spices or perhaps mushroom like were more evident.

Thank you Indigobloom for sending me a sample of this tea along with all the other tea goodies!

My fiancee was over when I opened the sample of this tea. He had been hearing me rave about how good this was supposed to be, so he went through the steeping process with me. He only got to stay for one steep though.

This tea is called Golden Fleece for a reason. I feel so decadent drinking this. The leaves are golden and the liquor has a golden tint to it throughout all four steeps.

The first steep took me back to thoughts of what Victorian summer garden parties would be. It was vanilla-sugar sweet, but it didn’t taste like you dumped a spoonful of sugar in. The mouthfeel is so silky and the smell is just divine. I have a hard time just describing the smell because it is something you really have to experience first hand.

The second steep was sweeter and darker at the same time. The taste started to morph to a more raw sugar sweet instead of vanilla. There is a slight spice also starting to come out. It is hard to determine which spice I am tasting because it just blends in so well with the rest of the flavors.

The third steep I had this morning. It tastes similar to the second steep, but it has a little bit more richness. The sweetness is more like brown sugar. The spice is a bit more pronounced. The closest spice I can think of is more like allspice or maybe a bit of clove.

I am currently working on the fourth steep and I never want it to end. Smooth and silky honey with just a shaving of dark chocolate. It is mingled with clove. This feels like something the ancient gods would drink or maybe even old kings and queens. It is like nothing I have ever tasted and it is just wonderful.

Thank you again Indigobloom for sending me a sample. It is a gorgeous tea and I am going to have to keep an eye out to see if I can get myself a tin if this comes back in stock (and if my funds will allow it).

Thank you Kasumi no Chajin for the sample!

Well, work has finally calmed down and my sudden strong espresso craving has subsided. So, I finally have the time to enter the notes that I have for my side-by-side tasting of “new” and “old” Golden Fleece today! I’m pretty sure that they must be different years or something, but I think I will email Verdant to ask (I still haven’t done this).

Instead of trying to figure out what my rough notes meant, I’ve decided to just put them here as is:

“Old” Golden Fleece- elegant, whiskey, peanuts still covered in cellulose, silky texture, Morel mushrooms, sour.

“New” Golden Fleece- unripened banana aroma, earthy, mushroom, vanilla, wet forest floor, foam on leaves.

I remember liking them both very much, and I am unable to come to a strong opinion as to which I prefer.

I have been coveting this tea for a long time ever since I received it as a generous sample. Today is the day I finally get to know this enchanting tea as I have come into some more through the tea of the month club. Oh the JOY!

The leaves are beautifully golden and fuzzy.. with a smell reminiscent of mushrooms and sweet black tea from the south.
208˚F, 5sec sweet and luscious, reminiscent of warm vanilla pudding that has been sprinkled with brown sugar. Final lingering notes remind me of a baked sweet potato.. again with brown sugar. Heavenly
208˚F, 8sec Again a lovely sweet edge to this tea – honey and raw sugar. Silky smooth which makes me think of malt, but it’s not malt. There is some allspice and nutmeg notes that peak out occasionally. Slight drying in the back of my mouth the end of the sip – a nice contrast to the silk.
208˚F, 11sec A repeat of steep two, though this time it began to take on a little more of a savoury edge. I drank it too fast while writing a grad application that I forgot to take notes! Dang.

What a gorgeous black tea. I am so thankful I got to try it!… I will keep appreciating the remaining 10+ steeps that I will be drinking tonight. I missed you tea and Steepster!

Thanks to David at Verdant Tea for enclosing a free sample of this more pricey tea in my recent order. Other places just throw in the same cheap stuff no matter what you order-I’m talking about you TEAVANA Youthberry, among others.

Quality Yun Nan Dian Hong is kind of a special tea to me. It’s relaxed and mellow, meant to be savored. I only drink it when I know that I have time to get 3 infusions out of it-no one and done cups like with a breakfast tea.

The dry leaves here are medium-long, tighly-rolled, and colored golden brown. The brewed leaves turn chocolate brown and contain notes of cinnamon and sweet potato. Liquor is a pleasing copper hue.

The flavor tastes mostly of the sweet potato and cinnamon (no orange citrus notes like in some Dian Hong). I also detect some other spices-perhaps clove. The cup is very smooth. Zero bitterness or astringency. Good stuff.

I have had 3 infusions so far, brewing one minute longer each time. Very nice.

Of course I ended up buying some! And now I am finally trying it. I’m using my little gaiwan and I even took a bottle of filtered water from work to use with it (my first time using non-tap water lol, I knoww… but I think Toronto tap water is actually quite good as far as tap water goes). First I did a rinse.

First steep – I have never had a tea like this! This seems to be my first impression trying every tea from Verdant, lol, but it’s true. There’s something earthy about the smell of the dry leaves that makes me picture a forest after the rain, and it comes through in this first steep. When I close my eyes I see the forest from Totoro.

2nd – This steep is a little lighter. I can taste the same soft pretzel-y baked goods flavour I’ve found in other Yunnan teas. And there is a definite sweetness in the finish, mmmm. Almost like icing.

3rd – The sweet flavour is really coming out, it’s a bright, sugary taste, but subtle too. I had no idea what to expect with this tea, but wow. It seems like it would be right for any season, any time of day, as long as I had time to sit down with it.

4th – Slightly spicy, still sweet. The forest imagery has been staying in my mind the entire time. I feel like I have to comment on the texture, it feels somehow soft and makes me think of mushrooms. Everything comes together to create something I feel lucky to have experienced.

I got up to 7 steeps and it’s still going strong. I have to go somewhere but I’m gonna save the leaves and come back to it when I get home… I don’t want to waste any! This is obviously a really amazing tea, it’s like a secret place I didn’t know existed but am totally in love with.

Thanks to Sil for a sample of this rare tea! I wanted to truly take the time to try and appreciate its nuances, so I thought Sunday morning seemed like a good time.

I don’t have much to compare this to, since I’m still living in Flavour Town, but I think I liked it more than Laoshan Black. It was a bit more mild (that being said I steeped it three times in a small cup with only a heaping tsp of tea – trying to make it last so it wasn’t brewed very strong).

It was earthy but less so than Laoshan Black. I can see why it’s impressive.

I tried reaaal hard to get an idea of this whole “mouthfeel” thing that people with more teaxpertise (tea expertise) than myself have commented on, but I’m still at the “It’s hot liquid, and in my mouth it feels like hot liquid” phase. It did seem to be pretty smooth though. Didn’t seem to dry my mouth out as much as others.

It brewed up a light yellow color, probably would have been darker if I’d used more tea.

Smelled pleasant, only a bit earthy, slightly sweet. Definitely not noticing notes of baked goods as others have commented. But I doubt I’m ever likely to pull dessert notes out of a straight tea.

I drank it with no additives, maybe with some sugar it would become more flavorful. Seems a shame to do that though, as it’s so nice on its own.

I think I would actually attempt to buy this one. It was different, and not being one for straight black tea, I liked that this did have some unique flavour to it, even if I’m not able to describe exactly what that flavour may be!

(96 degrees for 1-2 min)

Sample from Bonnie. Thank you.

This tea scares me. I’ve been put off it because the reviews are all so good, it is rare, and I feared that I might not be able to do justice to it with my tea-making skills. Worse yet, because of all of the above I felt that I needed to set aside a goodly amount of time to appreciate it properly. So, today I decided to take the bull by the horns, gird my loins and leap before looking. I’m glad I did.

I made it in a small gaiwan, thus giving myself enough leaf for another session, and I followed the guidelines of very short steeps. This has worked beautifully. The tea proved to be creamy and mellow. At first I got cherry flavours at the back of it and then it evolved into a winter spices taste that made me think of Christmas. It is lovely and I am pleased that I finally took the plunge. Better yet, I am only six steeps in, so I still have a goodly number of steeps left to drink when I return to it. It will make a fitting reward for getting some work done this afternoon. I had better get writing so that I can enjoy more of it …

Ok, so this is the tea that got the swap going with Indigobloom and I was waiting for a time where I could re-steep easily.

I don’t have a gaiwan or anything for gong fu steeping. I used a bag from DAVIDs, boiling water, and a measuring cup. I don’t usually measure the water…I just fill my Steeper to a point and brew. Because of the nature of the steeping on the website, and reading reviews here, I figured this was the closest I could come to East meets West steeping. I did not get rid of the first steep or “rinse” as I really wanted to max out what I could with my small sample.

First steep…my little special tea cup was actually less than 8 oz, so while I started the steep in that as I poured the boiling water from the measuring cup, I poured the rest in my mug, followed by what was in my tea cup, and the bag. I think I probably just shook the bag around a bit and dunked it up and down. I’m guessing this was all in the 20-30 second time frame. The brew that formed was light and pale and golden. It smelled very bready, considering how short a steep it was. My first sip was a spicy one, a sharp peppery spice at the tip of my tongue. I wasn’t prepared for that. Subsequent sips were not as sharp, and I could taste the bread again, but more like a honey bread. I will mention that this was drunk bare, which I rarely do. I could taste a subtle sweet note at the back of my mouth, sort of like an after taste. I don’t think I picked up any mushroom notes, which is good for me since I am not fond of mushrooms, but it is possible that was I did taste was a little of the roasted sweet potato that some have picked up on.

Second steep was longer, and I added sugar, but not much. This steep was stronger, and a bit more astringent than the first. The basic flavours appeared, though the brew was darker, and it was, as I said, a little more astringent.

Third steep I went a bit more Western, probably about a minute steep, and I used more sugar and also milk. I’m getting a very classic Chinese Yunnan taste from this…something I have had in the past, something that is very comforting to me. I do still get some of the peppery notes every now and again, and the malty honey bun flavour is what permeates most in this. The milk and sugar add a sweet creamy touch. It is a simplicity in flavour that makes it so comforting, even if the notes are a little complex still.

All in all, I find this to be of very good quality. It’s taste is a bit like liquid gold. It has all the traits of a good yunnan tea that I love, but a silky and glossy golden feel to it. It’s like a tea spun out of gold. Light and bright but balanced.

I don’t know if I will get more steeps out of this one or not, especially as my last steep had the bag in with the milky water. If I do one more, it will probably be more Western style, and continue with the milk and sugar.

I have enough of the sample for one more round of steeps, so I will use those leaves wisely.

Thanks agin to Indigobloom for sharing this delightful tea with me.

This is my 3 session with this tea and I must say I like it,but I don’t love it. I notice the texture that everyone is talking about and it is interesting. I am not getting any astringency from it which is a nice surprise from a black tea. It is a very smooth tea and it has a nice morel mushroom taste to it. I get the cinnamon in later steepings. I am happy that I got to try it.

Holy ambrosia! I now understand how Jason felt after prying the legendary golden fleece from the clutches of King Aeetes. This tea just makes you feel powerful, like you’re caressing some coveted treasure of the gods, attempting to hide it from their jealous eyes. Remind me again why I waited this long to order some of this tea?

While not the most complex tea flavor-wise, it is a magnificent textural tea. Please don’t get me wrong, this tea’s flavor is supremely balanced, and oh-so delicious—a tea with top-notch character. But really where this tea shines is in the mouthfeel. I will reiterate what most others have already claimed: it is silky smooooth. However, it’s not static from what I’ve tasted in my sessions with this tea. I wrote twice as many notes on textural fluctuations than flavors throughout steeps. I’ll outline my notes:

Steep 1-2: airily light, silky, melts away as swallowed
Steep 3: becomes heavier and thicker, like velvet
Steep 4: becomes lighter, but more creamy and soft
Steep 5-6: light and silky again
Steep 7: same as last steep, but with a sparkling texture that tingles the back of the throat
Steep 8: back to creamy
Steep 9: back to silky

As for the flavor details, this dian hong tastes like candy. Especially during the first steeps where the liquor is smooth and melty, I can’t get those Werther’s Original caramel hard candies out of my mind when I’m sipping. These combined with raw cane sugar, a hint of cloves, and malt make up an amazingly well-balanced body in the first few steeps. Going on into the third and fourth steep, the heaviness of the liquor compliments darker cocoa and mocha flavors as spices gently increase and a honeyed sweetness meets them midway. These notes are very well complimented by strong, wafting aromas of chocolate and toffee from the wet leaves and liquor, respectively. Continuing on, caramel flavors increase, accompanied by a new tapioca-like taste, while the intense sugary tastes subside for a steep or two.

At this point, an aftertaste has been well-established, as hints of licorice and toffee play in the back of the throat. Onto the seventh steep! The liquor’s aroma becomes quite strong now, whereas it had been lighter and less pronounced in the beginning. Playing on the sparkling texture, the flavor develops a syrupy sweetness that meshes with increasing malt and tapioca flavors. Steep eight is really where this tea came out for me. It was nicely thick and creamy, developing some complexities of an earthy or mossy quality and some faint astringency, which added nice depth to the taste established by the previous steep. From this point on, this tea mostly reverted back to the flavor profile of the beginning, creating a nice and even bell curve of flavors, if you will.

Other miscellaneous notes:
- The evolution of flavor after a sip is really quite fantastic. It starts off full of flavor, but it keeps gradually expanding, becoming full-bodied before slowly fading away into an aftertaste. I think this has one of the most lingering flavors of any tea I’ve had recently.

- The leaves are really quite amazing. Beautiful colors and sheen when dry, with an interesting springiness to them and a soft texture. When wet, the quality is even more apparent. These are probably the most consistent appearing leaves I’ve seen; every single one is exactly what it should be, nothing extraneous. Oh! And they smell heavenly. Honey, vanilla, a light dusting of spice, dried fruits, and caramel. There was something else that I couldn’t put my finger on, but after just reading the other reviews, I must agree there is an uncanny sweet potato aroma to them.

- After most steeps, a delicate layer of tea oils is visible.

Sorry for the length! Thanks for sticking through the whole thing!

I’ve been saving this little sample for the longest time and I just needed to find the right moment to enjoy it. The end of a school block is never a good time, but I’m now on spring break for a week – so it’s TEA TIME!

The scent of this tea is of rich sweet potato and milk. Oh, this smells so delicious!
Sipping… this is a solid and smooth tea. It’s definitely got that sweet potato flavor with a bit of milkiness in the background. I’m not picking up on any astringency.. it’s just smooth & soft. Quite yummy!

I’m not sure I would buy this again as it’s pretty expensive and there are other teas I like more. Sadly, I’m also not getting the “wow factor” everyone else seems to get with this tea. This was a nice treat, though. Glad to have been able to try this.

FINALLY got to pick up my Verdant order- and I have all weekend to enjoy it! Actually yesterday was a pretty awesome tea day in general – got this, met up with momo to swap a few teas with (side note: sorry about acting like a squirrel on amphetamines – I’m not always like that, I was just excited about making a tea-friend!), and the ever-lovely post office left the pink note meaning my TeaVivre order is stateside!

I was super excited to try all of the teas I got, and the boyfriend, knowing that these were all pure teas, was totally on board with this. I let him choose which one to start off with and this was what he picked.

Steep notes: western style (need to get a gaiwan at some point…). 4 tsp. leaf, 500 ml. water, breville at the below parameters for the first steep, then 4 minutes, then 8 minutes for the second and third steeps.

The dry leaf is so beautifully distinctive – and fuzzy! The scent was sweet potato – starchy and lightly sugared. It reminded me of Teavivre’s Yunnan dan hong, but I think those leaves were smaller, and I don’t quite remember that downy covering on them.

I am someone who really likes bold black tea. I’m working on appreciating and detecting more of the subtleties in flavors, but as a rule, the louder, the better. Texture is another thing I’m really sensitive to – I like the thick, chewy feel of stronger black teas. If it’s watery/thin it just isn’t as good.

Steep one: Taste-wise, this is verrry delicate and subtle. I’m not getting any of the sweet potato in this. If I think about it – maybe earthy, maybe a bit sweet, but it kind of seems like one minute wasn’t long enough for me. The texture of this is AMAZING, though – very silky and honeyed, it just kind of coats your mouth. And it is VERY smooth – no astringence at all.

Steep two: 4 minutes – since one minute didn’t seem enough for me, I went ahead and jumped to a four minute steep to see what would happen. I do feel like I got more of a black tea taste this way – still light, still smooth, and also still not astringent. This time there is a little more of that earthy black tea taste. Possibly a hint of spice (cinnamon, mostly, though pepper is also there, and that is surprisingly a good combination.)

Steep three: I can’t believe how smooth this still is, especially after an 8 minute steep! It is a pretty mahogany color, has even more of a peppery touch at the finish, and it’s starting to bite back at the end of the steep. But still cinnamon sweetness with some malt/wood in there, and quite strong, too. I could easily get another infusion out of this, but I may have to save it because I am kind of waterlogged right now!

I can’t rate this numerically. It isn’t really in a league with anything else that I have. This probably doesn’t make sense, but it’s not really a beverage so much as an experience, something akin to meditation or yoga in its ability to make you focus inward and relax. It’s also not something you could drink every day, or really in any other scenario but one that will allow you plenty of time to explore it in it’s many forms.

Bottom line, though it’s an amazing tea – and definitely worthy of the novel I just wrote singing its’ praises!

The first time I tried this tea in a sample from Bonnie, I had no idea that this was a difficult tea for Verdant to obtain. So, my first cup was consumed without knowing how difficult it would be to get. What a shame! Beautifully flavored tea and as someone before me stated, has the oddly beautiful scent of mushrooms.

After Christmas, I finally had time to get back into my tea collection and enjoy a few cups with my new tea kettle. This one was the first one I decided to try again. There’s nothing like sipping a beautiful cup of tea while watching the snow fall. This tea is delicious and I’m tempted to buy out the remainder of Verdant’s supply, despite the fact that I am poor. Thanks Bonnie for parting with some of yours. Now that I know what I had, I definitely appreciate your sending me some. You’re the best!

This is such a treat. So silky smooth I’d hardly recognize it as a Yunnan black. I don’t think I can describe it better than anyone already has, but I’m on steep 12(?) and it’s still going strong. I’ve just been enjoying all day. This doesn’t have the kick I usually get (and enjoy) from Yunnan blacks, but it is a great way to delve into the flavor.

Between how much of Rishi’s China Black I’ve been drinking, and the deliciousness of this one, I decided to rechristen my one (barely used) yixing pot – I got it from Samovar, and made Maiden’s Ecstasy in it once or twice, but I’m just not that into puerh (yet), so it’s been sitting unused in my cupboard for awhile now. Sad :( So today, I boiled it in fresh water for a while, then let it soak in a pot with a couple steeps of the Golden Fleece and some China Breakfast. I’m excited about this change!

I don’t have the words or the computer to do this justice. Writing on an iPad just doesn’t work for some things. First steep, western style as I have no gaiwan :( and I’m looking forward to the next steeps. I’ll try and write more later to do this justice.