Master Han's Wild Picked Yunnan Black

I decided some time ago that my one luxury in life would be tea.
I don’t go out to the movies or restaurants (unless I have an occasion) and shopping for clothes is an old habit. (I have too much from when that seemed important.)

Tea is my #1 pleasure.
My contact with other human beings is primarily through discussing tea, reviewing tea online and drinking tea with family and tea shop buddies.

I want the best TEA that I can get. Sometimes it isn’t possible, and sometimes…I find a way.

When I read about Master Han’s and Anxi Fo Shou Black Tea’s I knew I had to have them, if even just an ounce. I ran to my computer as soon as they became available. Then, I waited….

This morning when I opened my curtains to look outside, there were glowing silvery ice crystal flakes, floating down without the will to be snow or stick to anything. This is intense TEA WEATHER! I’m ready with my newly arrived tea!

I have a spotted green/brown gaiwan that I chose to use for the tasting.

I followed the Verdant instructions for rinsing, proportion of leaf to water (I used a little less leaf because I’m a hyper-sensitive taster) and used the suggested steep times.

I’ve never looked at the tasting notes of other people first.
I like to make up my own mind and then check them against other people to see if there’s a match or not.
This time however, I sat with the notes from the website as though I was at a tasting with another person in a tearoom and we were going back and forth discussing the tea.

One of the first amazing but truly Brilliant flavor discoveries was Olive.
(I have to give it to whomever picked this out of the flavors because it’s so spot on.)
The fruitiness of olive oil…pungent and rich…wow! In a tea?!

I began to blither on in my head…picturing myself driving towards Elliot Road and the incline to my old home in Paradise.
The country road was lined with Olive Groves. Sheep and cows grazed between the rows of dusty green trees, the red and gold clay of the Sierra foothills under their feet and purple wildflowers lining the irrigation channel at the edge of the road.
There are tasting rooms for Olives in this part of California, tasting rooms for almonds (ah-mands is how it’s pronounced by the farmers (ah as in achoo)), and wine. Kiwi stands, peaches and apples. http://flic.kr/p/dL2zmW

The next pour, there was Brandy…in the scent of the liquor, which was beautiful clear amber, honey, golden and luscious. (I can’t even go into how the wet leaves smelled.)

The Brandy…scent.
I read that there is whisky and that was not in the scent, it was in the taste. Yes, in the fruity sweetness with a broad finish of the tea the whisky went deep… and lingered way down in the chest like liquor does. A rolling, welcome warmth. (I loved the sensation.)

There were notes about other tastes but I was not tasting them yet. I stopped somewhere else at the third steeping and found a thick syrupy quince membrillo taste, ruby red garnet yam right before they disolve into sugar. Something was changing like a mash.

If there’s anywhere the tea was taking me, it was to the beginning of Spring. Bursting forth…here I am with all my glory! Pushing up and out of a slumber and becoming many things.

From the forth steep forward, I tasted full Grape.
I not only worked at 2 wineries, but I come from a family (on my dad’s side) from Napa and Yountville. Wine people.
This tea doesn’t taste like a cloying too sweet grape, not like a dark grape or a darjeeling with a muscat flavor.

The flavor is something else. I’ve had wines from some areas that are semi sweet and golden, grown in hot climates that are ambrosia.
This is that Springtime golden grape taste, not buttery and not like a chardonney.

In Murphy’s, there’s a winery called Ironstone.
The first time I went to Ironstone, it was early Spring and the roads leading from the small town to the winery had been planted with Daffodils and they were in bloom. Winding country roads with flowers and cows in the fields…on and on. It was magical. http://flic.kr/p/dKW5wX
Ironstone makes a wine that reminds me of this tea, so does Castillo di Amarosa http://www.castellodiamorosa.com/ (worth a visit).

The meaty fresh coconut aftertaste isn’t sweet. It’s more on the savory nutty side of coconut.

Pinning down such a complex and vibrant tea isn’t easy. One amazing Ping of flavor brings to mind a time or place…then another Ping of flavor…and off I go again! This tea is full of Pings!

If you can manage this limited addition tea, do so. The experience is worth it. So much so…I can’t wait to share this with someone!

When something is such a one-of-a-kind and has given so much to me. I can’t compare it with anything else and say, this is better than…what? It’s wild picked for goodness sake. It’s fantastic!

It was a crazy morning. My son had a birthday party to go to at one of those bouncy castle places. Needless to say, by the time we got back, I was ready to relax on the sofa, watch some march madness and drink a nice cup of tea. I had a little bit of cake at the party and as much as I love dessert teas, I don’t actually enjoy dessert all that much. So I wanted a smooth straight tea to help me recover from the sugar overload.

I bought a gaiwan a few days ago but was waiting to use it until I was over this cold. I think today’s the day! I looked up the tea on the verdant website to see its exact brewing instructions and then watched the video as well. Pretty cool that he does that. He said that the tea can get like 15 steeps. Crazy. I don’t think I’ll get that far because, well, it seems like a lot of work. And this is pretty much my only break of the day until bedtime.

So I boiled my water, rinsed the tea. Then steeped it for a few seconds. Poured it into my cup. I did that several times. I think I’m on 4 or something now. This is exactly what I needed. Yum. I can’t tell you any flavors I taste, just that it’s definitely got a whole mouth feel and is really smooth. So far it has gotten sweeter with every steep, which is pretty cool. I can see this being a nap time tradition on extra trying days.

Okay, the next game is starting. I love march madness. My husband gets a kick out of my strange combination of interests. Beer, sports, and tea. (I have many more, but those 3 are pretty dominant :-)

David generously provided this sample to me with my last Verdant order! I do so love a good black tea, so I was quite excited to give this a shot. Especially given how amazing every tea from Verdant has been so far!

Preparation notes: Entire sample in the Breville, 500 ml. water. According to the Western brewing parameters on the site, it was recommended to steep the tea initially for one minute (seemed a bit long but I’m trusting the powers that be with this one), pour it off and then steeped at the below parameters.

The smell of this dry – guh. Gives new meaning to the word cocoa, really. Very fresh cocoa powder with an undertone of fresh earth. That is a smell that never gets old.

The steep, at 4 minutes, is a little light on flavor, but I’m really betting its due to that one minute I poured off (kicking myself so darn hard for that now – ugh!). But I do get a thick oily texture – and it does have a sort of olive/peppery bite to it. And it’s kind of nutty toward the end of the sip as well – most like walnuts I think. For the darkness of the body itself, I was surprised that it wasn’t heavier really. But it is still quite smooth and full on the tongue. It has a brightness to it, too – like a Darjeeling or Ceylon. Maybe that is where people get grape? Given Darjeelings have that quality?

Hmm. I’m not as blown away with this one as the Laoshan black so far, but that is more to personal taste as I love bold, heavy blacks. I’m curious to see where the taste is going to go, though, so I will be trying a second steep tomorrow. I’ll update then!

EDIT: Second steep, 8 minutes. I actually ended up having this cold because I forgot about it before work yesterday :(. But it was not bad – just lighter on flavor. In general I think this just isn’t robust enough for my coarse palate. :) But I’m super glad I was given the chance to try it!

Decided i would try this one western style today and save the last bit to try gonfu another time. I think this tea is over my head. Or i’m having taste issues and don’t realise it (stupid allergies) Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s a lovely tea but as i go through the steepings, I am not getting nearly anything that others have. Overall this pretty much tastes like a fine black tea. I suspect that is in part to my preference to strong bold blacks. I’ll save the rest for a rainy day and see where that journey takes me then.

It’s been a great day! The rehearsal with the Bass player went on for hours, he’s a really nice guy & it was fun! Then a guitar player friend called, & it looks like he’s going to come sit in on a few tunes (no rehearsal…). Also, I’m planning to do “A Love Supreme”, by John Coltrane, essentially a version similar to the Alice Coltrane version, sort of, with a friend reading the poem that was originally recited by Swami Satchidinanda! Check it out at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBGyfOh5-x8 Our version will just be harp, bass, & maybe guitar, with voice at the beginning & end. I’ve wanted to do this version for years!! Of course, the improv section will be totally different.

Anyway, my head is racing with excitement, & I don’t really have much to say about this tea, sorry. I had it western style, 3 steepings so far, & it is quite nice. Right now, on the 3rd cup, I’m really tasting the olive oil reference, and it has such a lovely creamy kind of texture. I promise a better review next week!

It’s been a really long time since I posted a review, mostly becasue things have been amazingly busy for a semester where I only have 13 credits. Anyways, midterms are over, and I have a few weeksto relax before the next crisis/test/project is due.

I prepared this tea with near-boiling water in a cast-iron teapot, and let it steep for 20 seconds. I’ve actually had this tea before, and I personally feel that it benefits from a slightly longer initial steep, but that’s just a personal opinion. The resulting tea is amazingly sweet, yet it retains the Yunnan linen mouthfeel. I also agre with the Verdant tasting notes that this tea is very remeniscient of grapes, which is a flavor that I normally don’t like yet was absolutely perfect. AFter the sucess of this cup, I’m anxiously await the future developements of this tea.

I prepared the second steep with near boiling water and let the leaves soak for 10 seconds. The result is mostly the same, but with one very improtnat change: The linen mouthfeel is starting to transition into something else, but I’m not quite sure what. the only other thing of note is that the sweetness is a bit more muted than before, but grape flavor is still very distinct. On a sidee note, when I poured the hot water over the leaves this time the entire room was fileld with a delightful aroma of grapes and pines like David wrote on this tea’s page. Considereing that it’s the first thing in quite some time to get past first my headcold and now my mild seasonal allergies, it was truly a wonderful experience.

Music of the Day – Nabucco by Giusseppe Verdi
Link – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xz6GBsJltxE
while the link above isn’t the exact recording I have (Mine is a remastered recording from 1965 with Lamberto Gardelli conducting), it was the best one I could find on Youtube.

This tea smells immediately different from what I’ve had recently (which are savory Yunnan’s and dark malty black teas). The leaves are beautiful twisted loose curls, not golden nor black but silvered brown. The scent of the dry leaves are very hard to describe but the wet leaves smell floral and “dry”. The first sip is light and bright with a brief hint of cocoa and then sparkle, sparkle, sparkle, that fine mineral sparkle so lovely and cooling.

The second infusion is indeed dry but in a wonderful way like scotch. There are woodsy notes as well as the floral and bit of smoke. My thought is that this tea must indeed be made by a master. It reminds me more of Oriental Beauty and sheng than any Chinese black teas I’ve had experience with. Herbaceous notes and camphor pop up every now and then, with whispers of that first cocoa and prickles of pepper on the sides of the tongue.

Third infusion is herbaceous and peppery. Cooling and warming at the same time. Turns a bit savory and salty in the middle of the sip but not as much as the Jin Jun Mei I had yesterday and this morning, it is still floral in the beginning and in the finish and aftertaste. Now there is a battle on my tongue competing notes of sweet and salty, floral and peppery, cool and dry causing it to tingle and pulse.

In the first few sips of the fourth infusion, all the tastes of the third infusion are present only stonger and more solid. The tea is developing more body and less effervescence. And as the body develops, a slight butteriness is born and yet the tongue buzzes and the sensation from the tea is so thick and heavy you could bite into it. There is a hint of fruit here at the end of cup, that reminds me of gum and kiwi? And the buzzing of my tongue is spreading to the base of my neck and down my spine and arms and I am reminded that I must eat. Break.

Note that I wrote this note without looking at the tea’s description or other tasting notes (besides reading them a month ago) but now after reading, I realize now that the butteriness is more like olive oil and the notes I was finding similar to Oriental Beauty were muscatel and the fruit notes did have a grape and apple (gum) I got the sheng on my own though. Yay for sitting and listening to tea, it’s been awhile and this was certainly an intense experience that I hope to resume after food.

I could have sworn I made a note on this before..oh well, I guess not. Anyways, this is a mini sipdown! As I still have a sample of it from the TOMC last month. Now, I love the aged yunnan white from Verdant, which is sadly sold out, but this tea has many notes that remind me of it!

As I thought I logged this before, I didn’t take note of the dry smell. Today, I did all the steps for this tea, the whole nine yards..I heated my little gongfu pot (my replacement of the old one which broke a few weeks ago) with boiling water before putting in the remainder of my sample package (3.5 – 4 g) and then I did a fast rinse and then poured water in and pretty much poured it into the cup as fast as I could. The smell is very Yunnan and delicious, with honey notes and a nice crisp scent in there as well, maybe the grapes, as there’s a hint of dry fruitness and a wildness that I really like.

As for flavor, I really like this tea. I remember the first time I had it, I was ready to buy 2 oz of it haha. I still would like that, but as I have this month’s TOMC coming with 3 oolongs I think, I can’t buy anymore tea from Verdant for a bit haha. I can definitely taste the likeness to the yunnan white, but this one is more roasty and deeper. The olive oil note is definitely there, with that dry fruit as well. I imagine if I was in Greece, this tea would be spot on, because I haven’t even been there and this tea is making me think of it! The sweetness is also there, which I really like. I don’t get any scotch like flavor I don’t think, or the coconut, but it is still very nice.

Overall, this is another delicious tea from Verdant. If there is some of this in stock when I decide to place another order, I might have to get some more. I will enjoy a few steeps of this on this dreary, snowing day (it’s always snowing here sigh). Thanks again for a delicious tea, Verdant! Happy I have another sample pack of this!

Just lost my entire tea log and I’m not going to type that whole thing again.

In summary: tastes good, I like it better with milk and sugar still, I will try Western style brewing next time. My taste buds are not sophisticated enough to pick up tastes like others do in each individual steep beyond things like less bitter, smoother, sweeter. My experience with a gaiwan is interesting, but not something I’m quite ready for.

I’m not going to rate this until I drink it Western style.

I had a bit of this on Saturday while running around like a crazy person and also half-dead from a severe sinus infection. I can’t claim that I actually tasted it at all. But no worries, I have more and will be able to provide notes soon.

I really want to be talking about the ‘92 Menghai that I had yesterday and the ’05 Haiwan I’m drinking right now, but the “add a tea” functionality is failing hard, so they will have to wait until the technical gremlins subside.

Meanwhile, please stand by [cue Girl from Ipanema]

Master Han’s Wild Picked Yunnan Black – Verdant Tea
Dry: Spice, Floral, Soft malt, Himalayan salt, elusive citrus and roasted tomato. There is an elusive autumn rain, oceanic note that is more impression than specific aroma, like a memory hidden in the scent, but a memory of many cups of teas drawing their roots in Yunnan mountains, and a history of cherishing this region and having its breath woven in a lifetime of cups.

Wet: Summery canopies of wet leaves, basking in a moments relief, capturing a quick splash of rain, with notes of minerals, earth, damp wood, distant and long abandoned camp fires, and spicy new growth. Hidden citrus emerges.

Leaf: Large, golden-umber leaves with dark oxidized stems and occasional reddish leaves that burnish from the gold and the black, reminiscent of the hues of Oriental Beauty oolong. The buds have an almost animal pelt-like appearance, fuzzy and layered in hue, coated in blonde pollen.

Cup: Bursts open with a rich, clean, and bright mouth feel. Luminous summer squash, golden-orange liquor that wafts a gently citrus aroma. Flavors of bitter orange, spice, citrus and soft leather balance lively against its crisp finish and lingering blush of savory sweetness. An indefinable nutty flavor swims around, almost like when a raw almond is split against the teeth.
Three extractions delivered consistent and vibrantly hued cups, with the flavors evolving and becoming increasingly subtle.

Brewing: Used 5g of leaves in 10oz glass pitcher, poured from varying height and steeped for 3-4 minutes in 190 degree water.

Notes: It is important to share that I have a long and deep love affair with the teas of Yunnan. I often cherish these teas and find them frequently, yet save them and share them and reserve them for a cured Yixing pot, adorned with dragons and who has no other region pass through its belly.
From the growing collection of pu erhs to the fuzzy crab curls of Imperial Golden Yunnan and so many others by that name, there are few teas so splendid to look upon, to hold in the hand and its golden, rusty liquor is a welcome homeland.
Over the years, as this affair has built, I have pursued cup after cup from this region, under many names; some offering an experience bordering on transcendental and others lacking and coarse. I still recall the mystery when one year I found a golden Yunnan whose heart was woven with seasonal blueberries, in such a natural blushing flush, that all who cupped it had their eyes opened as malt and citrus carried them to this new frontier, where flavors bloomed thick and deep.
Over the last few years, it has been noticeable that the cup has grown more and more elusive, rain showers and oceanic notes thinning the malt, citrus and fruit. The body has thinned, the cup has become a layer of veils, the flavors growing nutty and soft, regardless of the pollen glittering depths, or the gorgeously sensuous leaves. The transformation has born in me a curiosity that seeks to know what is happening, what is changing in those mist laden mountains, to know what is nestling in the earth around the roots, what is informing the leaf.
David has found a rare and wonderful offering, raw and wild, captured in the hands of a passionate master. Its worthy of the land and of the plant, of the tea and the cup and I hope bodes for the evolution of the region; harboring more and more compassionate and passionate hands to pluck and cherish these leaves. Perhaps with more hands like Master Han’s, the dragon will find a new voice and share further layers and return the depth and complexity back into the heart of Yunnan, or translate more fully the crisp, young voice that is emerging from the wise and aged arms of Yunnan’s amazing legacy.

i can’t really find the steeping parameters that I enjoy. This tea is just not appealing to me. hopefully I find the good spot soon.

I don’t have time for a proper review of this tea, but I will mention some flavours – olive, fruity, sweet, careful not to overbrew – can grow bitter very quickly. But a very special and delicious tea.

This tea is certainly a must for tea lovers all over steepster (especially three lucky friends)!The sample I opened up has leaves that are wonderfully shriveled and needle-like, the teas composes of mature leaves with buds that gives a wonderful youthful color and age along aromas that can entangle the senses. Its rather like tripping out and thinking you were ironing using starch spray, or gardening and smelling soil, going through an orchid smelling of fruits! I really love how it all comes together and brings a complexity that follows through in harmony, Brewing this baby had me going, the first infusion at 15 seconds smelled of lightness and youth, starch and plant starchiness with a lighter fruity tone. The liquor was awesome combination of plums and/or grapes, a Keemun likeness with a hint of smokiness that gives this tea depth of age. The second infusion at 30-40 seconds gave a similar aroma yet with a stronger starchiness of rice being cooked and taste, hints of linen starch and a slight but gradual fruity tone that seems to be combined. The last steep at a minute plus has the most starchy aroma being the most prominent, with a sweet potato like taste, hints of plum and some fruitiness. An excellent tea overall! Youth and Age goes hand in hand without a fight and contradiction, like any life’s stories there are hints of sweetness and maturity that seems to indicative of this tea.

My first sample from Verdant and no disappointment. Came with comprehensive tasting notes but I wished I had drunk the tea before reading them. Have had 3 western style steepings from the leaves. The first one making me keen for the next. A wet smelling tea – like cooked pak choi. Subtle smoky hints that gave way to an even more subtle moscatel undertone. It felt like a secret that was being shared. Third steeping was too weak for me to get beyond the wateriness of the brew. Havent’ foudnthe much written abotu oilve oil notes but maybe that it because I am used to a rich pungency from Spanish extra virgin oil and this tea did not have that. Am going to try gong fu brewing with the remainder to see if I can get deeper into the flavours.

Drinking this hastily at work is an injustice to the complexities and sheer beauty of this tea. Even worse is my decision on western style brewing.

There is a subtleness to both the leaves and liquor, a clean and fresh and delicate subtleness. The leaves are a wild and earthy shape and color, with deep and dark greens along the long curls and twists. The scent is extremely faint but very fresh, reminiscent of forest after a rainfall.

The initial steep gives you this thick and velvety brew, followed by a very clean and crisp and lightly sweet aftertaste of grape and apple. It is quite a lovely and brilliant experience, with little to no astringency.

The second steep gave me a thicker velvet texture, with a malty flavor mixed with the grape and apple. There is a mild but bright astringent aftertaste that follows and lingers on your tongue.

The third steep was a lighter malt, with less texture and a slight more astringency. The fading flavors and details made it clear that you should not brew this western style. A tea this complex and delicate requires patience and attention.

Despite my ignorance, my first experience was a complete surprise and an extreme delight. I cannot wait to properly experience this.

Hmm…I’m really not sure black teas are for me. I did love the laoshan black but this one is kinda boring so far steep #2 is what I’m currently drinking so glad for the trial tea of the month club box so I could discover these new to me teas!

Obviously, we’re dealing with a much different Yunnan black tea than the plethora of “golden” blacks with their rich caramel, and cocoa flavors—so much so that this tea seems more like a blueberry oolong: fruity, unassertive, with a kind of effervescence I find in herbal teas. I like it, but I place it alongside those teas (whites, yabaos) whose subtlety (not unlike a difficult poem) requires dedicated attention to unlock its flavors. If you drink a cup while working or reading you might very well forget you’ve had anything at all.

I’ve been very interested in trying this one for awhile. Smells very cocoa-y in the bag similar to most Yunnans I’ve tried, BUT also has a crisp freshness to it, almost lemon-like.
Taste makes me think of minerals/hot rocks, ripe green grape, and light hints of cocoa, maybe citrus. I also get the “linen” note mentioned on this company’s website. Silky, refreshing and enjoyable mouthfeel, no bitterness or funky aftertaste. I’m liking this more with each sip. Second steep is just as good as the first. Shall I go for a third? Why yes, I think I shall!

After going through a bag of this tea over the past few months, I find it is a nicely refreshing contrast to some of the “darker” tasting, robust teas in my cabinet (not that this is what I’d call a light tea, it is just a nice change). Great with or without sweetener.

Interesting. Dry leaves smell almost identically to the tea I remember being sold in the Soviet Union as just “Indian tea”. Admittedly, the quality was so-so, but the smell was incredible (to make me remember it after 20 years). Master Han’s smells almost similar to that. Even the taste starts similarly, but next moment you are just blown away by the amount of different notes and nuances of the liquid… the tea from 20 yrs ago could not even compare…

The only problem with this tea, I think, is the lack of pronounced aftertaste which is sad, otherwise it’d be perfect.