I was craving something sweet-ish this morning, but at the same time I wanted to try out this sample I got from derk. Well, I went ahead with it, thinking it might have some sweetness anyway. It turns out, this tea was perfect for this occasion, although under normal circumstances I would probably find it too sweet for my palate :D
The smell is a mix of vegetal and slightly aged and smoky aromas. After all, the tea is soon to enter a semi-aged category, if it’s not there already. In the empty cup, the aroma is sweet, sticky and honey like.
Taste of the tea can change throughout the session, highlighting different aspects, but on the whole it is a combination of honey sweetness, a lot of herbal notes and a tart edge. Most of the time, I found it refreshing and tangy. Honey is the strongest note, but there are a lot of herbs/plants like anise, mint, eucalyptus and pine present too. The aftertaste is mineral, sweet and slightly bitter. There are hints of autumn leaf pile and I can kind of see the comparison ZeroZen made with Bai Ji Guan primarily in the aftertaste, if we discount much of the sweetness.
The liquor has a medium body and is slippery and very coating. There is some astringency. In particular the feeling after drinking is a touch dry, especially at the back of the mouth and in the throat.
Flavors: Anise, Autumn Leaf Pile, Drying, Eucalyptus, Herbs, Honey, Mineral, Mint, Pine, Smoke, Sweet, Tart, Vegetal
