The third of the four Harney sample tins of oolong that I have mysteriously not written notes about previously.
The first thing I noticed about this was the leaves. They are delicate, spidery-twisty, and tippy — very visually interesting. They have a winey, almost darjeeling note to them in their dry form.
I did my usual multi-steeps in the gaiwan starting with 15 seconds.The leaves steep up lemon-yellow, with a toasty, stone-fruit aroma and flavor. Also, there’s something nutty in the flavor, rather like pecans. There’s a freshness in the aftertaste, like the feel of an evergreen needle but without the aroma and flavor of one. The flavor is surprisingly mild, no pungent or sharp notes which I would have expected given the winey aroma of the dry leaves.
The wet leaves look twiggy, dark brown, sort of like the nest of a tiny bird. If they were fluffier they’d look like pipe tobacco. Steep 2 has a darker liquor, more toward amber, and a very peachy fragrance. The tea at first seems to remain surprisingly mild with a soft mouthfeel, but there’s a sharpness to the finish that isn’t quite a throat grab.
Fortunately, the sharpness receded by steep three and the mildness returned. A lovely floral note emerged in steep 4, as did a buttery mouthfeel. Still flavorful and soft in steep 5, and continued to be mild and peachy/pecany/aromatic.
Although I prefer green oolongs, this is a really nice dark one.
Also, I’ve caught 2 shiny beldums (beldi?) so far…
Flavors: Butter, Floral, Peach, Pecan, Stonefruit, Toasty, White Wine
