Canton Tea Co
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Initially I brewed this at a bit over 90C and though I liked the the vegetal flavour it seemed a little too astringent, even bitter but reducing the temp to about 85C and reducing the first steep to less than 2 minutes cured any bitterness and just left a taste which is really difficult to describe, well I can’t think of an appropriate analogy or comparable tea… so to me a most unusal tea and I am glad I bought 50g as I think I need more than just a sampler to properly do this justice
Preparation
I brewed three small pots of this between last night and this morning. The two pots I had last night were perfect. The flavor was light, and the grassiness had a sweet touch to it. The floral flavor was just right too, just enough to add to the overall flavor, but the tea didn’t taste overwhelmingly like flowers. This morning, all floral notes are gone, and the flavor of the tea is very flat. It’s more vegetal than sweet and grassy. I think this is mostly because of how I steeped the leaves. I put the leaves directly into the pot, so they probably steeped out sooner. I like watching the leaves unfold, so I really don’t want to use a filter basket, but maybe next time I’ll use a couple cups and pour out all the liquid between steepings. Overall, this was a huge improvement to steeping in my cast iron pot, which I think adds a bit of an edge to the lighter teas.
Re-reviewed:
The smell of this tea is delectable to those, such as myself, who love pu’erh. I boil the water, rinse the leaves, and breath in the aroma of the Chinese black tea. Even the dry leaves have a dark, incredibly earthy scent. It smells as strong as if the leaves were already wet. After being rinsed, thea leaves release an aroma that is moist, damp, mossy, and still dark.
I must pause here to make a note. The package of tea contained some loose leaves, most likely broken from the cake, and a small chunk of a cake. I had used most of these loose leaves in my gaiwan, and, after having rinsed the leaves, I noticed a hair within the wet leaves. Knowing that it was not mine, certainly (it was a far different color than my own), I looked at the cake and loose leaves remaining in my sample package. In the cake itself, I saw embedded another hair, much like the first. I was truly surprised. I have never encountered this in anything from Canton Tea Company before. This is why it is important to inspect and rinse tea before drinking.
I performed a series of thirty-second steeps with this tea. In the first steep, the tea smelled soft and earthy, a bit loamy. The word “dark” continues to come to mind. The taste is one part smoky, one part earthy, one part awesome, and just a tad vegetal. The flavor is intense but not deep. After the second steep, the flavor is less bold and slightly more astringent. There seems to be more notes of earth and smoke. By the third steeping, the flavors are much the same, but they are smoother. It is quite tasty. Steepings four and five follow suit with very little change. The sixth steeping contains a flavor that is lessened and the strength of the tea is diminished. I put the leaves in hot water to sit for a while in order to draw out as much of their remaining strength as possible.
This tea was thoroughly enjoyable to drink, and it was certainly one of the best pu’erh I have ever tried, despite the discouraging hairs found in the leaves. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate this tea a 93/100.
My preference when it comes to pu’erh is certainly for a nice cooked and aged pu, but all the same, this 2004 Ji Xing Yi Wu sheng pu’erh was a gift from a friend and came highly recommended. So I decided to first give it a shot in my gaiwan and take it through it’s fragrant paces.
After the first infusion, the wet leaves smell a bit smoky, like burning logs, and quite musty. The infused liquor is a lot lighter, still with mustiness. My first cup left my mouth with a distinctive dry feeling. The earthy, vegetal taste is quite full and leaves a lasting impression on the tongue. Quite frankly, this pu’erh has the biggest aftertaste of any pu’erh I have ever had.
For the second infusion, I let it steep for 30 seconds, which I found to be a bit too long for this tea, when using the recommended amount of 3-4 grams. 20 seconds will be certainly sufficient for the first few infusions. This second, strong infusion very much emphasizes the dry notes of this tea. As I finish this infusion, I very much enjoy how robust the flavour of this uncooked pu’erh is.
After five additional steepings, these leaves were beginning to lose much of their robustness. Canton Tea Co.‘s website does recommend at least six infusions for this tea. Overall, this tea was an excellently smooth example of a tasty raw pu’erh. My rating for this tea is 85/100.
Preparation
Ok, re-steeping this brings an entirely new flavor. First of all, I got the chance to go on Canton’s site to look at their information about this tea. On their suggestion, I added a few more leaves to my pot and used shorter steep times. The result is a much lighter flavor than the one I had yesterday. It is hard to say if this is from the change in steeping or the fact that it is the second steeping for these leaves (or most of them anyway). I have very much enjoyed my experience with this tea, and look forward to more experimenting!
This is my first time trying this tea. Sadly I’m in a rush this morning and don’t really have time to put down all my thoughts, but I will say it’s certainly different from anything I’ve had before. I will definitely be brewing this again so I can take in more of the flavor.
Utilising one of my larger gaiwans and about a tablespoon of this tea, I rinsed the tea and got right down to the first infusion of 30 seconds.
First impressions:
Smells a bit fruity, a bit sweet, yet mellow and slightly grassy at the same time.
The liquor is very clear and bright.
The taste is a bit darker and more woody than I expected from the smell. Also, I noted the taste to be a bit more watery than expected Perhaps more than 30 seconds are necessary for the second infusion.
Continuing impressions:
The 45 seconds I gave the second infusion brought about a darker hue, perhaps not as bright, yet still clear.
It definitely improved the flavour.
Over the next three or so infusions I put these leaves through, this tea never grew very strong, but sipping it truly was a delight. The aftertaste of this tea is stronger than expected, composed of floral and fruity notes.
Overall, a thoroughly pleasant oolong that I would definitely recommend. On my personal scale, I give it an 85/100.
Preparation
what a great tea! gorgeous leaves!! the dry leaf smell reminds me of very strong dried fruits, such as dates and raisins. maybe a little goji berry, too? I also get a whiff of sweet tobacco, like what my father used to smoke in his pipe when I was a girl. The taste is very interesting, slightly caramel-y, and i’m also getting goji berry, and date! this taste is really robust and complex, yet also smooth and a little earthy. I love it!
Creamy and substantial, pushing into a sweet milkiness spiked with a heavy “green” taste that anchors the liquor and keeps it from floating off into marshmallow land. The leaves unfurl wonderfully and appear thick and healthy. Good for quite a few infusions.
Very clean and rich, a good everyday “greener” style oolong that teeters on the sweet side.
