This tea came back into stock just when I was wanting to put in my latest Harney order, so I gleefully grabbed a sample. You see, Harney has a lower-grade Panyang Congou (which I have not tried), but I wanted the really fancy stuff. :) Looking at the pricing this stuff better be out of this world, because it is actually $50 for 2oz. That is more than Mr. Bi’s First Picking Laoshan Black, or Golden Fleece! And double the price of a 3.5oz tin of Teavivre’s Superfine Tan Yang Gong Fu Black Tea, though unfortunately I have not tried that one yet.
I do have to say, this seems like the first time in a few days that I smelled a tea while it was brewing and my mouth started watering. It smells amazing. Like honey and molasses and malt and raisins and a hint of chocolate. Mm, this is sweet, smooth, and delicious. This definitely has the honey/caramel notes, a hint of chocolate, a little bit nutty. Then there is this intense raisin note in this one that really grows in the aftertaste. Seriously, my mouth tastes like I just ate some raisins. SO bright and fruity. And then I take another sip and get the malted grain sweetness again.
Well I’m not sure if is quite worth $50/2oz, but it is damn good. I will have to try the Tan Yang I brought home from China (currently my favorite example of a Tan Yang) to see how this compares more closely, but wow. If I ever found one of those half-off vouchers for Harney again (now I wonder, why didn’t I buy another one of those at the time!), I would seriously seriously consider buying a tin of this.
