This is another of the teas I finished back in May. If I recall correctly, I finished it sometime close to the end of the month. It was a tea I had a bit of trepidation about trying. Ginger is not one of my favorite things, and I had seen several other reviews of this tea that basically stated it was a subtle tea and may not be to everyone’s liking. I found that I shared those sentiments myself. Even though the ginger presence was thankfully not consistently overpowering throughout, this struck me as being mostly a very subtle, elegant tea not ideal for regular consumption.
I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a quick rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 203 F water for 8 seconds. This infusion was followed by 13 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 10 seconds, 12 seconds, 16 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes.
Prior to the rinse, the dry tea leaves offered a clear ginger aroma supported by pungent fruit and flower aromas (almost like a mix of pomegranate and orchid) and a touch of bread-like character. After the rinse, the ginger aroma grew stronger while subtle red apple and vegetal scents emerged. The first infusion then saw the ginger aroma continue to dominate, this time mostly overwhelming the other scents offered by the leaves. In the mouth, notes of ginger, baked bread, butter, and orchid were chased by pungent fruity (pomegranate) and vegetal notes that I could not quite place before the ginger reasserted itself on the swallow. Subsequent infusions saw the nose turn nutty, fruitier, and more vegetal. New notes of minerals, roasted almond, red pear, wood, cinnamon, lemon zest, hibiscus, green pepper, and grass emerged in the mouth alongside subtler notes of red apple, radish, and turnip greens. The final infusions offered mineral, wood, roasted almond, and ginger notes with some barely perceptible fruity and vegetal undertones.
This was an interesting oolong, but it was not one that I would be in any rush to reacquire. I appreciated that the ginger aroma and flavor was carried throughout the session and that the tea offered a unique range of aroma and flavor components beyond the ginger, but I found some of the tea’s most appealing qualities to be a bit too subtle in most places. As mentioned earlier, I am not the hugest fan of ginger, so this tea was likely going to be a tough sale for me anyway. I’m just happy that I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I guess that says something. People who enjoy the smell and taste of ginger would probably enjoy this tea quite a bit. It’s still not my thing, but I enjoyed my experience with this tea and would not caution fans of Dancong oolongs to avoid it.
Flavors: Almond, Bread, Butter, Cinnamon, Fruity, Ginger, Grass, Green Pepper, Hibiscus, Lemon Zest, Mineral, Orchid, Pear, Red Apple, Vegetal, Wood
