Teng Chong Hui Long Zhai Yunnan Green Tea Spring 2015

This reminds me a lot of the Spring 2015 Green Hill Classic I liked so much from Teabox. Very bright, potent, and green. I wanted to make sure to post this so that I remember to consider it for my next order.

Unique, strong flavored, versatile, and powerful. Upon opening the bag I’m hit with an intense ripened peach fragrance. The the leaves look like biluochun only larger and grey-ish green. The wet leaves have a pretty golden-green hue and have musky fruit, roasted vegetables, and faint smoky aromas. The liquor is an attractive pale jade green.

The flavor is almost indescribable in that it’s not really like anything I’ve tried before, but I’ll do my best. On the first steep, I actually picked up something spicy, akin to fresh picked spicy arugula and raw wild herbs. Notes of tannin, minerals, and wild flowers. The tea is very pure with a rustic charm. It tiptoes on the edge of bitterness, but the feeling differs from the familiar bittersweet-ness I get from other green teas. This tea can stand up to higher water temperatures, but only for short steeps. The flavors spread throughout the mouth and have great staying power.

Following steeps similar to what is described above, only stronger and with a very long and stimulating aftertaste that only intensifies with each steep. The flavors get weaker on the 7th steep. If brewed with hotter water the flavors get bitter and the smoky notes are more prominent. Cooler water brings out the vegetal and flowery notes.

Overall, I liked the experience, particularly the aftertaste which lasts for at least 10 mins after putting the tea aside. It’s a tad on the bitter side, but I’m now left with pleasant fruity notes on my tongue—the aftertaste is reminiscent of ripe plum. Clearly not your typical green tea, and quite delicious for those who are willing to broaden their palate.

Simply said: it’s not a gentle tea. I would say you have to be able to enjoy the ride through sharp, bitter, and even smoky flavors in order to enjoy the sweet reward of its aftertaste.

I brewed the leaves in a chahai to watch the leaves unfold, or “dance”, pouring the tea into a separate chahai. This makes controlling leaf-water ratios a little more tricky than using a gaiwan, but if done right it I think more fun.