Competition Grade Jin Jun Mei Black Tea * Spring 2017

This was my final sipdown in April. At this point, I am down to only two more pouches of Jin Jun Mei. I plan on getting to both before the end of the current month. I was not initially sure what to expect of this one, but I had high hopes considering that I liked the previous Yunnan Sourcing Jin Jun Mei that I tried. Fortunately, this tea was not a disappointment. I actually found it to be one of the best Jin Jun Mei that I have tried.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a quick rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 194 F water for 5 seconds. This infusion was chased by 16 subsequent infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 7 seconds, 9 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, 3 minutes, 5 minutes, and 7 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry tea leaves produced aromas of chocolate, pine, malt, smoke, brown sugar, and ginger. After the rinse, I detected new aromas of roasted peanut, sweet potato, cedar, juniper, and baked bread. The first infusion introduced aromas of black pepper and roasted almond. In the mouth, the tea liquor presented notes of malt, earth, butter, cooked green beans, brown sugar, and cream that were chased by hints of chocolate, black pepper, roasted peanut, baked bread, smoke, and pine. The subsequent infusions introduced an earthy aroma as well as subtle scents of minerals, grass, cream, vanilla, cooked green beans, and cinnamon. Ginger and sweet potato notes appeared in the mouth alongside stronger and more immediate impressions of chocolate, baked bread, smoke, and roasted peanut and very subtle notes of roasted almond, cedar, and juniper. I also detected notes of grass, vanilla, honey, and minerals as well as occasional hints of caramel and cinnamon. As the tea faded, the liquor emphasized notes of minerals, earth, malt, cream, butter, roasted peanut, cooked green beans, and grass that gave way to vanilla, brown sugar, chocolate, pine, roasted almond, sweet potato, and baked bread hints.

I really appreciated the fact that this tea’s flavor profile did not follow its bouquet. It had my attention from the very start as the aromas it gave off did not quickly lead to identical flavors in the mouth. I also liked that it went from being a very heavy, complex tea on the nose to one that primarily emphasized flavor and texture. Brewing and drinking this tea were not boring, predictable processes. It kept me on my toes throughout my review session. By the time I got around to trying this tea, I was at a point in my Jin Jun Mei journey where I needed a tea that was lively and challenging. This was that tea for me. I imagine that people who are looking for a quality Jin Jun Mei that is endearingly quirky and complex as well as accessible and not overly challenging would be pleased with this one.

The dry leaves give the pleasant smell of honey and flowers.

The brewed tea gives off the smell of wet earth. I get a heavy malt taste on the sip with a flower like aftertaste. It gets a lot thicker as the steeps go on. I don’t taste any of the chocolate or honey notes that are listed on this page. I do think its a decent tea but I got much tastier ones.