Roasted TGY from Muzha, Taiwan from eco-cha. 2020 spring harvest

Info from vendor:

This farmer manages his own small plots of Tie Guan Yin, also known as "Iron Goddess", tea plants and processes the leaves in his home factory. This batch is 75-80% Tie Guan Yin tea leaves blended with a batch of Jin Xuan Oolong that he processed in the traditional Tie Guan Yin fashion.

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By the even, dark color of the balls, the roasting was consistent

Ball size is a bit heterogeneous. Also, stems are prominent

Almost no particles after wash. Overall quality is good.

Dried leaf smelled of raisins and toffee

Did 9 grams in 170 mL pot with boiling water. 45 sec and then +5 sec for subsequent steeps.

First steep had lots of dried fruit as well as medium smoky character that lingers for a long time. Smoke has a herbal/medicinal quality and reminds me of TGY from the 80s.

Second steep was a bit too smoky, bordering smoked lapsang souchong quality. Jin xuan butteriness comes through at this point. Would recommend shorter second steep - maybe 30 sec. Lingering aftertaste of heavily browned butter.

Third steep was less smoky but also less fruity. Some floweriness is more obvious. Has a subcontinent quality.

4+ steeps: lighter and lighter echoes of third steep.

Produced a good quality tea high in me half way through second steep.

Second session tasting noted:

This TGY is beautifully roasted with wonderful herbal and refeshingly cooling menthol notes. It is malty and fruity, with notes of sultanas, dried pineapple and coconut. The leaves are stemmy and rough, as consistent with the traditional character.

Steeped in both glass and lin's ceramic purion mug (picture). Smokiness is subdued in the mug

Comments

Sanxia Premium Mi Xiang Qing Xin Black Tea, Lot 944, spring 2020 from taiwan tea crafts

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Longfengxia High Mountain Spring Oolong Tea, Day 5, Lot 948, 2020 taiwan tea craft

From vendor: PICKING DATE May 2020 OXYDATION LEVEL Low BAKING LEVEL None TERROIR Shanlinxi ADMINISTRATIVE REGION Nantou County PICKING STYLE Hand Picked CULTIVAR(S) USED Qing Xin GARDEN ELEVATION 1750 m Review: Dry lead is intensely flowery with prominent yellow stems Brewed 5 to 7 grams/100 mL boiling water in kobiwako. Lower leaf is okay due to intensity of flavor but higher leaf has stronger sweetness in later steeps. For 5 g: Rinse / 55 s / 45 s / 55 s / 1:10 / 1:30 /2:30 Brewed leaves have strong pastry and tropical fruit Steeps 1-2: Taste of green mango, citrus, and baked pineapple pastry. Clean minerality and medium to thick mouthfeel. There is strong perfume of oily flowers, mainly rose and some lavender. At higher leaf to water (7 g per 100 mL) there is some slight green astringency. Steep 3-5: fruit notes are much more mild but still present and long lasting. Much more buttery. There is slight green brandy like astringency. At higher leaf to water ratio, frui...

2020 Organic Nonpareil Ming Qian Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea from teavivre

From vendor: Origin: Qiandao Lake, Chun'an County, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China Season: Spring Tea Harvest Date: March 25, 2020 Tea Bush: C. sinensis cv. Jiukeng Tea Garden: Qiandao Lake Organic Tea Garden Review: Brewed 5.2 g in 170 mL 75-80 C water No rinse / 30 s / 30 s / 40 s / 55 s / 1 m 30 s /2 m 30s Dry leaf: pale green and slightly yellow, suggesting lighter oxidation than standard. Small leaves, consistent with earlier harvest. Plenty of white fluff in bag and on leaves. 1 bud 1 leaf > 1 bud > 1 bud 2 leaves. Mild scent of nuts. Wet leaf has strong scent of sweet freshly blanched green beans or corn. In the mouth, persistent vegetal sweetness mostly of asparagus and corn mixed with milder aromas of raw nuts. Good minerality gives this all a nice structure and a "crisp hardness" like small bell ringing. Long aftertaste of sweet vegetal notes, butteriness and minerality. Astringency is very controlled. Overall, aroma is a bit too mild.

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