Wuyi hongcha 2023 from Old Ways Tea.

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Old ways tea club June 2023. Arrived just in time for my afternoon steeps. Going to start with the black tea today. @tea

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I'm taking a note to analyze this tea on a different occasion once more, however it's likely that this pack is gone irreversibly bad.

As far as I remember it from before spoilage - it is a very opposite of Assamic #HongCha , and less sweet than Japanese ones.

Also, from previous toot you could see that plants are young (less than 50 years overall for island) and thus Jeju teas still wait for their character being found and open for tea lovers.

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Now, a rarer stuff! :D

"Jeju biologique" - Korean #HongCha made from tea grown on the Jeju island (50 km to the south from the Korean peninsula). ['21, CS].

Jeju is a volcanic island, mostly known as a vacation destination, but there are tea plantations of a Osulloc company there that are very unique due to climate and soils reach in minerals.

[6/n]

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"Fruit Aroma" - TongMu village area #HongCha [Spring '22, YS].

Used a chance to continue with a red tea but from other region and thus in a different style, look and taste.

Effectively, it's a #Lapsang with more fruitiness in character.

Don't remember much more than that though.

[5/n]

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"Bumble Bee" - another #DianHong [Spring '22, CLT], the same as here https://mammut.moe/@gemelen/109970069912775638

Essence of a Yunnan #HongCha category - it gives you persistent taste for multiple infusions to accompany long evening with friends.

It also was a smooth transition from the previous, more nuanced "Chocolate Milk".

[4/n]

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"Chocolate Milk" - Golden Snail #DianHong or Yunnanese #HongCha [Spring '22, CLT]. Got as a freebie with my order from that vendor.

More or less of what you can expect from DianHong - sweet, biscuity smell and taste, thus that name. Not so much in creamy notes, I guess "milk" in the name didn't imply that.

I've got only 6g, so I tasted it once and do not remember all notes well already.

[3/n]

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Fu Shou Mei Feng Qing - Yunnanese #HongCha
[Spring '22, YS].

I'd say it's too frail tea brewing-wise - I didn't expect that one brewed at 97C for 15s is already on a brink of astringency. Going for lower temperatures is strongly recommended.

Dry leave smells as usual baked goods. Empty GongDaoBei gives sweety aroma.

https://mammut.moe/@gemelen/109536176937204855

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"Bumble Bee" - #DianHong or a Yunnanese "golden needle" #HongCha [Spring 22, CLT].

Nice tea with a solid profile of fruity notes as a most prominent ones. Vendor's description mentions lychee and I tend to agree.

It didn't withstand brewings with a long gaps between them, giving the signs of revealing red tea astringency already on a third infusion. This, paired with it's relatively high price, would prevent it from being recommended as a daily drinker.

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"Natural Redhead" pressed #HongCha mini-cake from #White2Tea I've got as a freebie with a teaware order. Likely, it's one of minis from 2021. ['21, W2T]

In silver, 7gr per 100ml, 95C.

First infusion - quite muted, but that mineral profile of Yunnanese tea is right there.

I'd say it's a HongCha with an aged white tasting notes - slightly astringent already on second, dried fruits, thick in mouth.

Second infusion already gives you a warming body feeling.

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I fell sleepy few days in a row, but today I choose to drink tea instead of taking a nap, it's working day after all.

"Cocoa Malt Queen", #JinJunMei #HongCha [March '22, ML] - tippy red tea from Tong Mu village.

Despite what's in that tea's general profile, it's not too sweet by my taste. On the other hand, it's not as spicy as "Sweet Spice JJM" of ML. Something in between, but overall good for my current conditions.

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#Sakartvelo #Hongcha (one from the post at https://mammut.moe/@gemelen/109728705776019075 ).

First infusion, 30s 99C 3g/80ml - very light, less likely reminds you a #Hongcha and more towards #Oolong There is slight sweetness, but that could be from the contamination by my storage.

Second infusion 45s. Not stronger than previous. By yesterday's memories - it keeps same profile for about 5-6 infusions without significant dilution.

[3/n]

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"Souchong Liquor" [Spring `22, ML] - Tong Mu village area #Hongcha, unsmoked #Lapsang - ie one that didn't go into final smoking/firing stages.

Since it's not that smokey, it much closer to #JinJunMei in smell, taste and colour of the liquid. As it mentioned even by vendor themself, it's a very affordable approximation of top JJM variants (about 5 times cheaper).

Overall it's amazing #Hongcha to warm yourself and enjoy its spectrum of tasting notes.

I'd consider it a daily drinker

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Finishing a sampler of "Suan Zao Shu", a Jinggu #GuShu Yunnanese #Hongcha ['21 or '22, YS].

In general, it's a potent CSvA tea, the most intriguing parts are:
1. dry leaf smell - sweet rose
2. taste - to me it seems to lie in between of pure Assamica from non-China and CSvS from other Chinese regions.

Tea starts to taste like it's your good Indian or SriLankan, but then it surprisingly do not overwhelm you with too much of astringency. That's neat, however that's it.

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"Bailu Gold" (vendor's name) or more generic "Golden Dew", Huang Jin Bai Lu #Hongcha [September '20, Meileaf].

This is Sichuanese rival to a top-grade #JinJunMei specimen, both in aspect of taste and price.

This tea in particular helps me to find a contrast to more sweet or more spice tasting JJMs, cause Bai Lu is more floral, with notes of spiciness.

Besides that it's a delicate #Hongcha for the time when you don't know you want at the moment.

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Doing a short test to see if I'd like to have a session with this: #Sakartvelo/#Georgia #Hongcha from #Etseri estate. Bought in a supermarket (that's a perk of living in a country close to and with good connections with #Sakartvelo).

Western-style, 3gr/100ml, 95C, 90s. A lot lighter than I expected from it, but I already had a good impression after leaves not being broken into bits or dust.

Will post again with pictures.

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I liked my smaller packet of that tea way more - it was lacking any note of a #Puerh (which I'm not a fan of), while providing the taste of something more strong than a #Hongcha.

Larger portion probably was from another part of a whole batch, so it had transformed differently and match vendor's tasting notes.

And it behaves like a #Puerh both from a organoleptic aspects and a sleep removal :)

@dave_heumann @ellestad
Yes, that's why I distinguished pure-bud specimen in my reply.

For me (this is highly individual) #Hongcha either pure-bud or "others", however that "others" contains long tail of different pickings, but I usually buy only bud and one/two leaves type (cause of a childhood trauma of being poor).

@ellestad Yass, that's the type of the tea I started to love after going into loose leaf. JJM and other bud-heavy #Hongcha without Assamica's astringency for the sweet-loving me.

@ellestad @tea
I see your aged #Hongcha and I answer with '08 #LiuBao (kinda, it's closer to raw puerh by preparation) to raise the stakes (a bit)