Tea Review

Premium Grade Anxi Ben Shan Oolong Tea * Spring 2016.

Yunnan Sourcing. 2.2-2.6 grams steeped for 4 minutes at 200℉. Impression: whole leaf tea with leaves compressed into green nuggets, see photo. Dry tea smells intensely floral. Brewed tea scent is intensely floral. Taste: Strongly floral notes, entirely lacking the usual roasted scents of oolong. Not astringent.

I can’t read the name of this tea without thinking of “The Passion of Sacco and Vanzetti.” Sorry. This tea is similar to the Anxi Huang Jin Gui oolong I reviewed a while ago. Both are very young oolongs with minimal oxidation. I prefer the Ben Shan a little. Perhaps the floral tastes are more complex or less overpowering. However, I still prefer more traditional oolongs, aged and baked.

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