Monday, July 26, 2010

2009 Winter Dong Ding Competition Grade III Oolong On A Chilly Summer Morning


One woke with a chill this morning and as a result remained barefoot on the hardwood just enough to put warm wool socks on. A medium roasted spring oolong would be a good remedy for this summertime chill.
One finds this one-pot sample from Life In Teacup and pours the whole sample of dark roasted pellets into the large yixing pot. The smell of the medium to high roasted dry leaves is muted with some grape smells escaping the roasted vacuum. One cuddles close to the teapot as the water boils inside.

The first pot is a very simple, quiet ordeal with bland-grainy body and a slippery roasted taste. It is immediately apparent that this is not a spring but a winter oolong.
No matter, the second pot is prepared and pours a brown-yellow. It offers dry, bland, grainy notes with ghostly sour apple underpinnings that slip away before fully realizing them. The lips dry and the front of the mouth is partially stimulated as the aftertaste of a sandy roast runs across ones breath.
The third is more of that simple cereal dryness. The mouthfeel in the front also has a simple dimension to it. By the fourth infusion there isn't much left in the cup but one feels warm and ready to start the day.

The hot water is left in the fifth infusion for a long while. When one comes back to the pot it yields a thin, watery soup with a soft roasted, hollow honey taste. One sips and enjoys this last simple pot throughout the morning.

Peace

4 comments:

Unknown said...

The look of the dry leaf really intrigues me, perhaps it is because I have never had a medium roasted Taiwan tea, but the medium roasted Chinese rolled oolongs I have had often looked more brownish and yellowish than this dark hearty green.

As always, another excellent review.

Matt said...

Adam Yusko,

Agreed, these dry leaves do look very interesting. Admiring them seems too easy.

Peace

Leaf Dharma said...

I thought those little silver foil packs looked familiar. I ordered all of the sample packs from Life In Teacup and was very impressed with everything I tried. The Grade II Tie Gyun Yin was exceptional.

Matt said...

Leaf Dharma,

Received a box of samples but not that Tie Guan Yin. They offer a full spectrum of unpretentious teas.

Peace