Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Verdant Tea 1990 Aged Tieguanyin | Review by Kaplowitz

“LoFi & lovely”


Verdant Tea
1990 Aged Tieguanyin
Oolong Tea from Master Zhang

ORIGIN: Daping Village, Anxi, Fujian, China
TYPE: Oolong

FORMAT: Loose
METHOD: Grandpa style

WEBSITE: verdanttea.com

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NOTES:
The 'pouch-note' of this Dragonfly style leaf is a muted roasted thing of raisiny musky earthiness. The leaves sorta look that way, too. Brewed & in my trusty mason jar, it appears and noses as a rich reddish amber liquor; with an aroma akin to its leaf. A bit of currant. Sits shiny-clear. 

Sips to the tune of a matte finished salted caramel. A hint of cocoa. Deeply vegetal savory notes. Slurps with a warm dusty light spiciness (which rises as the cup cools) & an additional mineral complexity to earthiness. Almost extraordinarily herbaceous, particularly on its finish. Lush leafy trees and shrubs. A walk through a dewy morning forest. Ornate in its deep simplicity.

For all its musky earthiness and its round notes almost void of astringency, it finishes quite clean. Smooth as silk across-the-board, including the calm mood it imparts, which lingers well past its legs.

FINAL GRADE: A-
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79 D 60-69 F 0-59

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