I have up to this point, mostly been able to generally, remember my thoughts on every tea I drink quite well. However, memory is indeed fallible and so its probably a good idea to actually type some stuff down.
This is actually a tea from last month (i think), I've only gotten around to an actual focused session tonight haha. Right, so first impressions; the dry leaf is dense, vibrant green but lacking a good sheen, so little dull.
The dry fragrance is encouraging; floral and lemon top notes with a fruity middle note followed by a base of straw.
The steepings: water is boiled and allowed to cool for a min or two.
The first steeping (30secondish) greets me with a heavily floral/lemon fragrance, the infusion is bright yellow-green with reasonable clarity. Sipping the tea yields an unexpected umami depth with acidity. The body is light and extremely smooth. Not a single trace of bitterness or astringency.
Things get interesting at the second steeping (also 30sec) with the fragrance opening up a tad more to reveal a more fruity (for now, specifically what kind of fruitiness is indiscernible) scent backed up with a straw base. With a deeper yellow colour, the tea is incredibly smooth and relatively viscous (two traits that hit the nail right on the head in terms of my tastes), while the
the amino acidy umami quality gives way to significantly more sourness. A slight, but noticeable drying astringency is also present.
Third and final steeping (about 1 min) the nose detects predominantly straw, while the floral scent is almost completely dominated by a lemon/berry notes. The acidity tapers off at this point leading to a smooth but slightly flat straw. This probably signals the limit of the brew's endurance.
The spent leaves are thick, leathery and have relatively good structural integrity.
Overall, for such a low price (about $13 including shipping) its an enjoyable casual tea.
