White2Tea Tea Club: September 2021

Well, hasn’t it been a while. After the craziness of Christmas, I admit, it’s taken me some time to get back into the blogging groove. In the meantime, my White2Tea tea club packages, previously taking their very sweet time to get over here from China, have unblocked. I now have a big stack of intriguing teas to dive into. Here’s the lowdown on September 2021 tea club, yes 6 months ago (but arrived late November)! I have some catching up to do. So without further ado, let’s go.

What’s in the box this month:

2018 Gongmei, 20g
Yesheng Gushu Hongcha, 30g
2021 Baimudan, 12g

This Baimudan by all accounts is something special. So I’m saving that one for another blog, comparing it to August tea club’s Baimudan.

2018 Gongmei

Type: White

Origin: China, Fujian

Brewing: Gaiwan, 5g, 95-100C/203-212F, 2.5 minutes, 5 minutes, then 7.5 minutes

Description: pressed cake

Gongmei is a grade of white tea, sitting just ‘below’ its superior cousin, Baimudan. Generally smoother and more full bodied than Baimudan, this one has plenty of lovely buds and has been aged for a few years.

White2Tea say it’s very flexible when it comes to brewing. Go for a long hot steep with plenty of leaf for a dark honeyed date drink, or lighten up on the leaf, temperature and steeping time for a more floral experience. Well, when I first tried this back in November it was and one of the first wintery, frosty days and I fancied something warming and comforting, with a bit of depth. So I took them at their word and went for the former brewing method.

Leaf

The sample is broken off from a pressed tea cake. So the leaves are compressed, lots of different shades of browns, from russet to deep brown with lots of creamy buds present.

Liquor

I wasn’t sure just how long to brew the tea, and went for 2.5 minutes on the first brew, which seemed pretty lengthy for gongfu brewing. However, I was surprised that the liquor was a light amber with a delicate aroma. Hmm, so this really does need a long steep to get the promised dark honeyed brew. I dared to double the steep time, and we got there on the second steep with a lovely mid to dark amber liquor.

Infusions

On the first infusion the aroma is warm and sweet, with some earthy tones like a damp forest floor. It’s a really smooth and pleasant sip, with soft fruit and sweet honey flavours building. Then some slight spiciness comes through, making my tongue tingle! This is a very moreish tea, coating my mouth with lovely flavours really nicely.

The second infusion has a gorgeous jammy and sweet honey aroma. I was worried that it would be bitter with such a long steep, but no. There’s a very slight undertone of astringency but the other flavours come to the fore. Honey on the nose, and sticky jammy plum on the palate. It has a thicker mouthfeel, still really smooth. Then comes a surprise aftertaste with medicinal notes.

By the third infusion at 7.5 minutes, we’re loosing some of the thickness and jamminess. However there’s still lots of flavour and the plum or date notes are more detectable. And it’s still a smooth drink with no astringency!

On my next session, I decided to take it a step further and go for an 8 minute hot steep using a small teapot. Now we get a beautiful dark amber liquor, thick plum fruity and honeyed flavours. It’s almost like a dark oolong without the roasting notes. It’s smooth and silky. There really is no going wrong with this tea!

Yesheng Gushu Hongcha

Type: Black

Origin: China, Yunnan

Brewing: Gaiwan, 5g, 90-100C/194-212F, 15 seconds, then 30 secs, 1 minute, 2 minutes

Description: black, long and twisted wiry leaves

This tea is from old arbor trees growing wild in Yunnan, made into a black tea. White2Tea describe it as having ‘wild characteristics’. Yes, let me say straight off, it’s not an easy sip. It’s properly gnarly, like a cranky, grumpy old man!

Leaf

It all looks and smells very promising. Beautifully dark, long wiry leaves that give off a nice warm aroma of caramel, malt, and fruity currants.

Liquor

The first infusion at 15 seconds produced a very light golden colour, with a hardly-there aroma. Same with the taste, very light with a slight bitterness at the back of my mouth. Over the next three infusions the liquor became darker finishing with a mid-amber colour.

Yesheng Gushu Hongcha, wet leaf & 1st infusion

Infusions

My second infusion at 30 seconds was still pretty light on flavour, with the bitterness really at the fore. By the third infusion, a malty aroma and flavour comes through. But I’m finding it hard to get past the bitterness. My tongue feels coated with it from the second infusion. I think you can tell I’m not really getting on with this tea! And well, the forth brew is a shock to the senses, just bitter.

Wrapping up

I did feel like this was a tea having a really bad day. I’m not one to give up on a tea. I feel like they’re just a bit misunderstood. If you spend a bit of time with them, brew them differently, then you’ll understand them better. Before posting this I gave Yesheng Gushu Hongcha another go. I tried steeping the first infusion for longer at 30 seconds, then 1 minute, 1.5 minutes, 2 minutes, 4 minutes at 100C/212F. But I’m afraid we’re still not friends yet, still way too bitter for me!

Have you ever had a difficult start with a tea that you later came to love?