Free sample. Used a 180 yixing pot with 7g tea. My better half joined as well.
Rinsed quickly twice, then first steep 5 seconds, aroma of balsa wood and malt is what I smelled, with a smoky crisp creme brulee, buttery flavor. A bit of bitter that almost dropped my hubby out of the tasting, but he’s getting better with it since I’ve cook him bitter gourd.
Second steep 5 seconds had flavors of dried cherries, less bitter and a classic red tea profile. Slightly smokey. Smooth.
Third steep 10 seconds, just ripe banana came out as the fruit note with a noticeable dryness of a good Merlot.
Fourth steep 15 seconds and the sweetness is making a push through, the fruitiness is dissipating and the aftertaste is both dry and bitter on the tongue.
Fifth steep and we took a break with a few plain hot water sips to realign the buds. 20 seconds and the sweetness is forefront with a caramel hint. There is a noticeable chi starting to clear the throws of last nights slumber.
Sixth steep 25 seconds and the sugar is replaced by a slight sweet/sour you get from an unripe blueberry. The smokiness is also waning. Now it reminds me of standard red steeped teas. The color is still quite pronounced a clear burnt sienna.
Got a total of 10 steeps which made my day very pleasant, took hubby to the airport then off to flushing for more tea adventures.
I just got a cake of this with my order! I had to search through pics of all their teas, comparing the writing on the wrapper to figure out what I had, but now I know! :)