Ceylon White Tea

Is everyone ready for a potentially controversial tea review? I finished a sample pouch of this tea back around the end of the first week in September, but I purposefully put off posting a review until now. I know that this tea did not get the most consistent reviews here on Steepster, but man, did I love it! This was one of the best and most interesting white teas I have tried.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a quick rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea buds in 4 ounces of 185 F water for 7 seconds. This infusion was followed by 22 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 9 seconds, 12 seconds, 16 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 7 minutes, 9 minutes, 12 minutes, 16 minutes, 20 minutes, 25 minutes, 30 minutes, and 40 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry tea buds emitted aromas of malt, black pepper, pine, cedar, tobacco, and honey. After the rinse, I noted new aromas of roasted nuts, cream, and marshmallow that were underscored by a subtle sugarcane scent. The first infusion brought out more of a sugarcane scent along with some indistinct hints of stone fruit. In the mouth, the tea liquor presented notes of malt, pine, cedar, tobacco, cream, and roasted almond that were chased by hints of marshmallow, sugarcane, and black pepper. Surprising impressions of caramel, honey, and eucalyptus lingered in the mouth after the swallow. Subsequent infusions brought out aromas of eucalyptus, caramel, ginger, hay, oats, apricot, and plum. Notes of ginger, oats, minerals, vanilla, apricot, plum, butter, wheat toast, and hay appeared in the mouth along with somewhat stronger impressions of honey and caramel. The final few infusions emphasized surprisingly resilient, well-defined impressions of minerals, marshmallow, malt, cedar, roasted almond, black pepper, and tobacco that were chased by fleeting notes of ginger, hay, honey, caramel, and eucalyptus.

Like I said earlier, this was an interesting white tea. It had a ton to offer, and I think that patient and open-minded tea drinkers would likely get a kick out of it. Hopefully, Beautiful Taiwan Tea Company will bring this one back soon.

As others have said, this tea is highly unusual for a white, the leaves look much like black tea with a ridge on the buds that is silvery green; it’s very pretty to look at. The flavor comes out just as unusual. There is a smooth buttery mouthfeel that sticks with you, followed by a brief moment of making your mouth water. This tea gets more and more interesting.

The Ceylon White is an unusual white tea.

The leaves are long and dark, which almost remind me of a black tea. The aroma and flavor profile have that black tea quality to it, too.

There were malty rich notes throughout the session; without the astringency that black teas usually carry. However, this tea was smooth.

This sample given to me from LP a while ago, but I’m finally mowing some tea samples down, to get to the ones I’ve yet to try. Thank you again!

Enjoying this one this afternoon.

The dry leaves look so unusual for a white. Long dark think spindly leaves with a white stripe on each.

It brews up bold for a white tea. Maybe because it looks like a black tea? Or looks something like the moonlight teas. It’s malty with sweet caramel notes. There’s the typical hay I usually get from most whites. Also a bit of fruitiness.

Loved this one but it reminds me of some of my moonlight teas so it’s nothing that I haven’t had before.

DON’T OVERSTEEP. TASTE LIKE FISH BROTH IF OVER DONE.