Aged Traditional Iron Buddha: 20 Years Old, Charcoal Roasted

The dry smell isn’t strong, but subtle and smokey.

Did a quick rinse-brew.

First steep: Twenty seconds
Smells definitely smokey, although there are hints of a green, buddha oolong scent as well. Hard to explain. The deep, metallic scent I find they have.

It’s definitely green—definitely an iron buddha, anyhow, crisp, not as green as some oolongs. But there’s a strong smokey overtone that hits first before.

After a while, the smoke starts to taste almost sweet. Possibly a combination of the smoke and more mineral-butter-vegetal notes. Hmm.

I’m liking this a lot actually. I love smokey teas, but this is very different. In a good way. Not pure smoke. Subtle, smoke adding the right touch.

Second Steep: Twenty Seconds
Brewed darker than the first. Found this one more sharply smoky; the initial sips were sweet, but this has mostly faded.

Third Steep: Twenty Seconds
As I was brewing this steep, I got a distinct tobacco scent. Smoke seems to have dissipate in the taste, although there’s something akin to tobacco to replace it. Deeper notes. Not as green.

Fourth Steep: Twenty Seconds
Tobacco note is fading. Bit more like a new-styled iron buddha now.

Fifth Steep: Twenty Seconds
New day. Thought there were hints of smoke, but might have been mistaken. Starting to taste a bit spent, but still flavourful. See fourth steep.

Sixth Steep: Twenty Seconds
Still steeped a good colour, rather instantly, but the taste is a bit spent. Like steeping something a second time after the first steep was already three or four minutes long. Taste is still there, but most of the main notes have vanished.

Aged oolong seems to be my weakness and what I keep searching for. When I received this as part of the angel swooping in because my Halloween partner hasn’t appeared on Steepster again, I was quite excited.
The first thing to note is that I don’t believe this was reroasted from the original roast. The second thing to note is that the roast was a light to medium and not a full blown one. These are both initial thoughts as I looked at the leaf and smelled it. Upon brewing it I am more confident that those two things are true.

This is an aged oolong that was charcoal roasted and stored well as it has similar characteristics as that of the aged oolongs from Tea Urchin who has (from my experience) amazing storage. That being said, there is a cocoa malt mixture going on within the tea where the small buttery texture ends up becoming a way for tasting notes of mild roast to be appreciated over the flavor itself. If you steep this out you will find the mild sweetness that I refer to as the candy bar that sat in the sun for four hours and just had to taste to see what it was like to find out it lost flavor.

I used 3.5 to 4 grams of this in a small little vessel and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Much better than a lot of aged TGY out there that has been roasted and wet stored for a small portion of time but is noticeable.

My very first roasted oolong. I brewed this in what I call the "western electric kettle, single mug method’. It smells earthy, and a little smoky. The dry leaves have a more earthy scent. Iget a little chocolate in the flavour, but that’s more like dark chocolate or roast cacao beans. There is some of the roasty oolong flavour, but it’s more subtle.

Thanks to Chinese Tea Shop for letting me try this.