Black tea from Ureshino, Fuji-kaori, 2nd flush

Thanks to Derk for the chance to try another black tea from TDJ! I steeped 3 g of leaf in 150 ml of 203F water for 3, 5, 7, and 10 minutes.

The dry aroma is of apple, cinnamon, blackberry, jasmine, and malt. Oof! If TDJ describes this tea as having faint tannins, I wouldn’t want to drink anything they think is stronger. The first steep has notes of tannins, wood, malt, pencil shavings, earth, apple, blackberry, jasmine, violet, butter, and cinnamon, though those drying tannins grab my attention and don’t let go. The sad part is that the apple, blackberry, cinnamon, and florals are lovely, but are totally overwhelmed. The next steep has mouthwatering aromas of baked apple, cinnamon, blackberries and other berries, apricot, and florals, but those tannins steal the show. The tannins are less aggressive in the third steep, allowing honey, malt, and florals to peak through and offering nice apple hints in the aftertaste. The final steep is fainter, with a cinnamon apple aroma and a tannic kick.

If I’d only smelled this tea without tasting it, I would have given it a high rating. As is, it’s way too harsh for me. The fruity, cinnamon, floral aroma and aftertaste don’t make up for the astringency.

June 14th, 2021 harvest

This was a sample provided by Thés du Japon in my joint buy with Leafhopper. I prepared it according to TDJ’s parameters, which differ from my usual 3g:300mL:3min for many black teas. TDJ recommends half of my typical water volume, so I opted to use a 200mL Taiwanese black clay teapot and eyeball the water level instead of my usual Western-style mason jar brewing. I have 2 different black clay teapots that hadn’t seen much use until I recently got into Japanese teas. They seem to work very well for these teas and I’m happy they’re getting the attention they deserve!

A powerful Japanese black tea, full of lively tannins but with no heaviness that upsets my body. The woody-floral-spicy aroma carries through into the mouth and presents strongly in retro-olfaction but does not linger for more than a few minutes. I think this is due to the tannic and drying, rather than coating, nature of the tea. The full flavor is malty-rosewoody with lesser dark-fruitiness and soft, warm cinnamon; an apple nuance. A fruity and light, buttery finish presents along with the return of the aroma. I accidentally steeped the second infusion for 15 minutes. It came out rather bitter, reminding me of violet candies, while still presenting some weakened characteristics of the first infusion.

The tea calls to mind the profile of What-Cha’s Taiwan Wild ‘Shan Cha’, the main difference between the two residing in the mouthfeel — this one has plenty of structure provided by the tannins, while the Wild ‘Shan Cha’ exhibits the smooth character of many Taiwanese blacks. This is a lovely black tea that I think would appeal to plenty of people , especially those who like to add a touch of milk, but it is not necessarily something I would seek out. For being grown without chemical pesticides or fertilizers, I’m impressed with the result!