TeaChat

Steeping Orwell Bao Zhong (1984)
Getting a nice enveloping dark dried fruit coating. It has a clear element of sourness that delivers a pretty alkaline feel which at time borders on cocoa. The hui gan is noticeable and coats the middle-back of the throat. Is it outrageous to have this also remind me of dry and dark olives?

Perfect for a rain soaked evening on the patio.

Still going in order. I think this is my favorite to date. Tony seems to be giving us an illustration on progression in flavor and aroma shifts with age in BZ. Very interesting!

*Edit: Forgot to include which one this was!

~20 year old.
Dry leaf is very nice, a lot of "aged oolong" aroma. Which I have a hard time describing but think about it as dried fruits, things like raisins, and prunes. First infusion was very nice, aroma seemed a little weak, but taste was very nice though not as sweet as the 10 year. Though this has a lot more going on, and is more interesting.

I did not really care for the second infusion, came out both bitter and lifeless, yet the third infusion was quite nice, this with slightly cooler water ( because I did not turn my kettle on since it first boiled for the first infusion), but substantially longer steep.

Fourth is once again full boil, about the same length of time as infusion 3, about 1m 15s. Similar to the third but less of a punch. I am having a hard time zoning in on the sweet spot with this tea. It is nice, maybe I am tired and my taste buds are not fully up for the challenge.

1984 BZ in the office. Great for everyday drinking, nice flavours, nice qi.

the_economist wrote:1984 BZ in the office. Great for everyday drinking, nice flavours, nice qi.

Love that Japanese plate Econ! 1940's?

Thanks! I'm not sure of the date, but it could be

Savoring 10 grams of 30 y/o Hi-fire Baozhong in a 90 ml porcelain gaiwan.

A tea to be reckoned with. Not for the faint of heart or tounge. That said, it rewards the drinker with a nostril opening deep and broad lingering palette. As Mike stated, while it has it's fair share of sour, things go far beyond that dimension. I will avoid flowery flavor descriptions. This seems to be a tea with a great deal of elasticity...my guess is with practice, one could tease out many different nuances.

This is a long novel tea. Similar to an afternoon spent with a nice single malt waiting and watching the flavors unfolding. I really want next time to see how it performs in a teapot.

Sorry to be effusive, but to me, this tea is inspiring. What are your thought?

May I suggest one drinks or at least tries the first wash. A shame to leave all that flavor on the tea table floor. Old wood.

EDIT: Spellin