Prompted by the discussion in this TeaChat topic….
Head to head, 2 grams tea in small porcelain gaiwans
1--2012 Yunnan Sourcing "Yi Wu Purple Tea"
2--2012 Yunnan Sourcing "Ye Sheng Cha" Wild Tree Purple Tea of Dehong
Dry leaf
1--scent of herbs and anise
2--sweat socks, worn daily for PE and not laundered for a year
Quick rinse with 205 degree water, letting sit 5 minutes to hydrate leaves
Flash infusion: pour water in, lid on, pour out
1--sweet, anise, delicate--no hint of sour, no how, no where
2--smoky, but also spicy/herbaceous--there might be a hint of sour there somewhere in the aftertaste--somehow related to the smoky gym sock element, but the overwhelming sense is the smoky and spicy
2nd flash infusions: pour water in, lid on, pour out, less than 10 seconds altogether
1--delicate, anise, sweet, light, could do a little longer infusion
2--still smoky, but now pleasantly smoky, campfire smoky, not gym socks, and still the lovely spicy, with just hints of that maybe sour element
3rd, 4th flash infusion--no significant change
First impression: the YiWu purple is immediately friendlier, milder, while the Dehong is aggressively smoky-young and needs some air time to release that excessive smokiness--just not immediately as approachable as the YiWu. I do like the spicy background flavor A LOT and think this is going to be just lovely after this smoky phase calms. The Dehong may well be the more interesting tea in a few years.
5th infusion now 20-30 seconds
stronger and more pleasing spicy/anise flavor in the YiWu, as expected, YUM!, no sourness of note here; the Dehong is getting sweeter and spicier as the smoky fades a bit. There's a hint of sourness still, perhaps, but less than in the earlier infusions, again leading me to think that was more a feature of the heavy smokiness rather than intrinsic to the tea itself.
And somehow I'm again out of tea and must infuse again…but the kettle is nearly empty and it's late, so I'll post this preliminary report now.