Golden Yunnan vendors lately?

[Salsero]

Salsero - Is that Simao you mentioned above the 2008 variety? I been reading negative reports about the 2007 tea, but hopefully 2008 will turn out better.

Spring 2007, which I received in February 2008, so it was already almost a year old. I had high hopes for it; maybe the 2008 will redeem the breed!

[Bubba_tea]

Anyone have alternate contact info for the YSLLC guy? I haven't heard back from him in a week via the ebay contact - maybe they're out picking leaves..

[Salsero]

I believe he is sometimes out of town buying tea for a week or two at a time.

[Bubba_tea]

OK - man... what a life, eh? I could think of worse jobs!!

[jim109]

The first Yunnan Gold I purchased was from Adagio around Sept. 07. It was delicious and definately "peppery". Haven't found that same flavor since!
Jim

[Bubba_tea]

Jim - I guess that was probably a 2006 crop if bought in 2007? I now have about 5 vendors yunnan golds here - I assume they are Dian Hong - but same here, no peppery. I did get both yunnan hong samples from adagio - and they are actually quite good! NBT is pretty similar, IMO. All have been much better than the #2 Ten Ren I've been buying for the last 2 years. I'll probably buy 20 pounds of the stuff if I ever find the pepper again.

Geoff

[Jack_teachat]

Hey guys and gals!

I have some Yunnan Gold coming from Jing(uk), hopefully it will be here 2mo!... Could somebody recommend me some parameters to start with, I have a 250ml glass gongfu pot which to brew it in.

Jack

[silverneedles]

i had the Jingtea(UK) Yunnan,
pretty solid flavor, low astringency
it has sort of what i call "ceylon" flavor (reminds me of indian teas or something...)

for a more strong profile do 3 min (i dont have a scale... i'd say i use a tablespoon for 8 oz water)

for milder more "smooth" use double leaf, water ~190F x 1.5min

(works for me anyway)

[Jack_teachat]

Hi Silverneedles

Thanks thats great Does Jing ship over to the states then?

[silverneedles]

i guess they do if the shipping is paid
they sent me some samples for review

[Salsero]

Does Jing ship over to the states then?

Yes, I know of people in the States who have ordered from them and been happy as ducks.

[Jack_teachat]

Does Jing ship over to the states then?

Yes, I know of people in the States who have ordered from them and been happy as ducks.

Tis nice to know, cheers Sal

[Grubby]

So many people seem interested in this tea..

Is it hype or is it really that good?

[Salsero]

So many people seem interested in this tea..
Is it hype or is it really that good?

Yunnan Gold or Dian Hong is very popular with a lot of black tea drinkers. It is generally less astringent than Assam but just as full or strong tasting. That's what Yunnan blacks pretty much have in common.

You may have noticed from this thread, however, that there is a lot of variation within those parameters. People identify smokey flavors, grain, chocolate or cocoa, even pepper. These characteristics vary from one offering to another and from one season to another. True aficionados often spend a lot of time trying to recapture some perfect tea moment they had in their Dian Hong past. My impression is that they enjoy the hunting more than they would enjoy the finding!

For me personally, Dian Hong is a little too smooth, I prefer something with a bit more bite. I enjoy it once in a while, but it's not one of my main squeezes.

[silverneedles]

its got a really good specific flavor (if you like it that is)
even cheap ones have lower "astringency" (tho usually cheap ones have less flavor strength)
its got some caffeine
and the "gold" yunnans have pretty leaves

Hi Sal