First Tea Meeting

Our very first event was a lot of fun. Four dedicated tea lovers gathered to drink tea and engage in pleasant conversation. The first tea we had was a Phoenix oolong from Jing Tea Shop, included as a free sample from my last order from them. The tea is called Ya Shi, and according to Jing is harvested on the lower part of Wu Dong mountain.

The tea was long lasting and pleasant. After about eight infusions, we moved on to a 2005 single estate raw pu-erh from the Menghai area made by Xing Hai factory.

Tasting notes:

The Ya Shi was surprisingly lightly oxidized, with flavours that reminded me of Tie Guan Yin. The Menghai tea was brewed a bit strong, I underestimated the density of the compression and put a bit too much leaves in. A deep, dark sugar cane aroma and flavour was present but a bit overwhelmed by the bitterness. The tea is yielded about four or five intense and quite bitter flash brews before calming down a little bit.

My inexperience with brewing for several people combined with carrying on conversations definitely compromised my tea brewing and tasting. I feel that I didn't really do justice to either of these teas. The Ya Shi probably would have benefitted from cooler water and slightly longer brews, while the Menghai could have used a bit less leaf. However, it was a great deal of fun.