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Taiwan Tea Crafts Songboling Shui Xian
Origin: Songboling
Harvest: Fall
2013
Cultivar:
Jin Xuan, Tres #12
Elevation:
350m
So I
decided to write up a little bit on a rather interesting Taiwanese variation of
a one of my favorite Wuyis. Shui Xian is sometimes transliterated as Water
Fairy, Water Sprite, etc; unfortunately I don’t see a lot of them for some
reason, I guess Shui Xians are not a popular Wuyi in the west, and normally a
darker oolong than I normally drink. Taiwan Tea Crafts describes this as:
Some might find it
unusual to see a Shui Xian tea listed in our collection of Taiwanese teas. Shui
Xian Oolong Tea, otherwise known as Fairies’ Tears or Water Sprite tea, is a
very famous oolong originating from the Wuyi Mountains in the northern part of
Fujian Province in mainland China. Our local variation is made in the same
style with a Taiwanese twist, featuring local leaf varietals grown in our local
terroir and showcasing the roasting talents of our own tea master. An amateur
of original Wuyi Shui Xian will find our tea quite surprising in the way it respects
the distinctive aromatic characteristics of true Wuyi Shui Xians. Made from
carefully twisted Jin Xuan leaves, this tea is oxidized (medium level) to
retain the characteristic orchid scent, then, skillfully roasted to reveal the
characteristic smooth wild honey taste and smooth finish with distinctive
mineral notes. No overbearing, raspy finish here (like it is the case with some
cheap Chinese variations you can find on the market)! The roasting skills of
our tea master, that spans from generations of knowledge, shines despite his
great humility. We are proud to showcase his skills with this deserving
contribution.
I was
rather interested in trying a Shui Xian grown in Taiwan, but I became a little
hesitant when I read this is made with Jin Xuan leaves, although I am not sure
if I could think of a better Taiwanese cultivar to use.
Dry Leaves: The majority of the leaves have an s like curve, there is
quite a bit of reddish browns in the leaves, perhaps not as dark as a roasted
TGY, but still a lot. And there is a little bit of roasted aroma to it, perhaps
a little chocolate.
First
Steeping
Temperature:
190oF
Brewing
Time: One Minute
Aroma: Chocolate
and Orchid
Flavor: Roast,
Floral, Wet Stone and Honey
Tasting
Notes: This has a strangely thick mouthfeel for a tea grown at 350m, I’d be
interested in seeing this grown around 1000m and see how much thicker it would
be. The liquor is very creamy, unsurprising because it is made from Jin Xuan.
The roasted notes are very mild, even though I do not enjoy roasted flavors
that much I found this quite pleasant and was my favorite individual taste.
There some floral tastes, but they were
not particularly pronounced; they were stronger than the wet stone and honey
notes, but they felt overwhelmed by the roast. As for the aroma of the liquor,
it was a rather nice blend of chocolate and orchid; I do not think I have ever
encountered that combination before normally with roasted or baked oolongs I do
not smell floral notes. Regardless I enjoyed the aroma more than the actual
taste of the tea, so far nothing was wrong with the taste, but I loved the
chocolate and orchid combination.
Second
Steeping
Temperature:
195oF
Brewing
Time: Two Minutes
Aroma: Chocolate, Woodsy and Orchid
Flavor: Roast,
Floral, Wet Stone and Honey
Tasting
Notes: The new woodsy aroma was quite interesting, it starting to overpower the
orchid notes, but it is still quite pleasant. I am reminded of floral infused
chocolate, but now there is a woodsy, almost earthy taste to it. I do not ascribe
to the belief that teas or certain aromas or flavors are masculine or feminine,
but if I did I would probably describe this as a nice balance of masculine and
feminine. While the chocolate and woodsy aromas are certainly stronger than the
orchid, but there is something memorable about how they interact.
The
flavors are pretty similar to the last infusion, but they are becoming slightly
stronger; although the wet stone notes are becoming a little sharp.
Third
Steeping
Temperature:
200oF
Brewing Time:
Three Minutes
Aroma: Dark
Chocolate, Woodsy and Floral
Flavor: Roast,
Violet, Spicy, Wet Stone and Honey
Tasting
Notes: Wow! The aroma is simply divine! Sadly the flavor of the tea pales in
comparison to how it smells. Again there is nothing wrong with how it tastes,
but this is a very aromatic tea. It feels much more aromatic than many Shui
Xians from Wuyi. The more I drink it the more confused I am. I already
mentioned this was made from Jin Xuan, but it feels way more aromatic than most
Jin Xuans, let alone a roasted one.
I am not
sure if I have ever encountered a roasted tea with floral notes this strong.
This was quite an enjoyable tea. Taiwan Tea Craft (at the time of writing this)
is selling this for $7 for 50g and it is a bargain. Even though it is obvious
from the leaves (and the addition information section of TTC’s site) that this
is a machine harvested tea, but it is obvious that a lot of work went into the
roast.
This tea sounds pretty interesting!
ReplyDeleteIt is more interesting than many of the proper Wuyi Shui Xians I had.
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