I am so happy to have arrived at the Keemuns just as cooler weather has begun to arrive. The high was only 79 degrees yesterday. Brrr! Category: Black Tea
Purveyor: Upton Tea
Dry leaf appearance: Dark, almost black bits of tea leaf which, thanks to a comment I recently read about another tea, reminded me of pencil shavings.
Wet leaf appearance: A bird's nest after a tornado.
Steeping temperature and time: 1 teaspoon of tea, 205 degrees, 4 minutes.
Scent: The dry tea had that lovely earthy scent I know to be Keemun scent. The steeped tea? Now don't freak out, but ... it reminded me of wet leather and fire ashes -- and I loved it!
Color: Coppery brown.
Flavor: This tea has a great earthy taste I love, and I drank it straight black.
Additional notes: From the Harney book: "The name Keemun is an older Western spelling of the town now known as Qimen (pronounced "Chee-men"). There is also great information on how and when this tea is harvested.
Next week's tea: Keemun Hao Ya A
You must definately be a Southerner. I consider 79 verging on Hot! But you made that Keemun sound wonderful. I've not had good luck with them, but you inspired me to try again.
ReplyDeleteAh, that is good timing! Maybe I'll try to hustle through the greens so that I can at least do the Oolongs in winter. :-)
ReplyDeleteBird's nest after a big storm. That's a compelling way to describe the agony of the leaves. --Spirituality of Tea
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like my kind of tea. I like Keemun and I'm always looking for black teas that I can enjoy without milk.
ReplyDelete