Country of Origin: China
Leaf Appearance: dark, long and twisted
Ingredients: black tea
Steep time: 30 seconds
Water Temperature: 212 degrees
Preparation Method: porcelain gaiwan
Liquor: deep reddish brown
I recently placed an order with Yunnan Sourcing and was happily surprised to find a sample of this tea in the box. The words “wild arbor” immediately caught my attention. I was further intrigued when I read that this tea is made is from a naturally hybridized assamica varietal that is smaller than pure assamica. Cacao was the dominant element of the flavor profile right from the get go. The finish took more of a floral lean but there was still a lot of sweetness. This is one of the least malty Yunnan blacks that I’ve tried so it would be a good choice for folks who don’t like that aspect of them. The mouth-feel was smooth with very little astringency. The caffeine buzz that I got from gongfuing it was pretty strong so I wouldn’t recommend drinking it on an empty stomach. If I didn’t have more tea than I know what to do with, I’d actually consider getting a kilo of this stuff. There’s no way I can do that but I may just pick up a bit more the next time that I need to order.
Jingmai Mountain Wild Arbor Black Tea of Spring 2015 sample received with paid order from Yunnan Sourcing.