This roasted, toasted, spiced, soothing rock oolong is everything we look for when we reach for a Wuyi Yancha. It’s edges are soft, its roast is deep without being burnt, its brews continue on cup after cup. This daily Rougui isn’t from a famous region, it isn’t made from 100 year old trees, and yet its quality meets our standard. We had a lot of teas during our weeks in Wuyi, and thisR stood with the best of them.
The aroma off the leaves is chocolatey sweet, when brewed, it exudes slightly spicy notes of cinnamon toward the ends. There is a slight pine resin and woodsmoke on the leaves as well. The brew is immediately thick in the mouth, with strong mineralogy noticeable on the tips of the tongue. The brew stays consistent for six or even seven infusions, getting very thick around the third, and very sweet toward the sixth.
Yanzi Keng is a small household production family with several plots of land scattered throughout the Wuyi Mountain Scenic Reserve and beyond.
Deeply roasted Northern Fujian yancha character, but otherwise a bit flat. Low astringency, with caramelized brown sugar and just a whisper of woody cinnamon beneath the roast. Fine as an everyday Rou Gui, though the roast carries most of the experience.
Floral, green, balanced, it does have that butter type note, decently sweet. It brews many multiple times. Overall, its a very decent Ya Shi Xiang at a good value.
This cute little square brewed up surprisingly well in a mug. Sometimes I find Yunnan whites to be temperamental to brew, but this one was a smooth sipper right off the bat and lasted quite long.
