Today’s review is a white tea from Yunnan Sourcing which has been pressed into little leaf shapes and then wrapped in foil.
Table of Contents
Tea Specifications
Brand: Yunnan Sourcing
Vintage: Spring, 2020
Origin: Shi Tou Xin Zhai village, Nannuo Mountains, Xishhuangbanna, China
Review
Although the presentation is pretty, the tea itself doesn’t visually appear to be of particularly high-quality, but let’s find out!
I decided to brew this in a small glass pitcher using distilled water, because I don’t have any spring water available today.
I rinsed the tea for 15 seconds in hot water and discarded the rinse.
First Steep
Steeped for 45 seconds.
Bright yellow broth.
It’s a bit low on flavor here.
There is a bit of fruity sweetness but it’s a little underwhelming.
Second Steep
Steeped for 1 minute.
The broth is now much darker, showing more of an orange/yellow color.
Some astringency, bitterness, and a slight sour note have developed in the second steep.
It almost makes me pucker a little bit.
I can’t say this is my favorite white tea. I don’t really like the sourness of it, and overall, it just seems like a lower-quality tea compared to other white teas in this price range. I would much rather be drinking Yunnan Sourcing’s imperial grade Yue Guang Bai white tea cake, which nearly identical in price, and much higher-quality.
Flavor notes: Orange blossom honey, dry hay, field flowers, with a bit of a sour tang.
Third Steep
Steeped for 1 minute and 10 seconds.
I’m not a huge fan of this tea, but I guess I’ll drink another cup of it for sake of the review.
You can taste the minerals a little more now, but the flavor seems to be weakening a bit in the third steep.
It’s worth noting that this tea seems to have a reasonable amount of caffeine.
I don’t have much else to say about the tea.
Conclusion
This Nannuo Mountain leaf-shaped assamica white tea has a beautiful presentation, as it is shaped like a leaf and then wrapped in quality foil, but the flavor profile is not quite up to par with what I was expecting. The sour tang in the second steep is not a flavor I enjoy.
