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ssively become more apparent up until about half-way through the session, at which point some fruity undertones of mango and cantaloupe become front-and-center in the flavor profile. In the second half of the session, the tangerine-like citrus notes melt away into something more reminiscent of apple juice, and the florals that were blooming on the front-end of the flavor profile start to mellow out into something more creamy and milky. The texture remains very silky and buttery-smooth. The finish is graceful, it has a strong mouthfeel with a very long-lasting aftertaste that is like a mango & cream milkshake with micronized glacial rock dust, which creates a kind of electric vibrancy that I’ve come to know and love in good, high-end dancong. I appreciate the subtle nature of this Yu Lan’s depth. It has a kind of charm that slowly creeps up on you and lingers on the palate. The empty-cup aroma is magnificent. Wet leaf aroma is super deep and complex. Leaf quality is superb… this Yu Lan is hard to beat for its price and carries all of the right attributes that I could hope to find in a premium version of this cultivar.
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way to go, as described above. This harvest has an amazing floral quality to it that coats the whole mouth & throat, it’s less bean-y and vegetal than previous years, but does not sacrifice the incredibly smooth and round mouthfeel.
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er had.
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ions in the body & mind. The flavor profile is complex, and immediately bursts out with perfectly-intertwined notes of florals and spices, along with a creamy-smooth sensation and a deep earthiness that is characteristic of zhengyan yancha. The aftertaste is persistent, the sweetness is apparent, and the charm of this yancha lingers in the throat pleasantly for a while. Hui Yuan is one of the most expensive micro-terroirs in all of Wuyi, as it is one of the original “three pits and two streams” which define the most historically-accurate, and inner-most production regions in all of Wuyi. This is a very good price for what is undoubtedly very good yancha.
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s the tongue and creates a lively mouthfeel that has rocky minerality to it, but is not metallic. Within a matter of seconds after swallowing the soup, this strong minerality melts away and reveals a beautiful symphony of flavors, all perfectly orchestrated and seemingly emanating out from that rocky minerality. Maybe that’s what “music from the rock” means – and if so, this is a brilliant example of a rare quality not found in many dancong nowadays. More modern processing techniques are not focused on bringing such a characteristic out, and while they can be good overall, they can also be lacking yan-yun entirely. The way the mouthfeel builds progressively is beautiful – so many layers of flavor are possible to explore because this tea has such a deep and round body. I get overt undertones of plums, lychee, almonds, and a kind of spice that is reminiscent of toasted coriander seed, plus all kinds of subtle sensations like licorice root and citrus fruits, some of which sparkle on the palate and feel electrifying, and others which weave in and out so softly they are barely detectable, yet so refined once I sense them. This is glorious. What a rare and complex experience. If you want something special; not only in its flavor profile, but also for the tradition it represents, and the nearly thousand-year-old history it perfectly exemplifies, then this is definitely the right choice!
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