Upton Tea Imports

Odd. I’m not sure about this one.

I’ve been dying to write this one up for several days, but had to consult with a buddy to see what loveliness lurked in the little foil sharing pouch.

This Keemun is superlative. The dry scent is pretty keemuny, maybe a little lighter than some, but don’t let that fool you. It is rich and brothy and has beautiful harvest-season burgundy grape notes to it. Straight up, no additives whatsoever.

Hardly qualifies as LS for those in need of smokiness. Very light liquor when steeped, could not detect any subtle flavours that would make me purchase another bag.

This was one of the highlights of the last few years of tea drinking—a truly memorable cup. Like a darjeeling on steroids, fruit, sugar and herb notes were powerful without being overwhelming. The dry leaf was a thing of beauty in itself. While I’ve had a couple of ordinary teas from this fledgling estate, when they get it right, they can produce some of the best teas in the India/Nepal region.

While not a fan of the trend away from the prolonged withering process that made second flush darjeelings distinct from first flush teas and created the deeper, richer, ripened fruit taste I like in older second flush teas, this offering from Upton (only samples left) is tremendous. The dry leaf is a beautiful mix of sienna and silver and the aroma is so fertile, fecund, and fruity it could be used in a sachet. The infused leaf smells like honeysuckle and the taste—a near first flush delicacy of flavor that leaves a pleasing honey-lemon aftertaste.

I had to add more about this incredible tea: scent of burning cannabis coming from the cup. You can follow the different sensations as it travels from mouth to throat. Spicy on the tip of the tongue, fruity on the middle and then the tea really explodes with a deep chocolate bomb towards the back of the mouth. Truly wonderful.

Upton describes the pre-chingming teas thusly, “The festival of Chingming (Qingming) is a 2500 year-old tradition in which people visit the burial sites of their ancestors to pay respect. It is significant in Chinese tea culture because it serves as a demarcation between a distinct pre-Chingming plucking period and the subsequent plucking period occuring after the festival date (usually around April 5). Pre-Chingming teas are prized for their delicacy and subtle, fresh nuances.”

This Golden Monkey is very intense and chocolatey if steeped in the 4-5 minute range as Upton prescribes. Try a shorter infusion—only then do the subtle fruity flavors come out, revealing a glorious cup that will compel me to try other early spring teas from China.

A rating of 1, really? maybe best not to give a numerical rating to teas you don’t like altogether, because it can skew the ratings for a tea, like this sencha which IS grassy and wonderfully evocative of the ocean environment it hails from. I’ve had many cups of this sencha and, for those who like this type of tea it is one you can really sink your teeth into. Keep the water below 190 and steep for 2.5 minutes max and you’ll avoid any bitterness.