Moving through the teas I picked up yesterday.
3g, 60mL, 195F, flash rinse followed by 8 steeps at 10/15/20/25/30/40/50/60s.
The dry leaf smelled kind of light with notes of spinach, white floral, cream and sugarcane. The liquor started quite fragrant and was light- to medium-bodied with toasted rice, a brightness like citrus and some astringency. The second steep (lol I said belied – removed) suggested the flavors of the rest of the session with buttery toasted rice and corn, tartness, a slight metallic tone and a pretty strong aftertaste of buttery cooked peaches/apricots and generic sourness that lasts. Bottom of the cup scent of sugarcane. The astringency and tartness continued to grow to unenjoyable levels, so I cut it off after a 1-minute brew.
This was my first Mao Xie and could be my last but I’ll have no problem finishing the rest of the bag since it’s a small amount. I guess I’m just not too much a fan of rolled Chinese oolong, but somebody who appreciates their profile more than I do might also enjoy this one.
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A shout out from a fellow tea drinker who is also not the biggest fan of balled oolongs. I would still suggest trying a couple more of Hairy Crab oolongs. Some that I tried are pretty good and did not have that astringency that put you off but instead had a lot of grass and flowers with a good dose of sweetness. Mao Xies tend to be pretty inexpensive and mass-produced so encountering a disappointing one is not uncommon but the good ones are quite pleasant in their own cheerful way.
I’ll try Mao Xie again if I come across a high-grade production. Unlikely?
A shout out from a fellow tea drinker who is also not the biggest fan of balled oolongs. I would still suggest trying a couple more of Hairy Crab oolongs. Some that I tried are pretty good and did not have that astringency that put you off but instead had a lot of grass and flowers with a good dose of sweetness. Mao Xies tend to be pretty inexpensive and mass-produced so encountering a disappointing one is not uncommon but the good ones are quite pleasant in their own cheerful way.
I’ll try Mao Xie again if I come across a high-grade production. Unlikely?