Fabulous...
I'll start with tasting notes, and for the recored either I brew in a gaiwain or a small gongfu style teapot (150 ml) with two to five second steep times and water between 185 and 190 Fahrenheit or in a 320 ml glass gong dao bai (the so called "fairness pitcher" of the gongfu ceremony that's about the size and shape of a creamer pitcher) using "grandpa style" technique. Brewed in a gaiwan or pot the broth is thick and viscous, vibrantly green, and has a rich bouquet redolent of seaweed, iodine, and miso with just a hint of citrus. The flavor unfolds with ocean heavy notes first and a pleasant, piquant astringency, an umami base, and impressions of leafy greens (think Sencha but without the lemon forward profile), leaving a pleasantly sweet aftertaste heavy with a lemon-lime flavor on the exhale. A few steeps in notes reminiscent of sesame begin to emerge, and the umami gives way to nutty, rich, almost oily sweetness as the marine notes shift to more straight forward minerals, and the citrus becomes more pronounced. Finally in the later stages the marine notes return and the minerals grow stronger, while a subtle but very intriguing fruity bouquet of citrus and something almost like jackfruit develops on the exhale. Brewed "grandpa style -just put the leaves in a cup or gong dao Bai, fill the vessel about three quarters full, and j leave until you're inclined drink, then refill and repeat as desired until the leaves are spent- the mineral and marine notes predominate, supported by a brisk but very pleasant astringency and fairly straightforward lemon-lime overtone. The teas is beautiful brewed both ways, and it's strikingly resilient to temps ranging from 165 F to 200 F, displaying intriguingly different (but all equally pleasant) flavor and scent profiles depending on the temp. Altogether a joy to brew... So, to sum up this tea is extremely good, but for the price it's rediculously good. I'm a tea snob too, so I don't say that lightly - I've paid four to eight times for leaf that isn't anywhere near this good. Suffice to say if you're looking for a smooth, rich, beautiful daily drinker I can't reccomend it enough, and this is a staple in my rather large, varied, and expensive collection, and I find myself reaching for it at least a couple times a week. An absolute joy of a Lu Cha, so highest compliments and deepest thanks to both the farmers, the tea master, and Arbor's team for making this gem available...