Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: What-Cha Tea
Tea Description:
A brilliant green tea with a wonderful mango aroma, fruity taste and citrus finish. Perfect as an ‘everyday’ green tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The dry leaf of this tea has the most amazing aroma! So fruity, I almost thought it was a blended/flavored tea! It really does have a mango-y scent and it is a very strong fragrance. Once brewed, the scent does soften but there are still distinct fruit notes.
To brew this tea, I went with a slightly lower temperature – 175°F instead of 180°F – because when I see “Assam” my mind automatically thinks to adjust the temperature slightly. Assam is a little more temperamental than other teas, it seems, and I find that I experience less bitterness from Assam when I use a slightly lower temperature. I steeped it for 2 minutes. The liquid produced is quite pale, looking almost like a white tea rather than a green.
But there is still plenty of flavor!
The sip starts out quite light. Delicate. But by mid-sip, the palate starts picking up on some strong flavors. I taste the fruity notes that are promised in the above description and I’m also experiencing the citrus finish. This citrus finish lingers long in the aftertaste. A minute later and I’m still tasting bright citrus flavors.
I like how the flavors build with this tea. It starts out very soft. Again, I must compare it to a white tea. It’s delicate like that at first. But just before mid-sip, the flavors are developing. I first pick up on a slight vegetal note and soon these vegetative flavors are washed over by the sweet fruity notes. The finish is tangy with citrus. It’s a very light and rewarding taste. Soothing. Calming.
The leaves looked to me like they wanted to treat me to another cup of tea, so I resteeped them. The second infusion was not as delicate as the first. Much more flavor right up front. Notes of vegetation peek through right at the start and then the fruit notes come on strong. The citrus notes at the finish are not quite as sharp, they are softer but the tangy flavor is still present.
It would be difficult for me to decide which infusion I preferred. I liked the delicate approach of the first cup, but the second cup was so flavorful. Both were wonderful so I highly recommend infusing these leaves at least twice!
I haven’t tried as many green Assam teas as I would like to so trying this Assam Second Flush from What-Cha is a real treat for me! And it’s not just a treat because it’s something a little out of the norm for me, but it’s also a treat because it’s yet another amazing tea from this company. I’m really impressed by them!
