Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Yellow
Where to Buy: Canton Tea Co.
Product Information:
Only the valuable, tender young leaf buds picked from high up on the cool misty peak of Mount Meng can be considered true Meng Ding Huang Ya. It is made in the original mountainous area where tea cultivation dates back more than 2,000 years and is a very famous tea. It was once made as an Imperial Tribute Tea during the Tang Dynasty (meaning it was only made for the Emperor and his Court) and is still hugely sought after.
Meng Ding Huang Ya has yellowish green leaves with a fresh, raw nutty aroma. Because the leaves come from the cooler, higher level of the mountain, the buds have a less even, thinner appearance. Once they are infused, they become plump and soft and settle upright at the bottom of the vessel. Brew in a glass pot to appreciate this unusual quality.
The liquor is bright yellow with a smooth, fresh taste that offers a sweet, nutty flavour with a hint of citrus.
Taster’s Review:
I love Yellow Tea. It is my favorite type of tea leaf. In fact, I love it so much that I bought a Yixing tea mug just for my yellow tea. At the time of this writing, I own three Yixing mugs: one for yellow tea, one for jasmine tea, and one for Ali Shan Oolong.
But let’s get back to the tea that is in the mug that sits before me… this Meng Ding Huang Ya from Canton Tea is excellent. I steeped this tea in my gaiwan; I am sipping the combination of the first four infusions from my Yixing mug. A superior quality yellow tea such as this one submits to many infusions, I will get another full mug out of these leaves – a total of eight infusions.
The flavor is so amazing. There is a sweet, nutty flavor. Not a toasty nut taste, but more of a creamy nut taste – like the flavor of blanched nuts. There are notes of flower that weave in and out of the sip, as well as a hint of sweet, tangy citrus that rests upon the palate in the finish. I also taste a note of melon that arrives at the start of the sip and melds nicely with the nutty note previously mentioned.
There is a slight bitterness that hits the palate about mid-sip. This bitterness is a savory one. It is as if it is part of the nutty flavor which starts out sweet and ends with a hint of bitter. This note enhances the overall experience by cutting through some of the sweeter tones and adding dimension to the taste.
A soft mouthfeel coats the palate – it’s almost cushion-y soft! The barely-there note of astringency cleans this softness away in the finish so that you want to take another sip just to experience the mouthfeel. It’s like the palate glides along the surface of a cloud – it’s that kind of heavenly experience.
This yellow tea from Canton Tea Co. is a perfect example of why I love yellow teas so much. It’s absolutely exquisite … perfectly divine!
