Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Our Zhen Qu originates from Yunnan, China and has downy black and gold curly leaves. This lightly malty tea has wonderful honey notes that linger and mingle with floral, chocolate, and pecan notes. Our recommended steep time produces a well-balanced tea and is less dry but we also recommend trying this tea at longer steep times for a more intense flavor.
Ingredients: Chinese Black Tea
Recommended Brew Time: 3 minutes
Recommended Amount: 1 level teaspoon of tea for 8oz of water
Recommended Temperature: 212 F (boiling)
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
As soon as I added water to my cup I could smell sweet honey notes and a malty, almost smoky aroma. I knew this was going to be an amazing cup! The water had not even settled into the cup yet and these aromas were so instantly present.
Once steeped I got a better whiff of something I had thought I noticed when I first poured the water onto the dry leaf. It was in there with that initial aroma I already described but I had held back on stating it as I thought maybe my mind was playing games with me. Hey that happens a lot! It is this wonderful wine like aroma! Yes like a delicious merlot! The flavor does not disappoint! While I do not get a wine like flavor – no alcohol flavor – there are some elements in this tea that have wine like notes. Sweet, and yet somehow savory, just lightly smoky but not like a lapsang souchong smoke at all, nutty, and a light grape note. This is not an ordinary tea!
While I do taste the chocolate note within this tea which is so nicely balanced by the floral note what stands out more to me personally is how this tea is like a very fine wine with deeply earthy notes. Not earthy like a pu-erh however, but earthy as in the way the tea plays with the nuisances of the soil it was grown in, again, like a very fine wine.
As the tea cools some the floral note becomes more pronounced but it is so delicate to begin with that it is nice when it peeks out more.
This is truly one of those teas I could have many times before I discover all it has to offer! I am so thankful that I have got to sample this tea and it will go directly onto my shopping list!
Zhen Qu from Butiki Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Our Zhen Qu originates from Yunnan, China and has downy black and gold curly leaves. This lightly malty tea has wonderful honey notes that linger and mingle with floral, chocolate, and pecan notes. Our recommended steep time produces a well-balanced tea and is less dry but we also recommend trying this tea at longer steep times for a more intense flavor.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I have to start off by mentioning that I don’t believe that the photo for this picture does this tea justice. The first thing I noticed when I opened this pouch of tea was all the gorgeous golden curls amongst the dark chocolate brown leaves (also curled!) So many golden leaves! And I don’t know how well this photo captured all those pretty gold leaves.
Then again, it also does not capture the amazing aroma that is wafting from my favorite tea mug (my favorite painting – Starry Night – has been printed on it). It smells chocolate-y and nutty and sweet … and malty and caramel-y too. This fragrance is so decadent that my taste buds can hardly wait for a sip!
And the sip does not disappoint. This is deliciously full-flavored, with a strong honey-esque tone to it. So much so that it tastes as though I added a dollop of honey to my mug. But I didn’t! This tea doesn’t need it either … it is so fantastically sweet all on its own.
The chocolate notes are there too and they lend a rich and creamy taste to the cup, as does the notes of malt and caramel. All the aromas that I could smell before taking a sip I can now taste as I sip. The nutty tones add depth to the flavor and there is also a hint of flower to the cup that kind of took me by surprise, but in a very good way. I just didn’t expect that light, flowery taste in this rich cup of tea … but I like it.
Such a rich and impressive cup of tea. The kind you want to have on hand for the mornings when you aren’t rushing out the door, this would be a delightful way to start the day. I say this because you DO NOT want to rush with this tea, take your time and savor every drop! It’s absolutely lovely!
