2004 Yang Qing Hao Dingji Yesheng
Context:
This is a tea I know, but don't know. I have a cake, of which this session is from. I have had samples from various places. I didn't care much for this tea out of the lineup a mere 3-4 years ago, even 2...it was a "qi tea" which, we all know how I feel about that.
I do think this is starting to have some taste and purpose to it other than body sensations. This is probably my 6th session or so.
Parameters:
- ~6g
- 1960's ~67ml Hongni teapot
- Empirical Water Glacial
Visuals:
Dry Heat:
Mmmmm...it smells like Yang storage. If you like that, you love this. Sweet, creamy, mushroomy, comfortable...very hard to describe Yang's house note if you've not had it.
Delectable. Basey, rich, lower-middle register aromas. Not quite balsamic, not the right word at all...but in that rough cardinal direction. Maybe a tiny bit of biscuit. Delightful. On all fronts. Make me a Yang candle or cologne and bathe me in its volatiles.
Wet Heat:
Barely, barely green - almost entirely given over to brown notes from aged leaf now. Soft though. Gently being ushered as I sniff through the gates to the next world.
A slight, subtle tang shows as it cools from the rinse. Yes - that orange-leaning-red sweet and sour sauce note at a very soft, rounded, balanced, delicate 2/10 lacing the top notes of the fragrance's makeup.
Coming through actually a bit stronger than anticipated. Reminding me a smidge of sitting in a Chinese buffet with fried chicken and a side of sweet and sour. Not what I'm used to on this tea.
Oh wow, when I get my nose elevated a bit and not buried in it like I'm skimming aromatics off scotch in a glencairn, dodging the alchol's vapors - I register for a flash of a second a vanillin, biscuity, Yang'y house note once more. Special.
Steeps:
Steep 1 brews a pleasantly and ever-so-slightly surprising dark color. Wow - creamy. Big texture. Lovely. The first sip brings with it an instant and permanent soft, delicate, creaminess in its coating. It is a welcome guest in the palate. The flavor is subtle, but there. Often steep 1 is a throw away like the rinse, or close. I drink it most of the time anyway, but it's seldom something to care for. This is good.
If you don't like YQH or just think it's objectively bad tea I'm sorry I just don't know how to help you. I'm happy to be friends but, my friend you are mislead 😆
I feel at home. This is my comfy place, my happy place. All the tests, water struggles, other life stuff - even the good tea I get to try outside of the brand; bring it all back to this at the end. I'm not pushing it, I'm not complaining - I'm vibing ☺️
If I'm ignorant, ignorance is bliss 🏖️
Is it the most exceptional tea in the world? No probably not. It's pretty good I think. DJYS has never been a big flavor tea for me in general, I actually thought basically the only flavor it had was the storage before - which, isn't great, but I love the storage so, I grabbed some to 'age' and see where it would get J-chillin'. I think it's gotten somewhere decent enough, just a few hops toward the 'doing things' side, enough for me to be content owning a cake. Still don't feel any qi, but taste Yang, which is good enough in my book.
I'd probably choose to brew this one a little lower ratio. I've been rocking my little 60's hongni with I guess close shy of a gram per 10 ml...never thought I'd be that guy. I guess I just decided somewhere along the way I enjoyed keeping it circa 5g minimum and letting the pot be the pot and brewing a little gentler and yielding a bit richer. 67ml, 4-5g and then tend to sprinkle another on 'to grow on'; 120ml I probably up to about 7-8g.
This doesn't quite have the mouth cooling I came to expect from this tea, today at least. For what it's worth, I'm getting warm.
Punchline:
Not my favorite YQH, not my least, not top 5, probably not top 10...tho I haven't really thought that hard about it. I'm having a good time. I'll drink it from time to time. I won't trade or sell the cake. I probably won't buy another one, I might trade for some if it shows up.
Have you seen my tasting process walkthrough? Check that out here:
Brandon Kendall
Wanna grab some good water? Here's the page for Empirical Water Glacial:
Empirical Water
