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gurdymonkey ([personal profile] gurdymonkey) wrote2021-12-25 04:47 pm
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Tea Time: Osmanthus flower and Yi Mei Ren black tea from Yunnan Sourcing

 This is another one of the dragon balls I got from Yunnan Sourcing. 

I started with a 30 second steep at 200F. The osmanthus petals quickly parted company with the balled tea in my gaiwan. When poured, the tea was a golden brown in the cup with good floral fragrance, though nowhere near as pronounced as any of the jasmines I've tried. The tea was light with a sweet finish on the back end. 

Oldways Tea had a  nice black tea with osmanthus that I tried previously, but this seems to have more of the flower petals in it. 

The second steep at about 45 seconds allowed the ball to unfurl a bit, so the tea color darkened to a classic reddish brown and flavor was a bit deeper, still with the sweet finish and the light osmanthus fragrance. I think I like this better than the jasmines. (I had this with a slice of Earl Grey and raisin loaf and they paired nicely.) 

The third and fourth steeps at 60 seconds produced a steady hold of the black tea flavor, but the osmanthus fragrance was just about gone.

If you're at all unsure about trying a flower infused tea, this would be a good way of trying it. The scent is not overpowering, and both Oldways and Yunnan Sourcing sell it in small, inexpensive quantities that are perfect for sampling.