This product is a special one for the Spring 2010 harvest season. It was produced using leaves from the same 1,200 Meter plantation as our Spring Alishan High Mountain Oolong, but this batch has undergone a deeper, more lengthy finishing/roasting process to create a unique tea that we are calling "Tsou Ma Fei."
The tea growers I have the privilege of working with in Alishan are members of Taiwan's Tsou ethnic group, which is one of the distinct indigenous groups/tribes native to central Taiwan. I was talking to the tea mistress who does the custom roasting for Norbu Tea every year about the different, non-traditional roasts she had been working on, and we decided to do a special roast that she had come up with on a small portion of this Spring's harvest.
In Tsou language, "Ma Fei" means "delicious," so after I tasted this tea (and flipped out about how good it is) we settled on Tsou Ma Fei as the name for this tea because it is so distinct from the more traditional light roasted "green style" Alishan Oolong. Like our Spring Alishan Oolong, this particular tea was grown at an altitude of 1,200+/- Meters (3,900+/- feet) above sea level, and it was harvested in late April/early May during the Spring season of 2010.
This "Tsou Ma Fei" underwent a unique 3 day roasting process. Our Tsou tea mistress roasted the tea leaves in a relatively low temperature oven, then sealed the tea in airtight containers to rest and mellow for 8-12 hours. Then she took the tea out of the containers and started all over again for a total of 72 hours of roasting and resting. This time and labor intensive roasting process yielded a finished product with an pleasingly assertive and mouth-coating flavor with a nice sweetness and a slight element of sweet spices (think cinnamon, anise, clove, etc) in the Hui Gan. The only way I can think of to describe this very mild spicy sensation is to try to get the get you to think about the lingering, barely tingly sensation in your mouth after eating something with a sweet, oily spice like clove, cinnamon, anise, etc in it. This tea doesn't taste like cloves, cinnamon etc, but the oils in the tea leaves create a sensation in my mouth that feels a lot like that...and it was all created by the masterful roasting.
It has elements of the unique "High Mountain Aroma" that can best be described as "orchidy" or floral, but it the very light floral notes are a bit muted when compared to the usual light roast of an Alishan oolong. The mouthfeel of the infused tea liquor is smooth and mouth-coating, and the flavor is crisp and refreshingly sweet with very slight toasted notes as a result of the labor intensive roasting process. The Hui Gan, or bittersweet aftertaste that comes after the initial flavor fades, is lovely and long lasting with that subtle sweetness & spiciness that keeps me thinking about this tea long after I have finished my cup(s).
I recommend steeping this tea gongfu style to truly enjoy the layers of flavor that reveal themselves as the leaves unfurl over a series short steepings. I would start with about 5 grams in a small 100-150 cc Yixing type teapot or Gaiwan, and steep the leaves in 190-195 F water (under a boil). Start with a 30 second steep, followed by slightly longer (15 seconds or so) subsequent infusions. This tea lasts a solid 5 steepings when prepared this way. Steeped Western style, I have found the spicy finish to come out a little on the lighter side, but it was quite nice nonetheless.
Each order is a vacuum sealed 50 gram package with a desiccant pack shipped in a resealable high barrier stand up pouch for short term storage and to protect the tea once it has been removed from its vacuum packaging. Obviously, do not consume the desiccant pack, but keep it with the tea once the vacuum bag has been opened to absorb any moisture from the environment that might accumulate in the tea leaves. This tea is not suitable for storage over a period of months once the vacuum seal has been opened. Please consume quickly after opening for best flavor & aroma.
Ships in individual 50g portions in individually resealable stand up pouches.
Volume Discount: 10% off 100g, 15% off 250g, 25% off 500g. Discount reflected in displayed price.
