Jing Tea Shop - Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong 'AAA'

Second of four teas I will be discussing from Jing Tea Shop, is the Mi Lan Xiang 'AAA' oolong.

 The dry leaves are extremely long and have been curled and roasted to what I would call (from my limited experience) a medium roast.  Mi lan xiang translates to 'honey orchid fragrance', and while the dry leaves themselves do not give off much aroma, the leaves in a warmed gaiwan give off a wonderful aroma of honey and flowers.

 

The wet leaves give off an intoxicating smell which is a mix of tropical fruits, flowers, and thick honey sweetness.  I have not smelled wet tea leaves which had a better aroma than this.

The tea seems to be all about fragrance and flavor.  The tea is light in body, however its flavor simply blossoms in the mouth and lingers for a very long time, especially in the back of the mouth and top of the throat.  Early infusions display a strong aroma of flowers and honey, whereas the later infusions turn more towards tropical fruits.  The flavor, at certain points, reminded me of oriental beauty tea.  Perhaps it is the level of oxidation, but the aroma profiles certainly overlap somewhat.  Both have a honey-like taste and aroma, however this is most definitely a more complex tea.  I would consider Oriental Beauty to be much more similar to black tea.   

While drinking the tea, a sense of calm and focus settles in and leads to a good amount of work getting accomplished, along side keeping track of tasting notes.

The first time I brewed this tea, it had an incredible sweetness unlike anything I have experienced before.  The tea tasted like it had sugar added to it.  As the liquid cooled down, the sweetness only became more pronounced.  While my later sessions with this tea have had a great amount of sweetness that lingers in the throat, I was unable to obtain that amazing sweetness of the first session.  I am beginning to think it has something to do with what I eat in the mornings before making tea.  For something this aromatic, I should consider eating something with a lighter flavor beforehand.  

I have pushed these leaves in excess of 8 infusions.  While it does start to lose some of its character around the 5th or 6th steeping, it still retains its fruitiness and a large part of its aftertaste.  This is excellent tea, and very encouraging for an exploration into more dan cong oolongs.  As always, there exists far more tea than time.  What a wonderful problem.