KOREA - THE NOIR JUKRO

Origin: Corea, Hadong district, Giri mountains
Tea colour: black tea
Length of infusion: 4’
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: very delicate, long leaf, only gently rolled.
Colour: matt black with touches of very dark green.
Scents: initially planty, then much warmer roasted notes (roasted cocoa, coffee), vanilla, woody, cooked fruits, typical roasted notes, cocoa beans at the beginning of the roasting process.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Scents: initially very chocolaty (roasted and milky vanilla), very powerful and sweet. Notes of cocoa, chocolate, butter, milk and vanilla. Also notes of dark fruits (plum), quetsche plum jam and crème chocolat.

Liquor
Texture: very supple, powdery texture. Good, persistent presence in the mouth.
Aromas: sweet vanilla, milky (warm milk) and roasted cocoa and coffee notes. Typically evokes chocolate notes combined with notes of cooked fruits (plum and quetsche plum jam) and touches of honey and waxed wood (sandalwood).
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: Wonderful. Well balanced. Rich and complex throughout. The cocoa bouquet has exceptional length in the mouth.

Our verdict: This tea is really quite unique. Plucked and processed entirely by hand at the Jukro farm, this is one of the best black teas produced in the country. The cocoa, vanilla bouquet evokes the rich note of the China Qimen Mao Feng teas, but its strength, richness and intensity takes us more in the direction of the best dark Wu Longs from Taiwan. An outstanding gastronomic experience!

CHINA DA HONG PAO

« Big Red Robe »
Origin: China, Fujian
Tea colour: semi-fermented (40% to 50%)
Length of infusion: 7’ or by the Gong Fu Cha method : successive infusions lasting 30-60 seconds, almost as many as you want!
Water temperature: 95°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: large crumpled leaves which are very evenly sized and beautifully processed.
Colour: dark green and black.
Scents: complex: fruit (pear), fresh floral (lime blossom, verbena), spicy and peppery, with an underlying, heavier woody note.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Scents: very rich: a fresh, fruity attack that also has cooked fruit characteristics. There are honey and floral scents too, followed by heavier notes: vanilla, woody, spicy.

Liquor
Colour: amber, with a few brown and black glints.
Texture: slightly astringent, with a good presence in the mouth.
Aromas: a gorgeous aromatic bouquet: floral (lime blossom, rose, ylang-ylang), fruity (stewed fruit, jam, pear, grape), citronella, honey and toasted. Underlying these are touches of wax polished wood, honey and flowers, accompanied by planty, mint and liquorice notes.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: long lasting. The complexity of the aromatic bouquet results in some very distinctive notes that are powerful on the palate.

Our verdict: Da Hong Pao is the best of the four exceptional Wu Longs produced in the Wu Yi Shan, in the mountains of Fujian, and is one of China’s truly mythical teas. Originally harvested from tea plants dating back to the Ming dynasty, most of this tea is now grown on cuttings taken from these ancient plants. A sumptuous, rich bouquet!

GRAND JASMIN MU DAN

Rare and sculpted tea from the Chinese Fujian province. This very spectacular tea is prepared using long silver tips and young tender leaves, to which freshly plucked jasmine flowers are added. To retain the tea's mild flavour, these flowers are finally delicately removed by hand. Silver tips and young leaves are sewn together by hand with an amaranth flower, before being shaped into a ball. Only just visible when the tea is in its dried form, the amaranth bud is released into the cup after being infused for a few minutes. As it opens up, the tea forms the amazing shape of a flower with a pink heart. A few pink petals detach themselves and float to the surface of the cup. This exceptionally delicate work is only matched by the tea's equally fine flavour, as the softness of the green tea reveals to be the perfect complement to the subtlety of the jasmine.

Suggestion of presentation. Cup not provided.

CHINA AIGUILLES D'OR

Origin: China, Yunnan
Tea colour: black
Length of infusion: 4’
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: long golden buds with yellow glints. A magnificent plucking.
Colour: golden.
Scents: floral, honey, animal, vanilla and woody notes.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Appearance: beautiful buds, sometimes with a young leaf attached.
Colour: a uniform brown-red.
Scents: honey, cooked fruit (sweet purple plum, mirabelle) and sweet vanilla as well as very distinct woody notes.

Liquor
Colour: coppery, with red glints.
Texture: velvety texture, full and long lasting.
Flavour: acidic.
Aromas: honey, cooked fruit (plums), woody (wax-polished wood, bark) and sweet vanilla accompanied by a few notes of undergrowth (mushroom, tobacco).
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: very round in the mouth thanks to the velvety texture present from start to finish, and the lovely succession of notes. The woody notes are beautifully long.

Our verdict: Les Aiguilles d’Or (“golden needles”) are known, along with the Bourgeons de Yunnan (“Yunnan buds”), as being one of the rarest, most exceptional black teas. This plucking of the finest downy buds acquires, following oxidation, a beautiful golden sheen which, when infused, produces a wonderfully smooth, fragrant, deep red liquor. A true delight for connoisseurs!

TAIWAN JADE TIE GUAN YIN

Origin: Nantou, Taiwan
Tea colour: Wu Long (10%)
Length of infusion: 6’
Water temperature: 90°C
Method of preparation
• By the Gong Fu Cha method: 5-8 successive infusions each lasting 20-40 seconds.
• In a tasting set: 6-7 minutes in water heated to 95°C (203°F).

Dry leaves
Aspect: crumpled leaves rolled into loose balls.
Colours: pale green and dark green.
Scents: a pleasant fragrance like wilting leaves. Planty, floral notes (white flowers) followed by a fresh, milky, buttery aroma.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Scents: a heady bouquet. Floral (frangipani, tiare), coumarin, mild milky, buttery, vanilla and cocoa notes. Round and harmonious, topped with more lively planty and citrus accents.

Liquor
Colour: beautiful gleaming pale green.
Texture: smooth, thick, fat and round.
Flavours: slightly sweet, then acidic.
Aromas: an elegant, floral attack (frangipani) followed by mild, sweet notes of butter, coumarin and vanilla. The mildness is followed by much more lively notes.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: exceptionally long and powerful, with lingering notes of blackcurrant and nectarine, followed by more planty notes of aniseed and mint. The length in the mouth differs from the olfactory attack. An interesting, elegant and complex tea offering a variety of sensations (sweet becoming acidic, mild becoming lively).

Our verdict: For the past few years, some Taiwanese plantations have been growing the “Anxi Tie Guan Yin” cultivars that are usually found in the Anxi region of Fujian, China. This type of tea, which has sold for staggeringly high prices in China, has been successfully produced in Nantou. One of the growers with whom we work regularly has supplied this really delicious lot. For all those who love floral, planty Wu Longs, we urge you to try this while stocks last!

CHINA QIMEN MU DAN

« Qimen Peony »
Origin: China, Anhui
Tea colour: black
Length of infusion: 4’
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: a hundred young leaves are stitched together in a star shape.
Colour: black and golden.
Scents: floral (orange blossom), zesty (orange), woody, terpenic.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Appearance: the “peony” of tea opens up.
Colour: red, brown.
Scents: fruit (cooked fruit) and jam (cooked strawberries), accompanied by woody, vanilla (vanilla pod) aromas and very rich cocoa notes.

Liquor
Colour: coppery.
Texture: supple and smooth.
Aromas: mild and sweet, vanilla, cooked fruit and a few floral notes.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: round and smooth, with mild and sweet yet heavy notes.

Our verdict: Inspired by the eponymous green tea “Huang Shan Mu Dan”, this is a finely crafted tea of very high quality, from Anhui. The finest Qimen leaves have been carefully “sculpted” into a star shape with a very refined fragrance. The delicate star will gradually unfurl during the four-minute infusion in your cup.

JASMINE PEARLS

Very rare and available very sporadically, the Jasmine Pearls are produced using best quality green tea leaves. They are rolled by hand into tiny round balls. By being folded in the leaf preserves the delicate fragrance of the jasmine flower with which it was scented. This spectacular tea produces a beverage of the highest quality: the softness of the green tea is the perfect complement to the subtlety of the jasmine. The roundness and the smoothness of the beverage feels like a pearl of tea to the palate. A jasmine tea must !

DARJEELING PHUGURI DJ58 TIPPY CLONAL SFTGFOP1 - 2009 SECOND FLUSH

Origin: Darjeeling
Tea colour: black
Length of infusion: 4’
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: large crumpled leaves (gently rolled) with plenty of downy buds.
Colour: brown, with some leaves still khaki green and barely rolled.
Scents: bread crust, fruity, woody, vanilla.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Colour: lovely blend of coppery brown and green.
Scents: rose, orange blossom, butter-vanilla, very rich with some milder notes.

Liquor
Colour: pale copper with golden yellow glints.
Texture : smooth, thick texture, full in the mouth.
Aromas: rose-floral and citrus. Initially fruity (mango), then woody, combined with fresh planty and vanilla accents. Long notes of stewed fruit and wax-polished wood, with fresh planty accents.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: elegant, rich, fresh and long in the mouth.

Our verdict: This plantation has been offering extraordinary “clonal” pluckings for the last three years and this 58th batch is an ideal example.

TAIWAN TIE GUAN YIN «ANTIQUE»

Origin: Taiwan
Tea colour: semi-fermented
Length of infusion: 7’
Water temperature: 90°C
Number of Gong Fu Cha infusions: up to 10 infusions of 20' to 40’ (the infusions grow progressively longer as the time goes along).

Dry leaves
Appearance: leaves rolled into pearl shapes.
Colours: brown, almost black.
Scents: toasted, woody, dark fruits and spicy notes.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Appearance: little balls, slightly opened.
Colours: black.
Scents: starts with toasted, woody, cooked fruit notes.

Liquor
Colour: amber with black glints. Very clear.
Texture: very supple in the mouth.
Flavours: lightly sweet.
Aromas: woody, cooked fruit, dark fruit (blackberry) and toasted notes (toasted bread, coffee bean).
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: round and very rich in the mouth. Lingering woody, liquorice and coffee notes, topped by the sweet flavour of the liquorice, which has a strong presence.

Our verdict: Roasted several times, this tea boasts surprisingly original and powerful notes of dark fruit and coffee bean. Best discovered during successive Gong Fu Cha infusions or infused in a traditional teapot with 200 - 300ml of water (4-6g).

TAIWAN TIE GUAN YIN « ANTIQUE JADE »

Origin: Taiwan
Tea colour: Wu Long (10%)
Length of infusion: 6’
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Aspect: leaves rolled into large balls.
Colours: dark brown with touches of black.
Scents: toasted notes (coffee, coffee beans) combined with fruity, spicy and woody notes.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Aspect: the leaves stay well rolled due to the intense roasting they have undergone.
Colour: black.
Scents: toasted bouquets (coffee, woody) followed by fruity notes (black fruit, prune, blackberry, blueberry, vanilla).

Liquor
Colour: clear, pale brown.
Texture: initially smooth, followed by a delicate astringency at the back of the mouth which lingers subtly.
Flavour: slightly sweet.
Aromas: a toasted (toast, coffee bean) and woody (dry wood) attack, then fruity notes (cooked and fresh fruit), black fruit (blackberry), vanilla and honey.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: the first bouquet lingers in the mouth: toasted, woody, fruity, vanilla.

Our verdict: This tea has been roasted a number of times and has an incredible toasted, woody bouquet. A little less roasted than its alter ego “Tie Guan Yin Antique”, Antique Jade develops delicious fresh fruity notes.

PU ER GRANDE FEUILLE ANNEE 1998

Origin: Yunnan, China.
Tea colour: black Pu Er
Length of infusion: 4’
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: nice leaves of an intermediate grade.
Colour: dark with reddish brown highlights.
Scents: powerful nose, earthy and woody with very pronounced notes of undergrowth.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Scents: the harmony between the notes of wood and undergrowth is very intense.

Liquor
Colour: reddish brown liquor, clear and glossy.
Texture: thick and somewhat dense.
Flavours: umami.
Aromas: initially heady and round. The notes of damp earth, cellars, wood and mushrooms are wonderfully balanced and gradually develop a rose note, recalling cultivated mushrooms, which enhances the olfactory palette.
Aromatic profil and lenght in the mouth: good length in the mouth and persistence of the mushroom/undergrowth note.

Our verdict: This Pu Er, which will soon be celebrating its tenth birthday, presents all the characteristics of the mature tea: the animal and leather bouquet of young Pu Er teas has developed more earthy, complex notes. A number of elements are evoked on tasting, including cellars, with their earth floors, and very damp wood. Enjoy the experience of traditional black Pu Er!

DARJEELING RISHEEHAT DJ147 «CHINA» SFTGFOP1 – 2009 SECOND FLUSH

Origin: Darjeeling
Tea colour: black
Length of infusion: 4’
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: lovely leaves with plenty of downy buds.
Colour: mixture of brown, copper and khaki, with golden buds.
Scents: vanilla, woody, heady spicy and fruity (cooked fruit).

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Colour: copper and khaki.
Scents: highly fragrant: woody (wax-polished wood), preserved citrus and vanilla.

Liquor
Colour: gleaming, coppery.
Texture: initially supple, then an astringency that lines the whole mouth and adds presence.
Flavour: initially sweet, bitter, slightly acidic.
Aromas: woody, liquorice and spicy (star anise), honey, stewed fruit (eg. grape, mirabelle plum) and vanilla.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: well balanced, rich and harmonious. Long fresh notes (twigs, fresher fruit) and vanilla notes, thanks to the astringency and slight bitterness.

Our verdict: A truly excellent tea from this year’s harvest! Derived from China plants, this plucking shows all the qualities of the best second flush Darjeelings. The woody, fruity notes are well balanced with a few fruity accents which give it great elegance.

QIMEN IMPERIAL

The finest quality Qimen. This plucking is extremely difficult to obtain as it is one of the rarest and most prized teas of Anhui. Deliberately produced in small quantities, Qimen Imperial is renowned for its unique aroma and malty flavour.

CHINA BAI LIN GONG FU

“White jade for the Gong Fu”
Origin: China, Fujian
Tea colour: black tea
Length of infusion: 4’
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: rolled leaves with plenty of small buds.
Colour: blackened leaves and golden buds.
Scent: honey, fruit and stewed fruit (prune, mirabelle, rhubarb), vanilla, cocoa and wood based notes (wax polished wood).

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Scent: honey, fruit with apple, mirabelle and prune notes, as well as almond, vanilla and woody notes.

Liquor
Colour: a clear, gleaming coppery colour.
Texture: supple, powdery, developing a delicate astringency in the back of the mouth.
Aromas: initially plenty of honey and fruit, followed by wood and undergrowth, with floral accents over the top (geranium).
Aromatic profil and lenght in the mouth: the notes are present right from the start, and the intensity is long lasting and full. Woody, liquorice and spicy notes come through.

Our verdict: A surprising name for a black tea! In fact, it derives from the cultivar, the famous “Da Bai” – “Great White” – which supplies the leaves for both the Fujian white teas (Bai Mu Dan, Silver Needles) and for the spring pluckings of this region (Bai Mao Hou, for example). Processed in the same way as black tea, the Da Bai leaves produce a rich, complex brew not unlike the best Qimens. Tea fans will love it!

PU ER FO XIAN ANNEE 2002

Origin: China, Yunnan province
Tea colour: dark tea
Length of infusion: 90°C
Water temperature: 4’

Dry leaves
Appearance: small, well-rolled leaves with a very regular appearance.
Colour: fawn.
Scents: slightly heady and good presence on the nose, well-balanced harmony between the animal and undergrowth notes.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Scents: dominant bouquet of undergrowth: mushroom, damp moss and earth; the animal note is more subtle.

Liquor
Texture: supple.
Flavours: umami.
Aromas: lovely initial aromas and wonderfully complex scents of undergrowth. The notes from infusion (moss, earth) can be rediscovered in the liquor and then develop towards more mellow aromas of mushroom, very long-lasting.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: well-balanced and very long in the mouth.

Our verdict: “Immortal Buddha”. A wonderful plucking, for a Pu Er with perfectly controlled fermentation. The passing years have enhanced the bouquet with damp cellar notes that are slightly more developed than those of the current year’s Pu Er. The tannins have also become rounder, for a tea that is amazingly smooth and mellow in the cup.

RYOKUCHA MIDORI

The tea drunk by the Samurai. Being low in theine and rich in vitamins B and E, it is fortifying without over-stimulating the nerves. An ideal tea for physical and intellectual exercise. It has a fine robust, fresh flavour.

GAN NEN

Name of the tea : Gan Nen, « soft stem »
Origin: Mae Salong village, Thailand
Tea colour: blue-green tea (Oolong)
Oxidation level: 30%
Length of infusion: 7’
Water temperature: 95°C

Dry leaves
Appearance: pea-sized balls
Colour: dark green
Scents: powerful and complex notes with both cooked fruit (jam) and plants.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Appearance: the tea unfurls to reveal the quality of the plucking.
Scents: warm notes (cooked apricot, stewed fruit, coconut) against vanilla and roasted base-notes.

Liquor
Flavour: slightly sweet.
Aromas: initial fresh plant and fruit aromas against a roasted, woody backdrop.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: the planty notes are extremely long in the mouth.

Our verdict: A Chinese community has been growing tea for a number of decades in the village of Mae Salong in Northern Thailand. Planted using Taiwanese tea bushes, the gardens produce remarkably good Wu Long (oolong). Gan Nen is a light semi-fermented tea (30%), fresh, planty and highly refreshing.

DONG DING

Intermediate fermentation: 30-40%. This tea which grows on the eponymous mountain, means "Icy peak". It is considered by tea lovers to be one of Taiwan's best. The leaf, which is pearly and moderately fermented, gives the liqueur a particular yellow-orange colour that is unique in the world of tea. Its scent is both silky and lively, its taste recalls the flowery side of the little fermented Wu Long (oolong) teas and also that of the fruitier, woodier Fancy teas. An exceptional crop.

NEPAL JUN CHIYABARI HIMALAYAN OOLONG J 123

Origin: Nepal
Tea colour: Wu Long
Length of infusion: 4'
Water temperature: 90°C

Dry leaves
Aspect: large twisted leaves with plenty of silver downy buds.
Colour: dark green with a few copper and silver leaves.
Scents: toasted, vanilla and planty.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Scents: planty, aniseed notes (angelica) and a few sweeter notes: vanilla, apricot and a hint of raspberry jam.

Liqueur
Texture: a delicate astringency that fills the mouth, giving this liquor a good presence.
Aromas: planty, aniseed (angelica), mineral, metallic, citrus (grapefruit), floral and finally fresh mint.
Aromatic profile and length in the mouth: well balanced. It leaves an impression of both freshness and sweetness, with a delicate astringency which develops further when cold.

Our verdict: An unusual tea made by one of our regular partner estates, which produces sublime black teas. The aniseed, angelica bouquet is very typical, delicate and subtly balanced. We urge you to try it!

YUNCUI IMPERIAL BIO

Origin: China, Jiangsu
Tea colour: green tea
Length of infusion: 4’
Water temperature: 75°C

Twisted leaf.
From the Wukou-Ruikang estate.

Dry leaves
Appearance: twisted leaves and large downy buds.
Colour: khaki green, from pale to very dark.
Scents: vanilla, chocolate (Nesquik, Ovaltine) and woody aromas, combined with yellow flower, animal and undergrowth notes.

Brewed leaves (infusion)
Colour: khaki (green with yellow glints).
Scents: a floral attack followed by a planty, undergrowth note (damp earth), softened by touches of vanilla and cooked yellow fruit.

Liquor
Texture: the astringency that fills the mouth gives it a smooth texture and ensures the liquor lingers.
Flavour: acidic and slightly bitter.
Aromas: initially floral and planty, enhanced by a strong mineral note on the middle and back of the palate, with accents of animal notes.
Aromatic profil and lenght in the mouth: beautifully well balanced. The mild notes at the start and the lovely lingering freshness are followed by a fresh, raw planty note, accentuated by a few touches of fresh fruit.

Our verdict: This tea from the Wuyuan mountains has a large leaf which develops well during infusion. It has the typical flavour of damp earth after a storm, highly prized by the Chinese. Subtle chestnut notes.