A ridiculously luxurious and uber-fruity, Fuding Aged White Peony King.
Every now and then a tea lands on our doorstep which makes our collective jaws drop and we scramble to the phone to Buy Buy Buy!
This tea comes from a producer who has been supplying us for over a decade and he just threw this sample in with the Spring tea samples as a quirky little number for us to try. The moment we sipped it, we reserved the whole batch - the problem is that he only had 5kg of this nectar.
Most White Peony is made from either the second growths of the spring after all of the Yinzhen (buds) have been picked for Silver Needle or is produced by picking off most of the buds leaving mostly leaves (and a few of the thinner buds for White Peony). White Peony King means a White Peony (Bai Mu Dan) which is produced by picking the first flush buds and leaves. This is the most prized picking for Bai Mu Dan.
The buds are super hairy and thick and the leaves are small and plump - a stellar looking tea showing off the best of Fuding.
Then, let's age that tea in Fujian (loose) for over 10 years! Wow, the results are spectacular.
Texture is thick, oily and rich with a vaporous aromatic quality which envelopes the nose with peach, almonds, osmanthus and spice. Check out the tasting notes for a full description and watch the following video to see watch my love affair with this tea blossom.
