The Organic Red Tea Golden Tips Yunnan has as its main characteristic that it consists of relatively small leaves. This factor, due to earlier harvesting, allows the flavors to be extracted more quickly during infusion, resulting in an intense flavor in less time. In addition, the smaller leaves tend to develop fewer tannic-tasting components during the total oxidation process expected for red teas, yielding a sweeter and softer liquor on the palate.
Given these premises, we can understand why Golden Tips Yunnan tea presents a lovable taste from the outset, in this case mainly characterized by sweetness and slight floral notes, with a fresh, citrusy finish.
Tasting - Sight and Smell
Golden Tips Yunnan organic red tea has small, whole, rolled leaves that are anthracite black in color with mahogany highlights and lots of golden buds. Once infused, they release aromas of wood and cocoa, with a floral and slightly fruity finish reminiscent of the sweetness of yellow fruits, such as peach and apricot. The liquor in the cup is between red and dark amber, clear and bright.
Tasting Notes
GONG FU CHA
The first infusion of Golden Tips Yunnan organic red tea opens with notes of sweet pipe tobacco, delicate wood and a faint hint of honey. Very light floral notes are also noticeable. With the second infusion, a citrusy acidity emerges that is reminiscent of chinotto and is particularly fresh and pleasant. This is followed by notes of fragrant wood and again light floral hints. The third infusion, on the other hand, has a component reminiscent of mountain herbs and gentian, though without a pronounced bitterness. Remaining on the finish are notes of wood and citrus.
TO THE WEST
Golden Tips Yunnan organic tea is a rather delicate red tea: it has fresh, citrusy notes in the opening reminiscent of cedar and chinotto, followed by faint hints of sweet tobacco and fragrant wood. There is also an elusive sweetness of wildflower honey, which evolves into barely noticeable notes of wildflowers. These gentle floral notes linger briefly, confirming the delicacy of a tea with a light and smooth body, almost entirely devoid of astringency.
Location of origin
Yunnan, China
Production
After harvesting, the leaves of Golden Tips Yunnan tea are left to wither in the sun for a certain amount of time depending on the producer before moving on to the folding stage. The leaves are then folded and rolled so that the juices inside are stirred and the oxidation process can begin. For this tea, the leaves are exposed to a gradual increase in temperature during oxidation, and once the leaf reaches its typical brown color, the remaining internal moisture is removed. After a few days of resting, the tea is ready to be consumed.
Preparation
We strongly recommend infusing Golden Tips Yunnan tea by the traditional Chinese method (gong fu cha) to best enjoy these leaves. Following this preparation, 5.5 grams of leaves (about 4 teaspoons) can be used in a gaiwan of about 100 ml to obtain multiple infusions with different tastes. After a quick rinse of the leaves in water at 90°C, one can proceed with an initial infusion of 10 seconds, and after that, keeping the water at the same temperature, one can proceed by increasing the time each time by 10 seconds from the previous infusion (10 - 20 - 30...).
This tea has a longevity of about 6 infusions.
For a classic preparation according to the Western style we recommend 3 grams of leaves (about 2 teaspoon) in a 150 ml cup with water at 90°C for an infusion time of one and a half minutes.
The tea can be filtered for ease when tasting, and also the infusion times given here above are meant to be purely indicative so you can also adjust according to your personal taste.
We recommend storing in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight.
