The Melting Teapot

Today’s afternoon pot of tea has been one of my favorites this winter -- Red Fujian, a black China tea from In Pursuit of Tea.  It has a wonderfully complex flavor, with a distinguishing dark chocolate charasteristic that is quite appealing to me.

Their description reads:

“This tea was made exclusively for us on a small, family-run farm in Fujian Province, near the coast of the East China Sea.  The leaves are twisted and elegant, hand-rolled with golden leaf buds.  We had this popular black tea made with an oolong varietal which heightens its flavor and fragrance.”

If I remember correctly from when I purchased this last August, the IPOT web site indicated that there was only a small amount of the Red Fujian tea available.  Unfortunately, they don’t seem to have any more. I’ll be sure to brew each batch several times, to get the most of the leaves that are left in my bag!

The leaves are thin, slightly twisted, and rather long for a black tea.

Method

The tea was brewed gongfu style* in an yixing** pot, using fully-boiling water.  I’ve found that this particular tea takes about twice as long as most blacks. The aroma pops up right away, but the flavor needs just a bit more steeping to coax out the full profile.   So, it was brewed for a little over two minutes on the first infusion, with the time increasing for each successive brewing.

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Dark chocolate fills the room.  The incredible fragrance is a big part of why I love this tea.

Flavor: This is characterized by cocoa nibs, cinnamon, and a nuttiness that I haven’t quite identified (perhaps black walnut?)  Behind it all is an interesting ripe stone-fruit flavor, which shifts over to a greener more herbaceous note behind the spicy finish.

Infusions: The Red Fujian stands up quite well to multiple brewings. The spicy notes die off after the first infusion, but the cocoa nibs and nuttiness become more pronounced.  On the third and fourth infusion, the tea is lighter yet still quite flavorful.

More Information

* Wondering what gongfu style means? Here is a nicely done video that gives you a quick demonstration of gongfu brewing. This is a very basic gongfu technique (they can become longer and more ceremonial), but you'll still notice that the cup and pot are warmed with water before the tea is added. 

** Interested in learning more about yixing teapots? The video below provides some basic information about the pots and why they are used.  Fair Warning: yixings can become a tea geek’s obsession!  I have several, with each one dedicated to a specific type of tea (and a few waiting on the sidelines for their tea assignment).