2011 Chawangpu Yiwu GaoShanZhai

Long time I have been getting ready for writing more tasting notes but absolutely unsuccessfully. As if something was holding me back. The whole time since Christmas I have been experiencing something powerful considering this world, something I am not able to talk about directly as I am running out of words each time I open my mouth in an effort to explain it. Strangely though, I have encountered people who are going through the same experience as I do and it feels more comforting at least. The beginning of 2012 is not easy but the more we can handle now, the easier will be the next step, perhaps. I desperately hope so. Life can be very bittersweet sometimes but it would be of no use if we tried to prevent ourselves from either of those two aspects. It seems to me that the dynamic process of change is usually easier for us to bear than enduring a long monotonous flow. 

But back to tea: I used to like sweet flavour in tea a lot, now I am looking for deeper bitterish side of it as too much of one thing turns out to be boring. I used to enjoy the taste of a little aged shengpu a lot, now I am enjoying leaf from 2011 and I cannot be satisfied more. The process of discovery is what makes me happier than keeping the treasure at the end of it. I received a sample of this excellent cake a few months ago and at that time did not feel like trying it. I told myself to wait for the best occasion, as this is what has proved to be a good thing to do. Once the moment comes, everything is perfect.

This little sample showed me something very important. I tasted some younger old-tree leaf in autumn 2011 and did not find special pleasure in tasting the leaf so young. This sample recruited me! It is very good, true, but I cannot say it would be so much better than other young old-tree leaf samples I drank before. I guess I probably was not ready for appreciating it. Or maybe I was looking for something very specific, something to be found in more aged leaf.. I am now discovering a plethora of flavours which to me seemed a bit boring before but now I simply welcome the change. 

This yiwu cake was produced (almost on my birthday) last year by Chawang Shop. I found the leaf to be very nice, rather light green with lovely hairy tips here and there. The light green colour shone beautifully especially after the first rinse and throughout the first hour of the session before it started to oxidize. I enjoyed taking the lid off many times just in order to see the young spring energy embodied in perfect shape.

The flavour is really delicate. It is floral, sweet but very special, it almost reminded me of greener type of oolong from Formosa. I used to drink them a lot few years ago and did not miss it but now it was as if with each cup I was going through the pages of my old diary. It is quite aromatic, the element I never looked for when drinking shengpu. I however enjoyed every sip of this little wonder. It is a cake with great potential but I cannot say if drinking it in a few years time will be even more satisfying, I can only tell that at this moment it is really worth it.

Good. Very good.