Local Guides World
Mika Nessa Chandra
1 reviews on 1 places
The tea here is superb!
From the first cup of my gaiwan-brewed guided tasting, Old Bush Dan Cong Man Tang Xiang was poignantly flavorful. Even for my amateur tongue, the notes (grape skin with its slight bitterness) hit with astonishing strength, setting it apart from nearly every other tea I've had. The feel became rounder with each subsequent steeping, and my tea expert taught me the best way to breathe after a cup to fully enjoy the lingering aroma. At the end of my tasting, I refused to try another tea because I was still thoroughly enjoying the aftertaste, which had morphed to a full juiciness that kept me smiling for at least 15 minutes after leaving the store.
So why not 5 stars? I would have given 4.5 stars if I could. Truthfully this comes from disappointment that my experience was so brief. After the 5th steeping, I was told that was all the guided tasting included. I don't know if I missed this information in fine print somewhere, but I was expecting at least 9 steepings. I've done at least 12 with a gongfu-brewed high quality red tea that I would've kept steeping (there was a beautiful sweet potato flavor that was still so strong even after so many steeps) if I hadn't had to go. Plus, part of how I judge a tea is by how many steeps I can get out of it, especially since high quality tea is pricy and thus a luxury for me. I figure this is a guideline intended to get through long lines of customers, but I was the only customer when I arrived, the entire time I was there, and when I left.
Definitely stop by for the high quality tea and the knowledgeable and friendly workers, but maybe factor in service rules that might prevent you from getting as much tea as possible out of a single pot if that matters to you.
From the first cup of my gaiwan-brewed guided tasting, Old Bush Dan Cong Man Tang Xiang was poignantly flavorful. Even for my amateur tongue, the notes (grape skin with its slight bitterness) hit with astonishing strength, setting it apart from nearly every other tea I've had. The feel became rounder with each subsequent steeping, and my tea expert taught me the best way to breathe after a cup to fully enjoy the lingering aroma. At the end of my tasting, I refused to try another tea because I was still thoroughly enjoying the aftertaste, which had morphed to a full juiciness that kept me smiling for at least 15 minutes after leaving the store.
So why not 5 stars? I would have given 4.5 stars if I could. Truthfully this comes from disappointment that my experience was so brief. After the 5th steeping, I was told that was all the guided tasting included. I don't know if I missed this information in fine print somewhere, but I was expecting at least 9 steepings. I've done at least 12 with a gongfu-brewed high quality red tea that I would've kept steeping (there was a beautiful sweet potato flavor that was still so strong even after so many steeps) if I hadn't had to go. Plus, part of how I judge a tea is by how many steeps I can get out of it, especially since high quality tea is pricy and thus a luxury for me. I figure this is a guideline intended to get through long lines of customers, but I was the only customer when I arrived, the entire time I was there, and when I left.
Definitely stop by for the high quality tea and the knowledgeable and friendly workers, but maybe factor in service rules that might prevent you from getting as much tea as possible out of a single pot if that matters to you.