It is time to taste Crimson Lotus Tea’s 2019 Fall into the Danger Zone, an autumn Hekai sheng puer.
I greatly enjoyed their spring Danger Zone and I did not hesitate to preorder the fall pressing. 2019 Fall into the Danger Zone is the same tea garden, same king cobras, but autumn material.
Leaf and Steeping Method
The dry leaves have a sweet artichoke scent.
As usual, I used a gongfu ratio of 1 gram of leaf per 15ml of vessel size, steeped in boiling water.
After infusing, the hot leaf smells also sweet and of artichokes.
Tasting of Crimson Lotus Tea’s 2019 Fall into the Danger Zone Autumn Sheng Puer
First and Second Infusion: Immediately, Fall into the Danger Zone sips in thickly textured. The flavor is sweet, with a blur of vegetal and floral. This tea has a juicy stem note but also perfectly level with sweet floral honey. The introduction to the Danger Zone is alluring and inviting.
Third, Fourth, and Fifth Infusion: 2019 Fall into the Danger Zone is biting back – it’s thick like drinking pudding, but has a pleasantly strong, but sharp bitter bite of a bouquet of honeyed flowers and vegetal artichokes. The longer I wait between sips, the more a jasmine floral buzzes. Right now I am getting a tea drunk forehead pinching feeling and my ears are popping.
Sixth and Seventh Infusion: Fall into the Danger Zone has moved to a stewy bitter artichoke and spinach but finishes to a heady blast of lingering honey and flowers that makes me forget the tea tastes very bitter.
The tea energy on this one is moving to nap time, I am ready to lay down and dream of snakes and jasmine flowers.
Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Infusion: For the final infusions of Autumn Danger Zone, the tea settles to a strong bitter vegetal, but minerally sweet finish. As I resteep, each cup gets a touch more astringent too.
After the session I was all of a sudden slammed with being ultra awake and energetic. There is a touch of sheng gut rot, so I had to get some cheese and crackers to settle down the stomach.
Comments
Crimson Lotus Tea’s 2019 Fall into the Danger Zone starts off alluring thick, and well balanced. This tea gets bitter in the later infusions but holds onto the awesome floral aftertaste.
Fall into the Danger Zone is similar to the Spring Danger Zone as both have that thick texture, jasmine floral and vegetal notes, but the Autumn material certainly tastes face kicking stronger. I would say Spring has an even thicker texture but also is oily. Fall into the Danger Zone is the more economical tea, at this time $37 vs Spring’s $71 for 100 gram cakes, if you want a taste of giant cobra Hekai garden on a budget.
