Back in 2018, Crimson Lotus Tea told me his adventure of visiting a tea forest in Hekai with a 15 foot king cobra, and the guide running for the hills. He’d then show me the photo he took and to “find the cobra.” After hearing this story, all us Crimson Lotus Tea fans wanted to get our hands on some giant snake infested tea.
In 2019 Crimson Lotus Tea got someone willing to go in the tea forest and pick the tea for Spring and Autumn Harvest. Today, I’ll be checking out 2019 Spring Danger Zone. I purchased my cake at the PDX Tea Festival and it has been in my pumidor since then.
Danger Zone wrapper art is done by Jake Knapp.
Leaf and Steeping Method
The dry leaf smells lightly smoky, tangy and bready.
I used 1 gram of leaf per 15ml of vessel size, gongfu steeped in boiling water. The hot rinsed leaves smell like steamed rice with spinach on top.
Tasting of Crimson Lotus Tea 2019 Spring Danger Zone Sheng Puer
First and Second Infusion: 2019 Spring Danger Zone sheng puer is THICC, like drinking melted butter and dense cotton batting. The sip is light and spinachy but then blooms into a pleasing savory steamed rice and vegetal flavor. After taking a few sips, Danger Zone leaves an oily sensation in the mouth, though the aftertaste is fleeting. Some sips have a hint of crustless toasted white bread.
Danger Zone’s energy is eye-popping like someone kicked me awake. I was riding my post lunch sleepy feels and now I am ready to go write the great American novel today.
Third, Fourth, and Fifth Infusion: Danger Zone is starting to build, thin coat by thin coat, an aftertaste of stone fruits on hot steamed rice flavor. Each sip is light in intensity, but maximum in oily texture. By the fifth infusion, the aftertaste has a subtle floral jasmine note that sticks with the astringency.
At this point, the tea energy is making my ears pop like I am on a plane. Snakes on the plane.
Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Infusion: I’ve hit a strong bitterness and tongue drying astringency, but the flavor is potent so I am still drinking. 2019 Spring Danger Zone sheng puer tastes like stewed spinach, jasmine floral, and steamed rice. The next steeping is very bitter and the flavor dropped slightly. I do want to be done with this tea, it is uncomfortably bad bitter and I got so much tea drunk that I need to burn this energy off instead of sitting here drinking tea.
Comments
Crimson Lotus Tea’s 2019 Spring Danger Zone sheng puer is a high energy and thick textured sheng puer. If you love thick and oily young shengs, you need to get your claws on at least a sample. The flavor is pleasing and gentle too, but goes bitter overtime – but likely some age will help.
This is an expensive tea, at this time $74.99 for a 100 gram cake. Thankfully small puer cakes make it easier to own expensive tea. I enjoyed 2019 Spring Danger Zone sheng puer greatly to immediately buy the Autumn version – review coming eventually.
