I enjoy drinking a bunch of Dancong at once as it is fun to compare and I love filling gaiwans to the brim with tea leaf to go hog wild. Today’s Phoenix Dancongs are from Serendipiteacha Studio, based in Seattle.
All these teas are from Spring 2018. I used around 1 gram of leaf per 12ml of vessel size, gongfu steeped in boiling water instead of the western instructions.
Phoenix Dancong Tuberose Aroma
Tuberose Aroma, aka Ye Lai Xiang, is promised to be heavy in the floral notes. The leaf has a juicy floral and sweet nutty scent.
Rinsed, the hot leaf is what I am guessing is Tuberose scent, as it is a strong old lady floral aroma.
First, Second, Third, and Fourth Infusion: Tuberose Aroma sips in sweet and nutty. It has a stone fruit nectar with walnuts taste, but then the floral set in leaving a long creamy peach and honeysuckle aftertaste. Some sips have a buttery aspect too. With each infusion, it gets more and more floral.
Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Infusion: I hit the epicenter as the Tuberose Dancong hit maximum floral and bitterness. It is sharp and floral. After the fifth infusion, the tea slipped in flavor but kept the bitterness.
Phoenix Dancong Almond Aroma
Almond Aroma is also known as “Ju Duo Zai” as the leaf has large jagged edges. Note, and all the teas today, are not scented or blended. Almond is the natural profile of this oolong and does not contain nuts. The leaves smell much less floral than Tuberose Aroma Dancong, with the Almond Aroma leaning more tomato and marzipan scents.
After a rinse, the leaves give off a sweet almond note.
First, Second, and Third Infusion: Almond Aroma Dancongs are more of my jam. This one tastes of baked goods laced with sweet almonds and sweet nectar, with a juicy sweet aftertaste.
Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Infusion: Almond dancong is sweet and nutty. It has gotten bitter here and a bit dry. It has a sharp squeaky bark and nut flavor with a long apricot pit finish. Similarly, it slowly lost flavor but kept the bitterness.
Phoenix Dancong Duck Aroma
Duck Aroma is my all-time favorite type of Dancong. The leaves here smell of citrus honey with a hint of wood. The rinsed hot wet leaf has a powdered honey scent.
First and Second Infusion: Duck Aroma is honey butter and smooth. Some sips are caramel-like. This Dancong is not like the other ones that push harder on floral or nuts, as Duck Aroma is balanced and sweet with a slick textured sip.
Third, Fourth, and Fifth Infusion: The Duck Aroma Dancong has shifted to some citrus notes and but still maintains a honey flavor. The aftertaste is a bit nutty and bready, along with the honey.
Sixth and Seventh Infusion: Duck Aroma took longer to swing bitter, but once it did it became very bitter. The sixth infusion was strong vegetal bitter stew with a honey aftertaste. The flavor slipped from there.
Comments
It is really up to personal taste of which Phoenix Dancong aroma you prefer. If you prefer a more floral upfront, the Tuberose Aroma would be it. Almond Aroma I find nets more people as there are comfort food tastes. Duck Aroma is fun (or scary) in name and but also has a nice balance of different flavors.
Serendipiteacha Studio’s Dancongs are quite nice with good flavor and longevity. I got more about their teas coming soon!
(tea provided for review)
