2004 Yang Qing Hao Jinhao Chawang: Different

Alright, this is my first evaluative gongfu in a few months.  The order has been lifted here in Saskatchewan and I am back to work with as much Personal Protective Equipment as anyone you would encounter in a hospital…. But I’m back… and to celebrate on this unseasonably warm spring day I choose this 2004 Yang Qing Hao Jinhao Chawang which currently sells for $305.00 for 400g cake or $0.76/g.  Interestingly, very little has been written about this Yang Qing Hao.

I ordered this sample in my first order from Liquid Proust Teas.  I tagged it along with a lower price/less popular Yang Qing Hao sampler.  Don’t think I would ever venture to cake sample these less populars so it was a real treat to simply order for the fun of sampling.  This 2004 Yang Qing Hao Jinhao has a bunch of tippy buds slapped on the outside of the cake.  This was super common back in the day.  For me it was a sure bet that the leaves underneath were usually not as good...  Like putting lipstick on an old car before selling it.  I wonder if this cake will be the first to convince me otherwise?

Dry leaves have a creamy rich sweetness to them over aged puerh odour.

First infusion have a soft almost peachy, creamy sweet approach with a fallen leaves base and back drop.  There is a woody base with a faint pungency and mild rolling cooling creamy sweetness.  The creamy sweetness is long in the mouth.  The mouthfeel is sticky and chalky.  This is a smooth and creamy sweet onset.

The second infusion has a layered creamy tart, woody, and fallen leaf onset the pungency rolls in low and disperses and long distinct creamy sweet aftertaste.  The mouthfeel is sticky and the throat feeling in mainly in the upper throat.  The tea is simple but the feature is the very long creamy sweet finish.

The third infusion has a woodier tart astringent tree bark and medicinal noted onset there is a rich dirt like base taste now and the mouthfeeling is slightly gripping and even drying.  The long cotton candy creamy sweetness arrives under these notes and trails off slowly on the breath.  I can start feeling the Qi in the head.  It’s a bit spacy and a bit mind slowing. 

The fourth has a woody astringent wood bark onset with simple woody fallen leaves and even slight dirt tastes.  The mouthfeeling is puckering and a long creamy sweet finish is found in the upper throat.  The Qi is starting to get me spacy but kind of loopy in the mind, its slowing me down.

The fifth infusion has a tart, fallen leaf, astringent woody onset.  The initial taste is quite astringent and there is significant mouth puckering.  A long creamy sweetness comes out of it on the other end.  This puerh seems very simple and straight forward.  It has a strong fallen leaf taste, strong astringency and the best part is the long creamy sweetness.  The Qi is spacy in the mind a bit of a downer sensation.

The sixth infusion has a palm leaves, dry wood, fallen leaves, astringency then long creamy sweet coolness.  The mouthfeeling is puckering and slight drying.  The throat feeling is manly upper.

The 7^th infusion has a woody, slight astringent woody but creamy sweet finish.  The profile is really simple.  The mouthfeeling has a dry chalkiness.  The sweetness is less long now but still creamy and nice.  There is a soothing feeling now to the qi.  Relaxing.

The 8^th has a woody, much less astringent but almost sourer leaf taste where a creamy sweetness emerges.  There is a slight fruity taste in there now and almost salty too.

The 9^th the initial taste is now becoming more like sour fruit with wood and leaves becoming less.  There is a bit more body with the sour fruit note in there, also a bit of bitterness too.  The creamy sweetness is less long and less distinct in the aftertaste. 

10^th woody sour fruit with fallen leaf nuance.  The sweetness is becoming less in the finish and this puerh is more sour fruit, wood, and leaves.  The sweetness is more faint and in the breath than more tangible now.  The astringency is significant in this aged puerh and is noted here.  Work is pretty crazy because of everything and removing all the PPE to gongfu is a challenge all unto itself.  I group together sessions to make life easier…

11^th , 12^th, 13^th this puerh is changing as the session progresses.  These infusions start to move in a more fruity direction much less astringency and woodiness.  The Qi continues to be pretty relaxing, slowing my mind down…

The 14^th, 15^th, 16^th come into a state of mainly peachy fruity dominating tastes.  Simple and satisfying.  Qi is nice and relaxing.  Still a bit of woody and storage depths some bit of astringency.

This is put into long steeping and pushes out some woody, leafy, and very vibrant peachy notes.  The qi remains light, simple, and relaxing.

Overall, this puerh is simple and its long distinct creamy sweet aftertaste is its highlight which is especially featured in the first handful of infusions.  In the next group of infusions the astringent and woody leafy tastes are more dominant.  In the later infusions distinct simple peachy fruity tastes get more of the attention.  Overall, the taste is simple but changes throughout the session to keep it interesting enough.  The astringency is a bit much during the mid-session even for someone who generally likes a touch of astringency.  It gets a bit puckery in these infusions but it doesn’t last long.  I also think that those who like aged white tea might enjoy the profile has something in it which reminds me a bit of the aged white I have had in the past. 

The Qi is another thing… The Qi is also one I don’t normally go for a downer type of very stopping the mind from working kind of thing.  On my first day back, you can be sure, that it wasn’t very welcome.  This is my fist Yang Qing Hao with a strong slowing down type of Qi.  Overall, the material underneath has quality to it but its just not what I go for in a puerh, at least not at that price.  Overall, I had a strange enjoyment of this puerh because it is really not like any puerh I’ve had before.  A fun one to sample.

Peace