Grown on Mount Yunpan in China from the historic Yunkang #10 cultivar, Cloudy Yellow Tea is a niche product with light oxidation (10%) and similar processing to red tea, which involves sun drying, leaf rolling, oxidation and finally drying.
It is a spring-harvested tea with a fresh flavor and floral aroma with surprising citrus notes.
CLOUDY Yellow tea is a very special variety of tea, but there are many others. Check out our blog article: The colours of tea, how many types of tea there are.
Tasting – Sight and smell
Cloudy yellow tea leaves are rather long, thin and delicately rolled. The color is between brown and dull brown with the presence of numerous golden gems. Once infused, the leaves give off aromas of fragrant wood, with some slight vegetal hints, hints of cooked fruit, honey, and slightly citrus and floral notes on the finish. In the cup, the liquor is amber to dark orange in color, with a medium density body.
Tasting Notes
GONG FU CHA
The first infusion of Cloudy yellow tea has notes of cooked winter fruits such as apples and pears, cooked plums, and peach. There is also a hint of fragrant wood and nuts. Instead, with the second infusion, floral notes of rose and flowers from thorny shrubs and hints of citrus such as mandarin and bergamot emerge. The freshness of this tea intensifies in the third and subsequent brews, with the citrus notes taking over from the more woody initial notes. A very slight bitterness can be detected but is not disturbing, while the finish is floral.
WESTERN
With an initial sip of Cloudy Yellow Tea, the tongue senses fruity hints (quince compote, cooked apples) and immediately afterward citrus notes of bergamot and kumquat, with slight hints of ginger. Deeper wood notes can also be perceived, never intrusive and perfectly balanced with the fresh floral hints of rose, lime and wildflowers. A hint of heather honey also emerges on the finish, while the persistence is long and citrusy.
Place of origin
Pu’er, Yunnan, China
Yunkang cultivar #10 on Mount Yunpan
Cloudy Yellow Tea preparation
We strongly recommend infusing Cloudy yellow tea in the traditional Chinese method (Gong Fu Cha) with a gaiwan with a capacity of about 150 ml. By following this preparation, multiple infusions can be made with 5 grams of leaves that are useful to best capture all the flavor nuances of the tea.
Heat the water to a temperature of 80°C (176°F) and proceed to an initial infusion of 25 seconds. Keeping the water at the same temperature, you can then continue to exploit the same leaves by adding more water and increasing the infusion time by 5 seconds each time (25 – 30 – 35…).
This tea has a longevity of 4-5 infusions.
For a more classic preparation in the Western style, we recommend 3 grams of leaves (about 2 teaspoons) in a 200-mL cup with water at 80°C for an infusion time of 2-3 minutes.
For a better tasting experience, we suggest that you strain the infusion as soon as the brewing time is over. The brewing time recommendations, however, can also be slightly adjust by your personal taste in order to obtain a strong or more delicate cup of tea.
Store in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight.
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