"Yabao is one of the most intriguing teas out there. Picked from compact winter buds, young Yabao is light in body but wonderfully nuanced. It has none of the earthy qualities of pu'er. Instead, it is sweet like raw sugar, with the silky spice of Yunnan budset teas like Golden Buds black. This 2008 harvest still maintains a fresh sparkling quality to it, with toasted marshmallow flavors coming through in later steepings. "
"Mi Lan Xiang, literally "Honey Orchid Fragrance" is a real understatement for this tea. The aroma is absolutely heady and enveloping, like walking into a temple burning sandalwood incense with lotus flowers strewn about, and a faint whiff of pine sap and honeydew melon."
"The wet leaf of this Autumn Harvest Laoshan Black has a beautifully addictive aroma of salted caramel and fresh baked brownies. The complexity of the aroma follows through beautifully in the early steepings with caramel chocolate candy flavor, a perfect balance of sweet, slaty and savory. Later infusions yield more dark juicy fruit flavors, especially raspberry. The famous Laoshan malty quality comes through in the aftertaste to complement the chocolate."
"The aroma of the wet leaf is that of fresh roasted sweet potatoes, steaming hot like the ones vendors sell for 10 cents on the roadside on the way to Laoshan Village. Behind the rich savory sweetness is a potent cayenne pepper aroma. The early steepings are full and all-encompassing like cedarwood smoldering in an incense censer. There is a dark spice that moves towards clove, but is tempered by a sweet cinnamon note. This new harvest builds on the smoldering base with luscious notes of honey, and waffle wafer cookies. Later steepings develop towards creamy banana, and the spice slowly builds up towards ginger, galangal and even a hint of cardamom, evoking a warming cup of honey-sweetened chai."