Aged Wen Shan Bao Zhong – 2005 Vintage

Description

Aged Wen Shan Bao Zhong (文山包種老茶) is an expertly aged pouchong from Pinglin District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Traditionally it is a lightly oxidised oolong, however the ageing process introduces more complex and unusual flavours. It was made by Mr Chen, a 91 year old tea master still practising his tea craft. The tea was stored at his house at optimum ageing conditions so it does not have the musty dull flavours found in poorly aged teas. This vintage was made circa 2005, so it has been aged around 15 years prior to us being able to purchase it.

You may be interested in other Aged Oolong teas that we currently offer.

We are extremely excited to be able to offer three vintages on this occasion: 2000, 2005 and 2008. These teas were all made by Mr Chen from Qing Xin ‘Green Heart’ (青心) plants that are handpicked on the hills next to his ancestral home in Pinglin. He has been making tea here since the end of the Japanese occupation of Taiwan in 1945, although he does get assistance with his craft from the younger generations of his family. His capacity as a tea master for making great teas is evident from these beautifully aged oolongs.

This Aged Wen Shan Bao Zhong has been aged for about 15 years, so the flavours are more balanced out and definitely increased in complexity. The floral flavours are diminished but they are still dominant. Present is a more vegetal profile that you don’t get as much on the other vintages. There are flavours of green peppers, courgettes and herbaceous notes. The vegetal flavours balance the floral ones quite nicely! There is also a mineral touch which is reminiscent of ‘rock’ tea taste found in good Wu Yi Shan teas. The overall feeling is that this tea has a fuller and more rounded flavour with a more pronounced aftertaste.

Brew at 90°C in western style for 2-3 minutes according to your taste. However, we strongly advise gong fu brewing for these teas, with 5g per 100ml brewed in a gaiwan or good quality clay teapot. Use 95°C water with an optional rinse and an initial infusion of 45 seconds. Add an additional 10 seconds to subsequent infusions. Different teaware will perform differently, so the infusion times may be shortened or lengthened to taste.