White Dew Tea Ceremony–Aged White Tea from 2011

The gentle nature of aged white tea is neutral, not too warm or too cold. It settles down the heat we accumulated during the Summer joy. It also settles down an overly exciting mind for us to be ready for the colder weather.

2020 has been an unpredictable year for all of us. Time quietly disappears in our fingers. Before we realize, it is already White Dew (白露), one of the 24 solar terms when you notice that in the morning the dews on the grass are turning to white. The gentle nature of aged white tea is neutral, not too warm or too cold. It settles down the heat we accumulated during the Summer joy. It also settles down an overly exciting mind for us to be ready for the colder weather.

For this special occasion, I decided to open a new tea cake, an aged white tea cake coming from 2011. The tea cake is carefully hand-wrapped with paper and foil by our supplier. Working with them helps us to understand how precious high mountain teas are.

By the look of the cake, it falls into the Shoumei grade. Tea leaves come from a later time of the year are always full of surprises. The 9-years maturing gives the leaves a dark brown colour. You can still see some cream coloured buds. The size of the leaves is much bigger than white peony or silver needles. It almost doesn’t smell anything from the tea cake. But some hidden fruity and woody smell vaguely touches my nose. I always appreciate a less aromatic tea because they are quiet with their little stories.

To brew the tea, I broke a fair amount of tea leaves without weighing it. The water was 100 °C. The first brew was light and subtle. But from the second brew, more colour, flavour and aroma came out of the tea as water completely soaked the leaves in my Jun porcelain teapot. It was a delightful experience with this aged white tea. There was an obvious woody taste with a fruity note. It has such a gentle flavour, yet a strong Chaqi to warm me up. Once the tea got colder, the taste became sweet. It was smooth and moisturizing, leaving my throat relaxed. The tea kept going. I paused to feel the honey after-taste that mingled in my mouth for a long time. After a few cups, there was a calm and restored feeling in my heart.

As we always say, tea brings nature to our modern life. A cup of tea witnesses the change of time with us, like an old friend. This session might have finished. But what about the moment, the memory and the White Dew of 2020?

If you are interested in this aged white tea from 2011, we have a sample pack of 50g and a full 350g tea cake for sale. You can find more details from https://www.augustmoontea.com/product/2011-chenyun-aged-white-tea-cake-350g/.