This is a strange tea that requires proper brewing if you want to appreciate it. It's not even remotely like any other white tea I've ever tried.

I received a generous amount of sample of this tea from Life in Teacup. I experimented brewing three different ways, using many infusions, starting at 1-minute and getting longer, using three infusions, starting 2 minutes and then getting longer, and starting with a longer infusion. I liked the results of the second brewing attempt most, and it's this one I will start with:

First infusion: Aroma unlike any tea I've tried before. Fruity, like melon, but deeper and less fleeting. Creamy, almost like a creamsickle. Reminds me of Maine woods in late summer.

Second infusion: the melon-like qualities persist but with a markedly less fruity character. Vegetal, deep. More bitter, less sweet. This infusion has Darjeeling-like characteristics and is also reminiscent of a Bai Hao oolong, but I like it much better than that style. I liked this infusion best.

Third infusion: melon tones persist. Now, olives and mushrooms, possibly a hint of caramel. Milder aroma overall. This infusion was more astringent, and had a chalky mouthfeel. Overall, this was not the most exciting infusion.

I think the tea was pretty well spent then.

When I brewed with more, briefer infusions, I was able to distinguish more about how the tea changed, but there were more overlapping qualities from one cup to the next. When I started with a longer infusion, it started off being too astringent, and the aroma was muddled.

Overall, the character of this tea was much more like a black tea than what I expect of a white tea. It was dark, and I would even say somewhat tannic. Overall qualities were characteristic of a more heavily oxidized tea.

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