GOLDEN YUNNAN (ORGANIC) From Tao's Tea

This is my first entry -- and just a trial run -- and only the 3rd day after a massive evening of smoking which pretty much completely deadened my taste buds. I'm also starting here with the second infusion on these leaves and I overbrewed the damn things! I was up on the ladder taking down the curtain panel I'm working on when the timer went off so instead of 3 minutes it brewed about 3 mins 30 to 3 mins 45.

TEA NAME: ORGANIC GOLDEN YUNNAN 
Remember: you can click on any of the photos to have a closer look.
WATER TEMPERATURE:  Just off the boil
STEEPING TIME:  2 minutes

Organic Golden Yunnan dry leaves.

DRY LEAF: A beautiful dark shiny slightly twisted leaf sprinkled with gorgeous golden, fuzzy leaf buds.  I love to look at the leaves under a magnifying glass and the surprise of the 'cat-tail' fuzziness always makes me smile.

Organic Golden Yunnan wet leaves.

WET LEAF:  The brewed wet leaves, typical of a fully oxidised tea, are a lovely coppery red with an undertone of green.  The leaves have been broken in their processing (likely during the rolling to break open the leaf's juices for oxidising) but you still see some whole, unopened buds about 1/2" (1 cm) long -- which were the golden fuzzies when dry. 

The wet leaves emit a crisp, sharp "black tea" aroma, with also a distinct and surprising note of honey dew melon (not the orange cataloup melon, but a ripe green honeydew).

Organic Golden Yunnan brewed liquor after 2 minutes.

LIQUOR: Aroma, appearance and flavour*.

And the liquor is definitely bitter -- slightly metallic taste of overbrewed black tea.

Soft to Medium brisk

Bright, on pouring and a beautiful rich orangey-red.