What-Cha Vietnamese Dragon Cloud

I haven’t had Vietnamese tea in a while, and this tea is an experimental crossbreed between the native Vietnamese Ta plant and the famous Chinese Long Jing (Dragon Well) cultivar. My batch is a super fresh Spring April harvest. You drop these unassuming, dark wiry leaves into the basket and they rehydrate into incredibly vibrant, unbroken green buds.

What is actually in the cup:

The vendor label calls the finish "minty". I disagree. Brewing this Western-style for about 60 to 90 seconds at 75C pulls out the uniquely recognisable characteristics of a Vietnamese tea.

Instead of mint, you get a very distinct, enjoyable roasted aroma and bitterness right at the front of the palate. In Vietnamese tea culture, this exact physical sensation is called Tiền chát, hậu ngọt. You get a sharp, savoury astringency that coats your mouth and gives the bright golden liquor some heavy structure. It is absolutely not a burnt or over-steeped flaw. That initial tannic bite wakes up your mouth and immediately melts into a deep, brothy sweetness that sits at the back of your throat.

It’s certainly an interesting experimental tea that I might buy again, 4 stars.