Hey Teaheads.
This is Don from Mei Leaf.
In THIS video : Celebrating 5,000 subscribers with an AGED Oolong.
In THIS video we're going to say "Thank You" to all of the subscribers out there who follow
us in our channel, and we are going to SAMPLE a 2007 Dan Cong in celebration.
This video is going to go under the "Drinking With Friends" AND the "Sample Tea Tasting"
playlists.
If at any point in time you ENJOY this video then PLEASE give [it] the thumbs-up.
The more thumbs in the air, the more tea videos are going to come your way.
If you haven't subscribed to our YouTube channel, JOIN the 5,000, and go click that button :
We are on Primrose Hill.
It's a SUNNY Saturday in London.
Primrose Hill [is] one of my FAVORITE places.
We have CELINE here...
Celine : Hello
Don : We want to say "Thank You" to all of the 5,000 subscribers out there who have CLICKED
that "subscribe" button, and have joined our tea channel.
Now I know [that] in the world of YouTube just filming someone FALLING OVER can get
10,000 subscribers...
Celine : [laughter]
Don : It may be MODEST, but I believe that OUR 5,000 - YOU guys out there - are VERY
DISCERNING viewers.
We're so thankful for all the COMMENTS, and all the DISCUSSIONS we get, and all the THUMBS
UP.
It REALLY, REALLY makes this whole PROCESS of filming so enjoyable to know that YOU GUYS
are out there watching.
So what we have decided to do today is TRY a tea - a Dan Cong tea.
This is a 2007 Wu Dong Dan Cong which I picked up.
I'll tell you the whole story about how I got this, but this has been sitting on my
shelf for about TWO years, WAITING, and I thought NOW is the right time to do it.
I have ANOTHER pack here which is a Dan Cong from the 1970s.
This is a LITTLE TEASER.
Once [we] get to 10,000 subscribers we will sample THIS tea.
Not for the moment [though].
For [today] it's the 2007 Wu Dong Dan Cong.
Do you want to start brewing?
Celine : Oh my god, yeah.
I'm so excited right now [laughter].
We're on Primrose Hill.
There is a BEAUTIFUL VIEW in front of us.
We'll spin the camera around so you can take a look at the beautiful SKYLINE.
London in the summer we don't get THAT MANY sunny days, but when we DO it is SO, SO lovely
to be out in the sun and look at the city.
Let me tell you a little bit about this tea.
This was picked up, actually, on one of my TEA EXPEDITIONS around China.
I was looking to purchase a DIFFERENT TYPE of tea, and I found a tea that I REALLY LOVED,
and I was trying to PAY for it, but [the farmers] wouldn't accept any credit cards.
They wanted CASH ONLY.
So I had to try and find an ATM machine, [but] NOBODY spoke English.
[Then] I managed to just surreptitiously just BUMP into this guy who spoke a bit of English,
and he helped out [to] no end.
We found an ATM and [I] managed to get the tea.
I started SPEAKING to him.
This was in China.
He's a Taiwanese man who was a TEA SELLER himself, and he SPECIALIZED in Dan Cong.
That's ALL he did - JUST Dan Cong.
I went , afterwards, to his tea shop, had dinner with him, and he showed me all of his
Dan Congs.
He had an AMAZING selection of Dan Congs, all in clay jars [and] aged beautifully.
He GAVE me this as a present and said, "Open it when you want to celebrate."
So I figured [at] 5,000 subscribers THIS is the time to celebrate.
Do you want to maybe go and get up and show [the audience] the leaves?
Celine : Yeah.
I thought I'd SHOW it before I put it in [the pot].
Don : Okay.
Hold it there.
I'm going to focus, You can see [that] it looks [like] a FAIRLY DARK, oxidized Dan Cong,
[which has] quite large LEAVES.
Celine : Oops!
[laughter] I can't believe I've lost one.
Don : That's all right.
[It went] back to the earth.
Don : We are brewing in this TINY, TINY clay pot.
Celine : Look at that!
[It's] so CUTE.
[4:00] Don : Now for THOSE of you that may have watched our videos in China, you may
have seen a video about this.
I'll put the link in the description below.
This [is a] little pot which was REFUSED to be sold to me because of a tiny IMPERFECTION
on it.
Celine : Oh my god.
[That's] SO FRUSTRATING.
Don : Well, we DIDN'T FINISH the story on that.
The story [is] that the claymaster - the potter, the person who MADE this AMAZING teapot - knew
that we loved it so much, but he REFUSED to sell it to us because of the imperfection.
Instead, he gave it away to a FRIEND that he knew knew us, and that friend GAVE it to
us.
So we got FREE OF CHARGE this incredible Chou Zho clay pot that we use for Dan Congs.
It's a TINY little pot, but it's just the TWO OF US drinking, so let's give it a brew.
Do you want to warm up the teapot first?
Celine : Oh, yeah.
Sorry.
Don : In terms of WHICH Dan Cong this is, I have NO IDEA.
All it says is "2007 Wu Dong Dan Cong".
Wu Dong is the MOUNTAIN, which is where ALL of the BEST Dan Cong comes from, so we know
it's coming from the right area.
But I ASKED him "Which is the flavour?
Is it a Mi Lan Xiang?
Is it a Ya Shi?
Is it a Gardenia?
Is it an almond?"
Is it a ginger flower?
What flavour it is?"
He actually just SMILED and said to me, "It has ALL the flavours."
Celine : Really?
[laughter] Oh my god!
Don : I don't know WHAT that means, but we're going to find out.
He was a REALLY, REALLY, INTERESTING guy.
He was from Taiwan, and I asked him, like, "Okay.
You're from Taiwan.
Why is it that you're specializing in Dan Congs, and you're not stocking any Taiwanese
Oolongs?"
He was actually QUITE CRITICAL of Taiwanese Oolongs.
Celine : No way!
Don : Yeah.
He said to me, "You know, Taiwanese Oolongs are very CONSISTENT.
They have a flavor which is very consistent and very good, but it is a very STANDARDIZED
flavor.
It's a very STANDARD flavor.
Celine : MmmHmm.
Don : I kind of KNOW what he means by that.
Celine : Yeah.
Don : Whereas with Dan Congs and Chinese Oolongs you MAY get duds, you MAY get ones that don't
really work, but when you find one that REALLY works it just has its OWN CHARACTER.
It has its OWN PERSONALITY to it.
Celine : Oh, I LIKE that.
Yeah, it's true.
Don : Whereas the Oolongs from Taiwan, he said, were a little bit like Coca-Cola.
That was his comparison [laughter].
Celine : Oh [laughter].
That's good.
Don : A little bit like Coca-Cola [in that] it's just a very STANDARDIZED type of tea.
Okay.
I'm excited.
Wait, wait, wait.
I want to smell it.
Celine : No.
Oh, I get you.
Sorry.
Don : For TWO years this has been on my shelf, so let's have a smell.
It's MEANT to be ALL flavors.
Whoa!
[It] smells DARK.
Celine : Like dark ROASTED?
Or just DARK?
Don : Wow!
Smell it.
It smells a LITTLE BIT fruity - a little bit like a Mi Lan Xiang - so it's got a little
bit of the STONE FRUIT and a little bit of HONEY.
But it's got a REALLY DARK, WOODINESS to it.
Celine: Ah!
It DOES!
Don : I don't think that's from ROASTING.
I think that's an AGING thing.
It doesn't feel CHARCOALY.
Celine : No.
Don : Not more than a NORMAL Dan Cong.
There's something about it which has a real DEPTH and WOODINESS to it.
Celine : It IS INTERESTING, because it DOES smell a bit like Da Hong Pao, but then it
has the fruitiness of a Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong.
It's really COMPLEX, and considering [that] we're getting WIND on ourselves, we can't
like actually smell it PROPERLY [as we can in] the room.
Don : Stick your nose in there [and] you WILL.
It's got a SOURNESS to it...
Celine : Whoa my god!
Yeah, a sourness.
Don : It's got that TART ACIDITY that comes from aging.
It reminds me of a Jade Star, or a white, aged tea.
Celine : Oh yeah!
That's true.
Don : It's got that AROMA.
Okay.
Exciting.
So we're brewing Chao Zhou style here, so no Gong Dao Bei [serving cup].
We're just going straight from pot to cup, and we can afford to with [this] LITTLE teapot.
This is Chao Zhou red clay.
It's a BEAUTIFUL pot.
We'll give you a closeup in a second, but first we want to try [the] tea.
Primrose Hill on a sunny day is one of the BEST places in London.
You're got the view looking out over the city [which] is just STUNNING.
Celine : It is SUCH a nice day.
Don : You feel like you're FAR AWAY ENOUGH from the city that you're not in the middle
of all the CHAOS, but you're right there, you can see it, [and] it's gorgeous.
It's about, what, 25 degrees.
So it's a PERFECT temperature..
That's 25 degrees CELCIUS.
I don't know what that is in Fahrenheit.
I'm sure you guys can look it up.
Anyway, let's give it a taste.
You can show the camera.
Celine : Yeah.
ALWAYS.
[We don't want] to [leave] you guys out.
Don : It's QUITE a DARK BREW, isn't it?
It's quite a DARK, AMBER-ORANGE brew.
Okay.
So, cheers to EVERY SINGLE ONE of you [who have] subscribed.
Thank you SO MUCH for subscribing.
Thank you SO MUCH for joining us on this tea journey.
Cheers.
Celine : Oh my goodness.
Don : That is UNLIKE ANY OTHER tea I have [ever] tasted before.
Celine : He is quite right in terms of it [being] really COMPLEX.
There is SO MUCH going on [that] LITERALLY I can't pinpoint ONE thing.
Like, there's not ONE flavor that pops [into] my head.
Don : Can I drink the THIRD one here and we can share it.
Celine : Mmm.
Don : I can pour some into yours.
Celine : This is really...
Don : Wow!
Wow!
Okay.
What are we getting?
Celine : Stone fruits, definitely.
Don : There's a LITTLE BIT of stone fruit, just like a Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong.
There's ALSO the LIGHT Gardenia flower - LIGHT, SWEET flowers - but NOT sweet like honeysuckles
or lilacs, or anything like that.
[It's] more of a PALE floral flavor.
It HAS GOT some of the CREAMINESS of the "Duck Shit" Oolongs.
Celine : Yeah.
Don : And it's DEFINITELY got some NUTTINESS of a Ju Duo Almond Oolong.
[It's] DARK, [but] NOT ROASTED.
It's DEFINITELY not roasted, [any] more than a NORMAL Dan Cong.
It's got a DARK, FERMENTED type of flavour to it.
Celine : Mmm.
What's the EQUIVALENT?
The THICKNESS is great as well.
It's really nice and thick.
Why don't you show the pot to the camera, just so [the audience] can see how beautiful
this Yi Xing pot is.
Celine : Dee, dee, dee...
[It's] SO super-cute.
Don : Beautiful red clay.
Celine : It is beautiful.
Let me OPEN it as well, just so [everybody] can see the leaves inside.
Hang on.
I'm going to go closer.
Don : Okay.
Celine : I love the TIP.
I love that style.
Don : Okay.
So come on.
We've got to try and NAIL some flavors here.
Celine : Okay.
Okay.
There's [a] CHOCOLATINESS as well, I find.
Don : It's DARK NUTTINESS.
It's a DARK, slightly WOODY - like SANDALWOOD or CEDAR - quite FRAGRANT wood.
Celine : Yeah.
I was going to say CHERRYWOOD.
Don : Yeah.
Maybe a fruit wood.
Smell that empty cup.
That is AMAZING.
The empty cup smell.
LICORICE!
Celine : Oh, yeah.
Don : Licorice and DARK TOFFEE.
Those DARK, DARK toffees.
Celine : Dark toffee.
Yeah.
Don : Molasses TREACLE.
Celine : yes.
Don : Molasses TREACLE.
That's what it is.
Celine : That is.
Don : That DARK, DARK - almost close to being WOODY - molasses.
DARK TREACLE, BLACK TREACLE, with some of the fruitiness.
Celine : Now [that] you said that I REALLY taste it in [the liquor], the dark treacle.
Yeah, and like a FRUIT WOODINESS.
Don : Dark treacle, fruit wood, [and] a SLIGHT PALE floweriness to it.
It's very light, but that gives a LIGHTNESS to the tea as well - that floweriness.
[There's] a SLIGHT stone fruitiness.
Celine : Yeah.
It's INCREDIBLE, isn't it?
How it's so...?
Don : It's really SMOOTH, because it's got BITTERNESS from the Dan Cong, but it's a bitterness
that somehow becomes ROUNDED and SMOOTH.
Celine Yeah.
It kind of reminds me a bit of how young Gu Shu changes to a SWEETNESS, you know?
Don : Young Gu Shu is a RAW Puerh
Celine : Yeah.
Sorry.
Raw Puerh.
But that kind of DOES ROUND UP the bitterness.
It just doesn't LINGER in this way.
It just becomes SOFT and SWEET.
[Doesn't] it?
Don : Mmm.
It's really, really SUPPLE, SOFT, and SWEET, but with bitterness.
Celine : Oh!
REALLY sweet actually.
Don : It's a really LUSCIOUS tea.
Celine : Yeah.
If you just WAIT a bit it lingers HERE like really SWEET, like HONEY.
That's what you get a lot with Mi Lan Xiang and "Duck Shit", that kind of LINGERING sweetness.
Don : Yeah.
It's REALLY mineral-RICH.
I don't know how old the tea trees [are] that this tea is made from, but it FEELS like it's
quite an OLD tea tree.
The ASTRINGENCY and the BITTERNESS is ROUNDED so wonderfully.
It really kind of ENVELOPS it with this "treaclely" sweetness.
Wow!
It's INCREDIBLE.
I just wish that we could GET HOLD of some of this stuff, because I know that this was
his PRIVATE STASH, and I don't think that he will be selling it.
HOWEVER, if there are ENOUGH of you out there that WANT this tea then it doesn't hurt to
just write [it] in the comments [section] below.
Then maybe we can give him a call and see if he'll PART with some of his private stash,
because this is a tea that EVERYBODY SHOULD try.
Let's give it one more taste.
Celine : Cheers!
Don : Cheers ! Mmm.
It becoming MORE REFRESHING.
Celine : Yeah.
It's STILL really STRONG, but it's TRUE [that it's] more refreshing.
Don : More refreshing.
Celine : There's SOMETHING ELSE.
Don : It's got a PLUMMINESS to it now - a FRESHENED PLUMMINESS - and also a FRAGRANCE
that's you only get with AGED teas.
[It's] a fragrance like a INCENSE kind of fragrance, like SANDALWOOD, or a WOODY kind
of fragrance to it.
Celine : Oh, yeah.
Sandalwood.
Don : [Let's] give it a taste.
You can smell it in the empty cup as well.
Celine : You're SO SPOT-ON with that.
Don : Plumminess, and a kind of SANDALWOOD incense.
[It's] incredible.
So this is a NINE-year-old Dan Cong, and IF we make it to 10,000 subscribers, [by] you
guys [telling] all your friends, then we will be breaking out the 1970 - so FORTY-SIX year
old - Dan Cong.
Celine : Oh my god,
Don : I CANNOT wait, so PLEASE don't leave us hanging on for too long.
We're going to sit on this beautiful sunny day and enjoy tea on our "Gong Fu Guru" [tea
table] looking out over London.
That's it Teaheads.
If you made it to the end of this video then please give [it] the thumbs-up.
Check out our YouTube playlists and let us know if there are any VIDEOS that you would
like us to make.
If you're ever in London then come visit us in Camden to say "Hi!" and taste our wares.
If you have any questions or comments then please fire them over.
Other than that, I'm Don Mei, with Celine, on Primrose Hill.
We are thanking EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU for being a part of the revelation of true tea.
Stay away from the tea bags, keep drinking the good stuff, and spread the word, because
NOBODY deserves BAD tea.
Bye!
Celine : Bye!