27 October, 2007

2003 Menghai "Hong Kong Henry" 7542

You have to admit, this tea has a great name. I don't know if "Hong Kong Henry Trading Co." really exists, but if doesn't, it should. Fantastic.

This cake is $78 from Houde, where it is noted that the cake sports a neifei in both faces of the bing. I've had the notes for a while, and thanks to DV for reminding me to publish them.




Dark brown, with large fragments of leaf. A fair number of tips are visible. It is sweet wood in aroma, which agrees with Guang's observation of "pinewood". There are some good tobacco notes underneath the main scent.

The Houde description draws the similarity between this cake and the aroma of inksticks used in Chinese calligraphy, nicknaming it the "Scholar 7542". Given the brutally acidic nature of this tea, I am inclined to be less complimentary.

The soup is lucid orange. Some initial smokiness fades into a long, rich super-lengxiang of molasss. It lasts forever, dolling out plenty of dark sweetness - really, it is quite remarkable in this aspect.

Also remarkable is the aforementioned acidity. There isn't a lot of straight flavour here, as the acidity really dominates the proceedings. The closest I got was the sensation of that dark molasses undercurrent after the swallow.

The texture is decent, with a fine coating of light tea-oil on lips and tongue. As with the 1985 Yiwu Tuocha and the 2007 Xizihao Dingji, the contact-based energy of this tea is quite special, and leads to that similar numbing sensation wherever contact is made.

It settles down into a green, menthol opening, before quickly diving into pure acid in the centre of the tongue, and in the throat.

If battery acid were made out of molasses, this is it.

"This tea is like drinking earth", notes Lei as she briefly passes through, and indeed the opening flavour in the later infusions does taste like soil suspended in water - prior to the attack of the omnipresent acid.

Small and green, the wet leaves are chopped quite deliberately.

Overall:
For me, this isn't quite so much a "Scholar 7542" as much as it is a young waif with a bitter, acidic temper. It is hard to make judgements as to its future given that the majority of the molasses-based flavour is obscured by the acid. I'd like to revisit this in five years. Ouch.




Addendum
February, 2012

Superthanks to HC for providing me with a sample of this tea that I had previously written off, due to its acidity and bitterness during its youth.  With some extra years on the clock, has this cake settled down?


2003 HK Henry


In 2007, this cake was $78, which seemed a huge amount, at the time.  That Houde's proprietor called this a "scholar tea" used to make me weep big tears, but it is now almost a decade old, and perhaps the times they have a-changed.

I am reminded that the blend contains plenty of stems and other welcome additions to the mixture, such as the odd huangpian [yellow-flake, the outer leaves that are often discarded by hand], pictured below.


2003 HK Henry


Much has happened: this orange-souped little fellow now delivery a sweet, sharp, pinelike cup with an excellent body.  The texture is heavy and smooth, a far cry from the rough terror of its immediate youth.  The acidity has helped it along the way, and I enjoy the result very much.


2003 HK Henry


What pleasant surprises may be in store for those acrid, aggressive cakes... HC has converted me to the delights of this most enjoyable cake, with his generously-provided sample.  The infusions march on longer after my capacity to drink them has passed.  The future for this cake looks good indeed.

16 comments:

MarshalN said...

Hmmm, doesn't sound that good.

One request: do you think you can take pictures of the liquor when it's in the drinking cup, rather than the wenxiangbei?

The depth of the wenxiangbei makes it hard to evaluate the actual colour of the tea (by comparing to other things one sees). They all look very dark when in that thing.

emmanuel said...

It is very pleasant to read your blog. Very nice photos as always!

xdustinx said...

I think your tasting notes are similar to mine, except that you found it way more acidic than I did. The molasses flavor you're getting somehow reminds me of many of the better puerhs I tasted in Pasadena. I need to revisit this tea before I make any decisions. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Scotto said...

Resurrecting an old tasting and saying hello ;-)

I got this from Hou De recently, and found it quite pleasurable. It is a dead ringer for the hot, mulled apple cider that I make around the holidays. Spicy and acidic, but not overly so. Some pine notes as well. Overall I liked this tea and wasn't put off by the acidity.

Hobbes said...

Dear Scotto,

I'm glad you liked this one; I've revisited it several times since writing this review, and found it to be quite pleasant. It's a little metallic, acidic too, but interestingly complex. It's definitely going to grab the attention, which I like in a tea.

I think a little acidity in tea can be a fine thing!


Toodlepip and welcome,

Hobbes

Anonymous said...

Hi Hobbes,
I brewed this today. Three years later and still pretty intense. Drinking like young sheng. Lots of pine. But within it there remains an alluring hui gan. My first impression was one of dread at having to contend with another wall of young sheng so to speak. My neighbors who drink scotch were pleased with it (they began at brew #5) and my son, who drinks almost any tea was also pleased.

My impression was that this tea has seen relatively dry storage. It needs years and years more (preferably resting in HK!)

BioHorn from TC

Hobbes said...

Thank you for the notes, Biohorn - you have made me wish to try to find the remains of my own sample! Pine and huigan does sound rather decent.


All the best,

Hobbes

Anonymous said...

Hello Hobbes,
I am curious how you find the change after four years time. Today is day eight of brewing (10g in +-100ml pot.) The flavor went from "almost smelling of Liu An" to days 5-8 "tastes of Liu An." Trying to put a word to that flavor of young LA on later brews (maybe licorice?) That is what became most pronounced in later brews.

Did you finish your stock?

Best,

BioHorn

Hobbes said...

Dear Mr. Horn,

I've been looking, but I'm not finding! I am trying to remember if I gave the remainder of my sample away, or whether it's in a cupboard here... :)


Toodlepip,

Hobbes

Anonymous said...

I have some left over. I'll try to get your email from someone on TC.

Hobbes said...

That's most kind of you - thanks! My e-mail address is hobbesoxon at gmail got com, by the way.


Toodlepip,

Hobbes

Anonymous said...

Hello Hobbes,
I just sent you an email. Thanks!
H.

Hobbes said...

Hmm - I've not received an e-mail, and it doesn't appear to be stuck in my "Spam" folder. Did you get the address correct? :)


Toodlepip,

Hobbes

Tea on the Western Reserve said...

Hello Hobbes,
Have been trying to reach you. Being the holidays you are probably out. In case you might think there is something strange, you can ask Lawrence about me (BioHorn.) Hope to get this HouDe sample to you and out of the drawer. In what is maybe a streak of masochism I kept a bit to have a second shot at it. Cheers!

Hobbes said...

Hi there!

Apologies for the delay - I've just returned from the Christmas break. Do please e-mail me at:

hobbesoxon 'at' gmail 'dot' com

and we'll get the ball rolling. :)


Toodlepip,

Hobbes

Tea on the Western Reserve said...

Hello Hobbes,
I just mailed you again. Please check your filter for my message. Maybe your account does not like my mails?

Best,

Hans