This morning the air had such a presence when I walked out onto the back deck. I strongly felt its steamy thickness pressing in on my body. Everything is air conditioned these days – my car, my house, my work, the stores – so it is almost a shock when I walk outside. All that said, I much prefer this thick heat to what lies ahead in about 3-4 months from now.
With tender buds and full leaf sets, this morning’s tea is called Huo Shan Yellow Buds, a yellow tea from China. In touching the beautiful intact leaf, I imagined women moving through a tea field, their picking baskets strapped to them as their delicate hands reach out and pluck the tender new growth from each tea bush. Women are chosen for this task for their small hands and graceful movement.
I steeped the leaves for 3 minutes in 180 degree F water.
How does yellow tea differ from green tea, I wonder? From what I’ve researched and read, it is processed very similarly yet varies in the heating/firing steps. These steps are much more time consuming in producing the yellow tea in that the tea leaves are gently steamed with moist heat and then wrapped in some sort of material. This process is repeated several times. It produces a tea that tastes more like a white tea than a green tea. Such an art form. You can read about it here.
Just like the air outside, this tea has such a presence in my mouth. That is called a “full mouth feel”. It is very apparent with the first sip of tea. It is not thick like an Assam tea but more buttery and silky.
The tea liquor is quite pale with just a hint of color in my teapot. The aroma is soft and the flavor is slightly sweet and peppery/spicy. Very delicate and subtle.
The tea is so light that it shows off the speckled inside of my teabowl to perfection. ahhhh..
Infinite riches are all around you if you will open your mental eyes and behold the treasure house of infinity within you. There is a gold mine within you from which you can extract everything you need to live life gloriously, joyously, and abundantly.
~Joseph Murphy
Art and Tea 
good saturday morning to you, sweet karen – always nice to find you here – x nina
And you as well Nina. I always look forward to your visits! xo
Ahhh… very nice. I’m not looking forward to the winter either, but can we at least have a compromise?
Hear ya, Judy, less mugginess would be very nice!
i am never tasted the yellow tea yet…but look so light. different to the red or black one.
Good to see a review of a yellow tea. I haven’t seen many of those yet. I’m curious what people think of them. It seems it’s like white tea, from what you’ve written and that’s a bit discouraging for me because that’s a hard tea to enjoy for its subtlety. –Spirituality of Tea
I know what you mean, Jason. I find a yellow tea very subtle. Yes, like a white tea in some ways and also like a lighter green without the vegetal quality in others. The leaves look similar to a white, especially with this tea since it’s mainly bud/new growth. If you can get your hands on some, it’s definitely worth a try. Enjoy!
[…] The leaves remind me very much of a white tea because most white teas consist of the buds of the tea bush. The whole intact leaf is a beautiful light sage green. Yellow teas are processed in a similar fashion to green teas, however, the difference lies in involving a moist steam heat and then covering the leaves with a cloth to allow the moist steam to develop the flavor. This process is repeated several times. I’ve written about another yellow tea and the process here. […]