Lai Chau (Vietnam) forest green tea, and Jin Xuan Fujian green

 

Viet Sun Deep Forest left, Moychay Jin Xuan right, in all photos

I'm comparison tasting a Moychay Jin Xuan green tea with a Viet Sun Lai Chau Deep Forest Green tea (the second from spring of 2026, with the first not listing a date, but probably from this year).

This comparison is really throwing the Moychay tea version to the wolves; I already know the Viet Sun tea is exceptional, from trying earlier forms.  It held its own well though.

Moychay sent a number of different samples to try, in part related to me helping with some editing.  It's much appreciated; it will be a great chance to try lots of familiar types, and some new ones.  Most of it is warmer toned versions, lots of black tea, oolongs, some fermented / hei cha range, even some flavored versions.  It makes sense that for a lot of the year in cooler European climate warmer teas would be favored.  Not just now, so much, when lighter teas would go better with a heat wave, but it'll be fall again soon, and spring wasn't so long ago.

This is the last tea I have to try from Viet Sun, from the last order (sent as a sample for review; I'd keep buying sheng and black tea from them, if I had included more than a few versions).  Green tea is more or less my least favorite category, but the exceptions can be nice, like this one.

One additional thing I wanted to mention:  Steve said that their sales were down this year.  It's not hard to guess why (not related to teas being unfavorable; they're good):  the economy can seem uncertain in lots of places now, and inflation already stresses plenty of people's budgets.  I wonder if there aren't other inputs though.

I'm not sure how Moychay's business either expands or flattens out in "the West;" I haven't kept up with hearing about that.  This is all supposed to just be about the teas anyway.

I'm also just coming out of a 6 day long illness, I think in decent shape for tasting.  I'll lose a little intensity and finer flavor sensitivity to this cold, but it's resolved enough that drinking light teas again makes sense.  For those more difficult days it was nice drinking mild black tea, not getting much of the flavor, but appreciating the depth.

the Viet Sun version; I forgot to take a picture of the dry leaves when tasting them

the Moychay tea; the leaves looked even finer in person

Let's check their sales page input for their descriptions, and pricing:

Lai Châu Deep Forest Green Spring 2026 (they're only selling 250 grams for $57.50 now, no other sizes, at 23 cents a gram)

A green tea made from same tea tree varietal as our Lào Cai Deep forest teas but on the Lai Châu side of the mountain range. 

The tea trees in this area are growing to heights of 10+ meters in the deep forest at 2200m+ in elevation. The rich biodiversity and natural growing conditions really make their way into the cup.

This tea brews up slowly into a rich, clear golden soup. The flavor is unique and complex. Reminds me of forest flower honey, herbs, strawberry or raspberry and wild grasses with a lot of umami. There are some similarities to Japanese green teas.

Light astringency and bitterness, thick mouthfeel, long rich huigan and relaxing qi.

Another interesting aspect of this tea is the aging potential. I have tried teas from past years and they get sweeter and richer over time. The honey notes become more prominent as well.

Maybe I was thinking of that other origin area green tea from them...

Green Tea Jin Xuan Lü Cha (they only list a 7 gram size for 2 Euros, 33 cents a gram, with the 50 gram size having been sold for 30 cents a gram, when it was available)

Jin Xuan Green Tea is a high-mountain green tea produced from the Jin Xuan oolong cultivar in Sanming City, Fujian Province. Grown at an average altitude of 1100 meters, the tea is cultivated by a sustainable agriculture enterprise, recognized nationally as a green tea production base.

Harvested by hand in April, the tea is picked as one bud with two leaves. Processing follows a traditional green tea method: sun withering, indoor airing, pan-firing (kill-green), rolling, and drying... 

...Its fragrance is rich and floral, accompanied by a distinct fresh soybean note. The taste is smooth, refreshing, and sweet, making it particularly enjoyable for daily drinking.

It's interesting considering that both are probably relatively safe tea options.  Producers surely aren't pouring fertilizer and pesticide on forest grown teas, and the Jin Xuan is presented as a sustainable production output.

Of course Jin Xuan is #12 in a series of developed cultivars (cross bred plant types) in Taiwan, produced a long time ago there.  Rolled oolongs here in Thailand tend to be Jin Xuan, #17 (Ruan Zhi or Bai Lu; kind of a long story about that naming), or maybe Tie Guan Yin or Qing Xin. 

Review:

Lai Chau, first infusion:  I brewed these quite light to start; I'm not sure why that made sense to me.  Flavor is nice, just light.  There's a freshness and depth to this, with good floral range and mineral base showing through already.  It will work better as a breakdown next round.  

Moychay Jin Xuan:  it's interesting how much umami this expresses.  That might throw off using personal preference as a main marker; I can appreciate how good Japanese teas are, but I like other styles more.  This could possibly be as good as the other tea, just much different in style.  The other tea expressed some umami, but this includes more.  It's a lot better than the Thai versions one might run across here, but that's typically a low bar to clear.  The oolongs are better, and most aren't great.

Brightness and freshness relate to the main range you experience, then floral depth and sweetness enters in, with lots of an umami edge.  It seems this will balance well, and be quite complex, again easier to describe as a breakdown next round.

Lai Chau #2:  lots of intensity; brewing this 6 or so grams for over 10 seconds provides an intense infusion.  Floral range is so sweet, rich, and intense that this tastes like perfume smells.  You get some vegetal range with that, that's hard to describe, maybe along the line of deep forest fern (like the scent; you don't eat those).  After you drink it a strong aftertaste and full feel occurs in the back of your mouth, not just the throat, but the entire rear part.  Mineral stands out in that, not light or warm mineral, but mineral with depth, a range of it.  It's all quite clean.  Maybe a touch of pine bark is there, beyond those described aspects, but that's clean too.

It's complex; it would work to use other descriptions.  There is some umami.  Floral range is complex; there's a lot one could associate with it, probably as a few notes, or a range of them.  One catchy part is rich and deep, like lavender, but there's more to it.  Related to vegetal range sugar snap pea sort of applies.

Jin Xuan:  that umami hits you first, then such a strong floral input that in some teas you'd think this was altered.  But it doesn't work out that flavor-adjusted teas show the added flavor more after the first round; that kind of thing extracts right away.  And I don't think it's even possible to add umami like this.  This tea is clearly natural, it's just distinctive and unique.  

Others could place this in relation to Japanese green tea range better than I can, maybe a specific type of sencha.  It's there, with that umami, and rich floral range expression, good intensity, clean nature, good balance, refinement, etc.  Aftertaste is sweet and umami range combined.  This does hold its own with the other version.  Even for living in a country that produces a lot of Jin Xuan cultivar, and trying plenty from Taiwan (typically oolongs though, in both places) this is probably the best green tea version I've tried from that plant type.  It would be more impressive if that came up more often, but it's still really good.

In trying the last of the other there's a savory note in it too, but it's more a sun-dried tomato oriented aspect, where this is closer to the seaweed umami, it just doesn't really taste like seaweed.

Lai Chau #3:  it falls into a nice balance, with all of those layers and levels combining well.  But it's not really different.  It's nice the way that a savory sun-dried tomato umami depth ties the rest together, and how it all balances.  It's an unusually complex version of green tea.

Jin Xuan:  the proportion of those flavors changed, with umami and a specific floral note really standing out.  It also expresses depth, complexity, and balance, but those two notes stand out more than the rest.

Lai Chau #4:  vegetal range is standing out a little more; in one sense this is already fading, or at least changing, I suppose to be less positive.  It still has lots to offer though.  Perfume-like floral range is pronounced, and lots of aspects combine together.  The feel is still full and rich.

Jin Xuan:  maybe it was already transitioning towards this in the last round, but a savory note tastes a lot like toasted rice, like that flavor aspect in Longjing.  It's interesting, positioned along with a seaweed oriented umami flavor, and a good bit of rich floral range.  That still resembles lavender, to me.

Intensity, depth, and complexity are pronounced in this; it more than holds its own.  But as you go back and taste the other tea after even for giving up a little in intensity and range it's still just as pleasant, for those other flavors combining so well.  Both are holding up well, but then it is only the fourth round.

They both brewed a couple more really nice infusions, and weren't dead even after that, but I stopped taking notes there.

Conclusions:

I'm surprised that I liked the Moychay Jin Xuan as much as I did, and that it represented that high a quality level.  It's one of the better green teas I've tried in a long time, and even people accustomed to better Japanese green tea would probably love it, and also be surprised by it.  The dominant umami transitioning to other range made it better for me; the other floral tones and additional complexity worked well.  I didn't expect all of that.

But then the Viet Sun deep forest green tea was as good as I remember, very distinctive and pleasant.  I suppose due to me liking the flavor aspect range better I did like it better than the other version, but it might work to objectively say that the Jin Xuan version is slightly better quality tea.  It was more refined, with both being quite complex, and a little more distinctive in style.

Related to value both are kind of equivalent.  The Vietnamese version is selling for 23 cents a gram (at higher volume; equating volume would level out the difference), and the Chinese Jin Xuan for 30, but one already went through import to Europe, which adds cost, and potential value, for people paying different import taxes depending on origin there.  Tea as good as either would still be a decent value if selling for more; these were both exceptional.

So the only catch is that I'm a sheng pu'er drinker, and that I like black tea and varying oolong types best as fall-backs.  I like novel and pleasant hei cha versions more than green tea, which I can still appreciate, but I just never end up buying it.  I had routinely made an exception for Longjing, for years, but now I just stick to those others, and buy mostly sheng, and some black tea.

For people who really do like green tea, and want to explore what these two vendors sell, these are both good options.

Marmalade grows up fast

Chang Kham Thai wild origin Assamica black tea

 

I'm reviewing another tea from Chang Kham, sent by that business owner for review (many thanks).  He is the family member of the Sen Xing Fa Bangkok Chinatown shop that I have met a number of times over the years, who now runs a shop and outlet by that name up in Chiang Mai (located here).

I just noticed in editing this it was from 2025, so a year old now.  A tea like this probably improves slightly over the first half a year or so, as it settles, and is all the better now.  It probably won't change that much with aging over the next year or two, maybe just fading slightly, but not even all that much of that, if well stored.  

All that is guesswork; I don't mean to imply the level of confidence in that conclusion that it implies.  The main point is that there's not much concern that it wouldn't be as good related to being a year old.  Maybe it's not really better, but it wouldn't just lose intensity or freshness, like a green tea.

A description from their website:

That tea costs 1500 baht for 100 grams ($45), listed on their website.  Is that a good value?

Not really, by Thai local standards, but then there isn't that much tea of this quality level around.  It would be hard to place this against any other Thai version to use as a market price, so I'm really comparing against teas from China.  I can check on one though, since Tea Side is a Western facing outlet that carries exceptions related to what is produced:

2025 Old Trees Organic Black Tea N3, Loose Leaf  ($19 for 100 grams)

Loose black tea from 100-300-year-old trees, the highest quality material.

This is a classic black tea from trees. It is well-fermented and possesses an invigorating strong taste with many semitones and a rich aroma. The taste profile: tea rose, tulips, dried fruits, a little caramel.

Suitable for both, utilitarian consumption with sweets and for the thoughtful tea ceremony. 

The teas are probably fairly similar, but I might like the Tea Side version a little more, since their teas tend to match a Dian Hong style (from what I've tried in the past; it's a guess, related to this tea), and this was one flavor aspect removed from that standard profile (so still pretty close).  

So $45 is a bit much.  You always pay more for teas sold in brick and mortar shops, than in purely online outlets, as a rule, which is somewhat fair.  Their overhead is a lot higher, and they offer you the benefit of trying teas before you buy them (usually; that varies by store).  Also $19 is a pretty good price for what I expect that other Thai tea to be; 20-some would still be ok.

It seems strange blaming a vendor for value when they send a tea for review (many thanks for that!), but I don't intend this that way.  These kinds of really rare teas vendors would source at different pricing, and their marketing and final pricing is up to them.  

It's quite possible that you couldn't find a close equivalent to either of these teas anywhere else.  The supply chains aren't anything like standard farm production, so I'm not clear on what factors go into costs.  And it's possible that the Chang Kham tea is much better than the Tea Side version; only someone who has tried both would know.

Review:

first infusion:  this is good.  The style is distinctive, in a way that's familiar if you try enough versions of black tea; hopefully that comes across in description.  It tastes malty, but not quite as dry and mineral intensive as Assam versions (from that area in India).  It's not exactly like a malted milk ball or milkshake malt, but sort of right in between the two.

Beyond that another flavor included is cacao.  There's a bit of fruit as well, more or less along the line of dried dark cherry.  It's a nice mix.  Feel is rich, even though this is really just getting started.  It even expresses some aftertaste effect, while still starting out.  Through it all that one cacao note stands out, which is a pleasant aspect to bring the rest into a nice balance.

Because this tea lacks a lot of astringency you could brew it as intense as you want, and it would be fine.  The way these flavors are combining, with pleasant intensity, it would be as well to keep infusion strength on the light-medium side, because it will all probably come across well that way.

second infusion:  similar to the first round, but a little stronger.  There is a slight sour note to this, a bit like aged cardboard, that some people could find off-putting, and then for others it would just link to a separate mineral range that works well.  Early in my tea exploration I kept trying versions that went by the name / type Golden Monkey, and they were a bit like that.  Let's check what that might be, from Wikipedia:

Golden Monkey tea (Chinese: 金猴茶; pinyin: jīn hóu chá) is a black tea originating from the Fujian and Yunnan provinces in China. Only the bud and first leaf are picked, and the tea leaves are characterized by the pale gold threading. Golden Monkey tea is a black tea counterpart of Silver Needle white tea. The flavor profile of golden monkey tea is characterized by light, honeyed peach notes, and its lack of astringency. The name "Golden Monkey" can be used for many black teas.

...Despite the fact that tea has been grown in Yunnan for 1700 years, Golden Monkey is a relatively new tea, about 300 years old.[5] It has only been produced for export in the last 13–18 years.

This is a review of a local Thai version from 2014, almost dating back to that range.  I would describe teas differently now, but it sounds at least comparable.

That post describes a taste as resembling cantaloupe, and that might apply to this.  Or one part is definitely like sun-dried tomato, that sweet and savory flavor.  Cacao is still present, but not as the dominant flavor.  Warm mineral picks up, perhaps related to this being brewed a little stronger, or it just evolving across rounds.  All in all it's pretty good.  Again flavor preference in relation to that one flavor aspect is what would determine a take on this tea, if it seems off, or if that's regarded as pleasant, the one balsa wood sort of flavor.  I like it.

third infusion:  not really changing much.  It might pick up a little depth, and coat my mouth a little differently, feeling a little different.  

It's interesting to compare and contrast this with typical Dian Hong range, an overall personal favorite.  That malt note wouldn't be similar; Yunnan versions aren't generally like that.  I guess if they are a Golden Monkey type maybe it could be more common?  I wouldn't know.  Some cacao and range not completely unlike roasted yam is common.  I've not been describing this as like roasted yam, but it's similar, and that's one possible interpretation.  It probably works better for this third round than it had before, so it is probably changing a little.  The way the set of aspects comes across is similar though, even though it all may be shifting slightly.

The feel is nice, but it's hard to describe how or why.  It's rich, and a bit heavy, but quite smooth.  Maybe one might say that it's velvety.  As quality level goes this tea is fine; it's good.  It's more a matter of how it matches or misses related to personal preference for flavors.

I'll brew one more round a bit stronger, and this tea won't be finished, but that should be enough description.  Sometimes late rounds can be just as positive as earlier ones, or teas can thin in ways that aren't as positive, but to me that's usually not a main story of how the tea is.  It's interesting trying tea that is this approachable, in the mild and flavorful black tea range, but then I just did review a couple in relation to buying one from Viet Sun, and them sending a sample.  They weren't completely different than this.

fourth infusion:  that malt note is the strongest it has been, probably in part related to brewing this a little longer, and related to it evolving that way.  For people who have tried a few similar versions of Golden Monkey all of this should be ringing a bell.  As I remember those may not have matched this for some of the minor aspect range that shows a tea's quality, for flavor intensity and complexity, overall positive character, rich feel, and aftertaste trailing over, adding depth to the experience.  

That one balsa wood sort of note was at the center of those experiences too, if I remember right.  I wonder what that's from, if a processing form input causes that, or it's somehow related to using common tea material to start.

Conclusions:

When these kinds of black teas really work for you it's pleasant to drink a kilogram or two of them, to make it a part of a routine rotation.  I wouldn't mind having about 250 grams of this, but I wouldn't want to drink it every week for the next year.  That one malt and balsa wood note isn't something I'd want to repeat experiencing 100 times (although 30 or 40 might be ok).  

But then it's funny how all of that is completely subjective taste dependent.  I'm touchy about a black tea being tart, at all, but if a version has depth I don't mind if flavor intensity is on the low side.  Cacao, roasted sweet potato, and roasted yam are personal favorites for flavor inclusions (so this does cover quite a bit of that too), referring back to the earlier comment about liking the main Dian Hong style best.

It's a good tea version.  It's definitely worth trying this style, to see what you make of it.  I think almost anyone would like this tea, so I'm really focusing on how for some people it might be a personal favorite and for others it wouldn't.

On a completely different subject, Keoni and I checked out a really local shopping center in the Victory Monument area this past week to get a pizza (strange it related to that food choice).  I love those older places; it feels like we're out of town.

2023 Bulang sheng pu'er

 

In this I'm reviewing a 2023 Bulang sheng pu'er from Oriental Leaf.  This is a fairly unusual form of review, related to tasting this tea twice to get to a workable final set of notes.  I used my normal high proportion for brewing the tea the first time, around 8 grams for a 100 ml gaiwan, and it was too much, and it was hard to dial down intensity, even with use of flash infusions.  

It's odd being a sheng drinker and having intensity be too strong.  I could've just edited that out, but it works to describe problems with a tasting process, and how things go when you get them wrong.

This tea was provided by them for review; many thanks for that.

I'll cite their product description and get on with it:

2023 Bulang Buds First Flush Raw Puerh Cake ($90 for a 357 gram cake)

Spring Buds from Bulang Mountain | Dry-Stored

Sourced from the first picking of 2023 on Bulang Mountain and pressed into only 95 cakes, this silver-tipped raw Puerh delivers the rare combination of Bulang's bold character and early spring's natural sweetness — clean, bright, and built to age.

Bulang Mountain's first flush of 2023, pressed into 95 stone-mold cakes — this is what raw Puerh looks like when the material, the terroir, and the storage are all handled without compromise.

Finding the right Bulang material takes time. Bulang Mountain (布朗山, Bù Lǎng Shān) in Menghai County, Xishuangbanna, is one of Yunnan's most storied raw Puerh origins. It has a reputation for producing tea with a powerful, almost aggressive character — thick bitterness (苦 (Kǔ)) that hits immediately, a bold astringency (涩 (Sè)) that grips the sides of the tongue, and a 回甘 (Huí Gān, lingering sweetness) that comes back stronger than almost any other mountain. That is the Bulang identity: force, then reward.

But this material is different. We spent a long time looking before we found it...

It keeps going from there; it's interesting checking their flavor notes: 

Primary: Fresh floral (orchid, white blossom), light grass, raw green walnut

Secondary: Sweet cream, fresh-squeezed green grape, a whisper of pine resin

Underlying structure: Light mineral, faint peppery warmth, clean vegetal bitterness that resolves quickly

As it ages: Expect the floral notes to evolve toward dried apricot, wildflower honey, and eventually light sandalwood and dry cedar — the classic dry-storage aging arc for high-grade Sheng Puerh...

I'll add more about how my impression matches this in the notes and at the end, but the "powerful" part expressed earlier on pretty much captures it.

first tasting, with too much tea in the gaiwan

Review, first tasting attempt:

the color shouldn't look anything like this; it's brewed way too strong

First infusion:  I screwed this up, leaving it sit for too long looking at something online.  The review will have to start with a too-strong infusion.  The earliest transition isn't usually much of a story anyway, but it's still unfortunate.

That's so, so strong.  There won't be much to say about it, beyond trying to see if this can say something about the much lighter character to come.  Intensity seems fine for this tea; brewed too long it's overly powerful.  

Maxing out proportion, my typical approach, probably isn't suitable for this tea.  I might write another set of notes later on using very little, more like 4 grams instead of 8.

Second infusion:  that's more like it, but still more intense and more bitter than I'm currently acclimated to.  All of that South East Asian sheng has been distinctive, flavorful, and approachable, while this is more about bitterness and intensity.  

Flavors are warmer in tone that I would expect for a 2023 sheng version.  But then if teas are stored in relatively more humid places that's pretty normal.  I recently drank some of the Thai sheng from Aphiwat, that local Chiang Mai area individual producer, and it was pretty far along for transition for being about the same age (although I forget the year version; it might've even been 2024, instead of 2023).  

I suppose floral range does emerge beyond the bitterness.  There's definitely a lot of mineral depth to this, and it's clean.  This tea could stand up to 20 years stored here in Bangkok, for sure.  But how is it now, as a more bitter and intense younger tea experience?  I'll check again next round.

Third infusion:  color indicates the intensity just isn't going drop off, even brewed fast, a flash infusion.  The flavor is strong.  It's more of a conditioning exercise, experienced like this.  It's definitely lifting the haze of feeling groggy from overdoing it at work and outside of work; after another cup or two I'll probably feel normal.  But the review will have to wait, until I try it again at a lower proportion, which I won't do today, for having drank so much tea already.  

Second review, a lot lower proportion:

First infusion:  I've again let this go for longer than I usually would, for over half a minute, again looking at something online.  I'll get this straightened out.  I added a flash infusion to it to get it back to drinkable range, and the next round will be more normal.

Flavor is good.  It's a little strong, but it balances ok, and it's still in a positive range.  Mineral base stands out quite a bit, and considerable bitterness.  I suppose floral tone fills in the rest.  As with trying it yesterday it's more age transitioned than one might expect for being 3 years old.  A tea can be darker and warmer in tone if it's a little oxidized instead, and I'd be one of the best qualified tea drinkers to make that distinction, since I drink plenty of unconventionally prepared sheng from South East Asia.  It's not oxidized; somehow this has changed a good bit in 3 years, even being "dry stored."

The mineral tone is so strong that it has its own character.  It leans a little towards coming across as smoky, but that's not it.  I suppose it's like when you drink artesian well tea, that includes a lot of mineral content, but stronger.  That actually links to one of my favorite memories from childhood, drinking from a naturally flowing well at one grandparents' house.  That water was sweet, rich, complex, and delicious.  This is a little like that.

Second infusion:  a little on the light side; that's interesting to experience, after trying it in a really strong range at first.  It had faded to a pleasant and drinkable range after a 4 or 5 infusions yesterday, but I had left off taking notes by then.

Sheng can tend to "loosen up" over the first 2 or 3 infusions, and this is in that process.  Sweetness, astringency, are bitterness are all in a decent range, but it will evolve to balance better soon.  I'll save a flavor list breakdown for next round.

Third infusion:  bitterness still stands out as a main flavor aspect, along with mineral.  It's possible to see mineral and bitterness as a taste, distinct from aromatic component conveyed flavors, which people might call aroma or flavor (a general term); people use the terms in different ways.  But in our experience the final experience form from the two inputs tends to come across as unified.  

There's still a mineral flavor input that leans towards smoke.  It's hard to separate out a vaguely floral range in the rest.  It has good flavor complexity, but it all runs together.  Blended material is often like that, a mix from different inputs, or I suppose a more narrow origin version, picked from the same garden, for example, could naturally be like that.  

The main positive or negative aspect range of this is intensity, even brewed fast, at a low proportion.  Bitterness and mineral really stand out, with some matching sweetness, enough to make it work.  For people who really value that intensity this would probably be good, and for others who can't relate not so good, until this ages more.  I've spent a long time acclimating to different sheng range, and I'm fine with it, but I do love fruity and milder sheng range best, to the extent that I'm open to versions that are so oxidized that they start to move outside of the type category.

Fourth infusion:  this is changing, with the astringency / feel structure and bitterness dropping off, so that other flavor range can stand forward more.  It's just starting though; it will probably be a more complete change next round.

It's interesting trying sheng again that seems to have pretty open aging potential.  

Fifth infusion:  apparent sweetness level might bump just a little, but I think that's probably from other range fading, letting what had been there emerge better.  I'm still not succeeding with a flavor list, beyond saying mineral stands out a lot, and the rest seems mostly floral, but not intensely so.  I'll let this brew a little longer, at 15 seconds or so this round, to see what that changes.

Sixth infusion:  intensity picks up, but it's not as if a list of other flavor now stands out.  Feel gets richer, and aftertaste experience increases.  The defining character range of this tea is intensity.  If someone feels like they can't get a sheng that hits hard enough, even for trying some pretty intense range, this one would cover that.  Someone on that page would probably be good with mineral range standing out quite a bit, and floral range being a main component.  It's not really a sweet tea though.  

If you drink it quite strong the bitterness evolves to sweetness after you swallow it, the hui gan effect, but the sweetness level is only enough to give it decent balance while drinking it.

Seventh infusion:  another strength of this tea is durability; it's really only coming into its own for balanced character now, and it's surely far from fading, judging from an infusion cycle yesterday.

The flavor range reminds me of a funny critique someone once made that all young sheng tastes like kerosene to them.  That's probably more related to teas like Xiaguan tuos, or Dayi's Jia Ji tuocha versions, but interpreted in a different way it could apply more broadly.  This definitely doesn't taste like kerosene, but for someone not on the page of loving intensity and pronounced bitterness and mineral range it wouldn't be good.  This takes some of that conventional sheng pu'er character pretty far in that direction.  

Chopped or broken material tea tends to be even more challenging, and Xiaguan material often has its own intense and unique character, both in terms of flavor and feel.  This isn't like that.  For a lot of tea types high bud content can lead to a more subtle output, especially if the material is all buds.  Not always; something like Jin Jun Mei black tea can be pretty intense.  But Silver Needle variations, white teas, are often at the other end of the spectrum for intensity, on the mild side.  The fine leaf material in this might make it quite strong, more so than the high buds content.  And it's surely processed in a traditional sheng form, not oxidized or kill-greened more than is typical to pull that style a little towards oolong or green tea range.

Eighth infusion:  this is as pleasant as this has been; it evolves well later into the brewing cycle.  Rich feel is the nicest it has been as well.  A lot of teas, even some sheng, would be fading some at this stage, but this is just hitting its stride.  To me one part of the flavor starts to evolve towards citrus, actual orange or tangerine, but mineral still stands out, and a vague floral designation could still apply.  It's not really a bright or sweet flavor forward tea though; bitterness stands out a good bit earlier on, and heavy mineral tone defines it more.  People could interpret this as resembling root spice, or some type of medicinal herb, but that would integrate with those parts.  

Three years old is probably pretty young for this tea.  It's probably going to get better and go through different phases over the next 4 or 5 years, and then perhaps it would make more sense again later, after a 20 or so year aging transition cycle, maybe best after 25 years.  Bright, fresh, sweet, very floral or fruity sheng tend to lose that appeal after 4 or 5 years, unless stored in such a way that it preserves them and prevents change, in cool and dry conditions.  This will probably keep changing instead of just fading.

Conclusions:

One part of what I consider after the direct experience, the tasting, is how value works out for the tea.  This is pretty good for a cake selling for under $100.  It can be hard to identify a final, objective, clearly determined quality level.  Preference issues mix in, related to how much one likes different styles and types.  Different strengths and limitations factor in, and concerns related to trueness to type.

Intensity was great; the main point stressed in the product description.  Bitterness level was fine, but also on the high side.  For whatever reasons hui gan, a transition of bitterness to sweetness after swallowing the tea, doesn't map directly to that level of bitterness, I suppose as much to the form of it.  It was only a moderate part of the experience, to me.  That mineral base flavor really carried over as a main thing you experience in aftertaste.  It was mostly positive in form, and pleasant, so that worked.

The flavor range could have been more distinctive, if the floral tones had stood out a bit more, or had taken on a more distinct form.  That kind of thing tends to tie back to material input and narrow origin area.  I don't think this was a blend of different inputs, which is one part that can limit that; my guess is that the material was just like that.  The other aspect character was too intense and distinctive, the intensity, bitterness, and mineral input, for a lot of blending to have evened out character.

It's odd that this could pass for a 4 or 5 year old tea, dry stored, or maybe even 8 or 9, since it was presented as dry stored.  They mentioned that it was stored in Xi'an, Shaanxi; I just looked up what the climate is like there:

In Xi’an, the summers are muggy, hot, wet, and partly cloudy and the winters are very cold, mostly clear, and dry. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 25°F to 89°F and is rarely below 17°F or above 98°F.

So it might have been cool and dry half the time, and warm and humid some of the rest (but 89 F is kind of cool, compared to here in Bangkok).  

For most Western tea enthusiasts dry storage is considered to be a negative factor, but to me it just depends.  If a tea is approachable, with distinct fresh flavors, then moving away from that quickly through transition caused by humid storage input is negative.  If a tea is initially a bit challenging, with unusually high intensity, bitterness, or astringency then that same degree of transition works out well, and it's as well to get on with it.  

The next question, that's harder to settle, is if different forms of transition adjust the different aspect range in different ways, at a different pace for different parts of the change (for flavor versus feel, to look at it from a high level, or related to finer level changes).  People would have different opinions about that.  Bangkok storage seems to warm flavor tones, beyond increasing transition pace; I can leave it at that.  One typical concern over evolved flavors being too heavy, murky, or musty can relate to intentionally humid controlled conditions.  Malaysian storage is often on the humid side, or that can come up in Hong Kong, but it just depends on the specific location and how conditions are controlled, or if they're not.

I've mentioned in this that I like approachable sheng the most:  flavorful, sweet, fruity, less bitter and astringent versions.  At the same time I really do like Xiaguan teas, even though those often tend to be better after 20 years of relatively humid storage.  I've been drinking a Xiaguan tea ball that's an exception, and for whatever mix of reasons it's interesting and pleasant at less than a decade old (this one, a 2018 Reunion Xiaguan 500 gram Da Xue Shan tea ball).  Maybe the origin area factors in:

...made from early spring big-leaf tea trees from Daxueshan, Mengku, Lincang in Yunnan Province.

That brings up that some people might be looking for a narrower origin designation than Bulang, for this tea.

All in all it was pleasant and interesting.  It's a great tea to own a bit of, versus just trying a sample, because there is a lot of potential for positive changes to follow, over a long period of time, or it could be good in different ways at intermediate stages.

Bangkok looking a little like Seoul, on a recent outing

out walking in some intense heat with Kalani

home life relates a lot to cats

the last temple outing

Visiting Ayutthayah with the kids

I seem to write about visiting Ayutthayah most years, so I'll try to include some extra tips in this, things visitors might try out.  That would be mostly based on what we just did, on this visit, and visiting in the past.

It will be hard to put it all in any sensible order, so I'll just go by topics.

hotels:  we only ever stay in one hotel there, the Ayotthayah.  It's close to the old temple area, pretty nice, and quite affordable, maybe 1500 baht or so, $45, or possibly slightly less.  We checked out a 400 baht per night place last year, further out, that was a lot rougher, but my wife wouldn't stay somewhere like that, so we went back to the Ayotthaya hotel.  It has a tiny pool, and no significant breakfast, so the amenities are limited.  Others could find lots of other equivalent or "better" options, depending on the trade-offs they are looking for.

the bike shop just out the "back" door of that hotel

an especially small pool, I guess still fine for cooling off

restaurants:  we tend to go to three different places most, two for boat noodles, and one for seafood, on the river there.  I would imagine there are lots of other options, for lots of things.  We had a Korean barbecue sort of grill dinner last year, at a place near the Ayotthayah, which I forget the name of (it has another Thai name).  We tend to go there for short outings, for a day and a half, so it's not really enough to explore other options all that much, and we focus on visiting old temples.

a different place, but the same cooking form

bike tour of ancient temples / ruins:  I've done this a few times, maybe three.  This past week it was way too hot, in the upper 90s F / upper 30s C, so it would've been much better to go out in the morning, but we didn't get there until the afternoon (on a one day trip outing).  The closest / most inner 4 or 5 temples are a good set for biking around and visiting, and a couple of others aren't too far.  We went to one across one river, on bikes once, and that's a bit much (the one on the east side).  Another even further out, I think more on the south, is a little more elaborate than most, which is good for visiting by car, maybe at the end of the day.

the iconic photo spot at Wat Mahadat

a trip there last year

It probably won't help others too much, but I can compare how it works out there to Sukhothai, or even Siem Reap, Cambodia, or to other old Thai temple sites.  Sukhothai is a more isolated and less developed old temple site, another 4 hours or so drive well north of Bangkok, on the way to Chiang Mai.  You could bike around there too, I suppose, but we've only ever visited by car.  The central part is fine to walk around without a bike, and we tend to stay in hotels that are further out there.  Ayutthaya developed up around the old ruins, so there are hotels, restaurants, and all kinds of shops right between the old temple sites.

I suppose it gives Sukhothai a different feel effect, that's hard to describe.  Visiting old temples in the middle of a re-developed city is fine, they're nice, and some park spaces between are beautiful, and spacious.  But having a lot of space clear for just those monuments is nicer.

a lights festival at Sukhothai

Siem Reap, in Cambodia, where Angkor Wat is located, is much bigger, more extensive, and isolated within more undeveloped space.  Angkor Wat and Baiyon are huge, and other temples are more extensive than anything that has survived in Thailand.  Maybe it's bigger than Machu Pichu; I'm not sure.

Other places in Thailand are even more limited, but they can still be nice.  We visited Si Thep last year, to a much older site than the other two in Thailand, developed during an early period when Hinduism was influential in Thailand.  As in Cambodia the different historical eras brought different religious influences, and temples were re-worked to include the "new" symbolism.  Of course Buddhism was more influential later, which is still the primary religion in Thailand today.

light and sound festival at one Si Thep monument

Ayutthaya burned, when the Burmese (earlier Myanmar empire) invaded and destroyed a lot of it.  Their hold on Thailand, or Siam, earlier Thailand, was quite short, but the destruction was pretty complete.

We don't tend to see museums about the history in Ayutthaya.  There must be more around than we encounter.  There's a pretty good earlier history museum up in Lop Buri, where there's a relatively small early period Hindu monument.  That's the small Thai town that was overrun by wild monkeys, or at least the old part was, with a newer city center developed some distance away to stay clear of their town space habitat.  Combining visiting Lop Buri and Si Thep would work well for a three or four day outing, spending a day in each, and adding a day or two for travel, even though it's only four hours or so away (Lop Buri, the closer destination).

There wasn't much around the old monuments in Si Thep identifying what it all meant, but for people who don't read a lot of museum written content anyway it would be all they expect to take in.  One monument is quite large there, and an extensive early palace grounds--I think it was that--was only uncovered and developed as parts of a half dozen different old monuments and structures.

the feel of Ayutthaya, versus Bangkok, and smaller towns:  Bangkok is already fairly pleasant and relaxed, but other places outside of the city are even more so.  The smaller the town the quieter the atmosphere and less busy the feel, to me.  Ayutthaya isn't very urban, or crowded.  You can ride bikes there with some car traffic around, even though there is only a limited amount of dedicated bike lanes, which is on the opposite scale and density of Bangkok traffic (where I'd never ride a bike).

Of course there are countless coffee shops, ice cream places, noodle shops, and so on.  Local street food places and old markets turn up, where tourists tend to stay.  It's a good place to not spend much money to experience basic but nice foods.  The range is mostly local Thai food, of course.  You might get bad pizza or Italian, if enough tourists are there to expect that, but it's as well to switch over.  I don't think there is a lot to do, beyond visiting those temples.  But there must be at least one museum, that we never get to.

distance from Bangkok / how to travel there:  we drove up, and it's not much over an hour from our house, in the older Dusit area in town (near Victory Monument).  It's at least possible to take a local train up there, which I think wouldn't cost much, maybe even under 100 baht ($3).  Or buses would run up to there, or renting a car for a day could work.  I'm not sure how well it works to have a normal taxi drive you up.  

You can rent a car for the day, with a driver, for something like 2000 baht in Bangkok, I think ($60), so if someone looked around enough inexpensive and very functional options would turn up.  Or maybe it's more now; I'm basing that on us renting vans regularly for around 1500 years back, but maybe that cost has doubled since.  Still, that would only be $90 per day, which doesn't go far for taxi fare back in the US, and that's for a van and driver.

For me driving in Thailand is no problem, but then I live here.  It was pretty rough for the first year or so, until I adjusted to it.  That road is a crowded but fairly open highway, between Bangkok and Ayutthayah.  

If you do drive there is a truly massive Thai market on the way, Talat Thai, which you would need to look up on maps to see.  It's wholesale oriented, so the best possible place to buy multiple kilograms of Thai fruits (or vegetables or meats), which could come in handy to support breakfasts or snacks.  It would be tricky for foreigners to shop there, because it's a complex of a half dozen giant buildings, but for some sorting it out would be part of the adventure.  There's a nice food court there; that could also relate to grabbing a breakfast or lunch (if you run late, in order to do two or more days in Ayutthaya).  A day and a half seems like plenty, to me, but two days at a relaxed pace would work.

We tend to stop at the Central mall on the way there or back, but it's identical to other places in Bangkok.  It's a convenient place to get a travel meal in, at a food court there, or any number of restaurants.

other themes, religious observance and restrictions:  people ride elephants near the one temple; issues related to that are worth mentioning.  It's considered by many to be unethical to ride elephants, because it's not comfortable for them to hold a chair structure on their back, and they have to live in captivity to do the work.  It's hard to be clear on that point.  Domestic elephants have been used for a long time for agriculture, and they can't really be returned to the wild.  Most people only visit "ethical elephant camps" now, and skip the elephant rides.  But it's more of a tourism theme in Chiang Mai, than in other places.

Visiting functional (modern) temples comes up; there is one main one near the other old ruins versions, and we've visited a second not far from another that's further out.  There isn't much to know, for what to do or not to do.  The main restriction is that women shouldn't wear revealing clothes, which is also true of the old temples / temple ruins areas.  My daughter wore a crop top, because it was hot, and took an extra shirt to wear into the temples.  You can donate money to temples, if you want, and there are different ways that Thais make observances, and make wishes.  

Trivial practices and restrictions include that you shouldn't step on the doorway entrance frames in temples; you should step over that door section.  Nothing would happen if you did step on it, but it's considered disrespectful.  If you want to use a Thai observance practice you can "wai" three times to a main Buddha image, like the Christian prayer motion with your hands, while kneeling (in a different leg position, if you want to copy others), and put your hands down to the ground after, as you bow low, for those three times.  This relates to paying respect to the Buddha, to the Sangha (the monkhood and practitioners of Buddhism), and to the Dharma, to the Buddhist teachings.  

Of course touching statues, sitting on them, or doing playful photo poses is not appropriate.  Monks cannot physically touch a woman, so it's best to be aware that the restriction is interpreted in an extreme form.  Women can't even directly hand a monk something; they put a small cloth down to receive anything given to them by a woman or girl.

That kind of exception, that restriction, doesn't contradict that Thai culture is open and welcoming to visitors, and quite relaxed in general.  They're generally fine with visitors getting minor cultural norms wrong, and there's only a short list of issues that won't work for, relating mostly to showing disrespect to their monarchy or religion.

Chang Kham 2025 Thai sheng

 

this 5th infusion shows color variation in the leaf best

I'm reviewing a sheng version from Thailand from Chang Kham tea (or Changkham; it can be either one).  As I understand it it's more or less a spin-off or secondary brand started by a family member from Sen Xing Fa, a popular Bangkok Chinatown tea shop, started as a physical shop in Chiang Mai.  They also source and sell tea under their own brand.

He sent a few teas for review, Mr. Tian did, that family member.  We aren't in close contact, but I post a lot about reviewing different Thai teas in different places.

Their store in Chiang Mai is located here, and this is the related Facebook page.  There is a limited detail product description in that page, for this tea, or a similar one from another year, but I'll reference it in the Conclusions section instead of here, since there isn't an aspects description to compare against.

This photo is from a tasting at Sen Xing Fa, posted about here, where they were great hosts for a number of tea enthusiasts visiting, sharing a lot of exceptional tea:

from maybe around a decade ago, again at Sen Xing Fa

I was in Sen Xing Fa a couple of weeks ago, to buy some Thai oolong

This post reviews tea I bought in Sen Xing Fa in 2018, not that it's all that relevant to this.  That was an unusual Zhong Cha looking version, what was a lot better than it first seemed, aging well into really nice depth.

At the end of this I'll place this tea experience in relation to trying some other Thai sheng this year, some of which was kind of ordinary, and some really exceptional.

Review:

First infusion:  I gave this a bit too long, in part to get it started, and because I looked at something else online, brewing it for around half a minute.  Proportion is lower than normal, so that I can get through a relatively full cycle without doing a dozen rounds.  Lower than normal for me is anything below 8 grams for 100 ml gaiwan; this might be about 6.

Flavor is great.  Honey sweetness stands out, and plenty of floral range.  Bitterness is pronounced, but then this is brewed a little strong.  I'll try a faster infusion next time and it should fall into a relatively ideal balance.  It could be more fruit that I'm noticing than floral range; it's a little hard doing a breakdown at higher than usual infusion strength.  Honey really stands out most.

Tones are warmer than one would expect, for a one year old sheng.  It has brightness and freshness, but it's also warm.  Mineral base gives it good complexity, and the feel is nice, full, and not harsh.  Aftertaste expression is positive, especially for a first round.

Second infusion:  this is still strong more or less flash brewed, which I take as a good sign.  Good intensity is very positive, unless the rest of the range is harsh, or off.  Honey sweetness still stands out.  It's probably both floral and fruit range in this; there is a lot going on.  I always have trouble identifying the floral aspects, but they're warmer in tone than you would expect.  Fruit flavor is along the line of dried longan, which is a personal favorite among dried tropical fruits.  You can think of it as being like dried mango, if that's not familiar, but it's warmer, sweeter (in a sense), and heavier.

The way it's full in your mouth is pleasant, the feel.  The intensity and complexity combine well with distinctive feel and pleasant aftertaste.  There isn't a hint of a flaw in this; everything that's there works well.   

It's less light, bright, and sharp than the Wawee Tea version I've tried recently, that I also love.  For someone looking for warmer tones in a young sheng, that's not challenging, but still complex, spanning some fruit range instead of just light floral tones, this is perfect.  It's probably pretty good for most people, regardless of preference.  I suppose the bitterness would be more challenging for people not into sheng than I'm considering; it did take me time to adjust to that.  I don't see this as bitter, at all, but that is a main part of what is there.

Third infusion:  bitterness might be evolving a little faster than the rest; this is moving from approachable, sweet and mild sheng range on to more conventional sheng character.  For sheng drinkers that's perfect, for others maybe not so much.  One part of the mildness and fullness, almost creaminess, of the feel reminds me of oolong, but it's definitely sheng.  Intensity is greater, complex flavors are different, feel is more substantial, and bitterness stands out.  

This feel hits all across your mouth.  It's almost as if you are tasting it with your whole mouth, as if it reacts with other parts than your tongue.  The feel includes that part about causing you to salivate a little.  Aftertaste includes a good bit of mineral, not really light or warm mineral, but maybe in the middle, or maybe complex.  This tastes like a more wild or natural origin, older plant tea, to me.  Aftertaste effect could be a little stronger, but what you experience is positive.  

One might consider if flavors are less distinct because this was blended from different material sources, or for other reasons.  At a guess it's just naturally like this.

Fourth infusion:  warmer flavor range picks up, in the mineral, and in the fruit and floral range.  I think flavors are combining, that it's not just 3 or 4 main notes, but that the fruit, floral, and mineral ranges cover a combined flavor aspect scope.  One part seems to involve a warmer version of citrus, like some sort of dried peel.  Honey fades, as heavier mineral tone picks up.  It may be moving towards an incense spice sort of flavor range.  

Fifth infusion:  the camera sees darkened leaf material, mixed in with the rest, more than you notice just looking at the leaves.  A higher than average roast input for some of the material is probably lending it complexity, or maybe it's extra oxidation input, or both.  

I see that as positive, although it's not really completely conventional, for Yunnan sheng.  It doesn't mean that it won't age well, although the transition patterns may be affected some by that.  If most of the material is normally processed, not more oxidized or roasted, it should still change in the normal ways, across a typical time-frame, but any alteration for some of the material would make some difference.  Versions that are notably more oxidized don't tend to age very well at all, beyond a few years.

It's clean and complex, and intensity is good.  I'm not having luck breaking flavors down more.

Sixth infusion:  not so different; I'll leave off taking notes here.  Intensity stays positive, but some of the interesting flavor range (honey and fruit) tends to evolve away earlier on, even though the rest stays positive.  It's still pleasant to drink, just not like it was.

Conclusion:

Thinking back on it this post could seem a little less positive than it would be if I hadn't been drinking such exceptional Thai and Vietnamese sheng lately.  Without meaning to I'm comparing this to some of the best SE Asian sheng versions I've ever tried, just because it worked out that way.  I describe it as very good, but it might just sound normal.

It held its own ok, but that might not have came across in those review notes.  I suppose I liked the Wawee Tea sheng I've recently reviewed a little more, but it was a great match for my own personal preference, and a really exceptional tea version.  Others could easily like this more.

To clarify that, the Wawee Tea version included more bitterness, more intensity, and some extra vegetal range, a sort of green wood edge.  I love that, if it all balances well, along with pronounced sweetness, fruit flavor, and floral range.  It does, in that version.  This tea might be a little fruitier, initially, and probably less challenging. 

It would sound like it's less durable, because I'm describing its character as leveling off in a sixth infusion, where I've been reviewing those other Thai and Vietnamese sheng into 7 or 8 rounds, and changes were still not a sign they were fading.  One part of that related to using a lower proportion, and to brewing the first round for about twice as long as made sense, for 30 seconds instead of 15.  It would more optimum to use shorter infusions for a tea like this, and it would run its course over 8 or 9 rounds, at a normal proportion (again for me at 8 grams).  It would then brew a few more pleasant rounds, maybe totaling a dozen or more.

It's tempting to move on to speculating about a fair market value range, but that doesn't work well.  This Facebook post, which may not be an identical tea version, lists small 200 gram cakes of black tea and "raw tea" for 2000 baht each, for about $60:

I wouldn't age this tea, beyond 2 or 3 years, but it might be good after 15 or 20 more years

That would make it $107 for a 357 gram cake size, which they don't seem to sell.  That's not bad.  It's high for local in-Thailand tea pricing, and normal for Western market range.  I paid less for the Wawee Tea versions, which I do like better, but the Tea Side Western-facing Thai tea online outlet tends to sell teas for more, which may be generally equivalent.

For a tourist visiting they are absolutely not going to find local Thai sheng this good anywhere else.  But then you can't just drop in on Wawee Tea (unless you are in that village, and made arrangements ahead of time), or visit Tea Side, which is an online shop.  So if it costs 30 cents a gram instead of some lower amount that's still a great value.