2022 Lishan Tie Guan Yin, 2021 Formosa Tie Guan Yin

Lishan left, in all photos (much greener and lighter in brewed color)

I'm back to reviewing, covering two oolong versions from Tea Mania, a vendor based in Switzerland.  These were contributed for review, more or less, and also just shared by the owner as a tea friend (many thanks!).

Their teas are pretty solid, so I went into trying these with high expectations.  They lived up to them.  That can be a problem, expecting teas to be on the far side of above average, because if anything is missing some of the expected type-typical aspect range, and aspects that serve as quality indicators, or just isn't a tight match to preference, then it can seem all the worse, where with more neutral expectations that would just be normal.

I wanted to add a little personal update here as well.  I've just returned from living in Hawaii again for a month, staying where my kids go to school in Honolulu.  That was the second month long outing there in the last half a year, and I'll go back again in two more months, for the end of Keoni's senior year there.  It has been quite an interesting four year cycle.  Of course that education was the goal, and that part worked.  Switching over employment back to the US didn't.  Living between the two locations and cultures wasn't really intended.

I suppose because I've spent most of the last 18 1/2 years here in Bangkok, and I still spend far more than half the year here, there isn't really any adjustment to work through going back to Thailand.  In Honolulu I feel like I am adjusting for the first couple of weeks, and it could feel more natural for the entire first month.  Of course it's fantastic there; that helps.  I swam in the ocean, out to a flag about 200 meters out, at least a dozen times in a month.  Running goes better there, due to the cooler climate, just not so much this time related to an Achilles tendon problem.  

I met an interesting tea contact there this time, but left out telling that story, in part to avoid going through the permission step, and because there wasn't that much of a consistent story to it.  It felt like meeting new friends; it was nice.  Discussion was all over the place, as it should be.

No matter where I spend time with the kids things go great, so either place, or anywhere else, is suitable for that.

Back to business here; I'll try to look up listings for what I tried.

The first one I couldn't find; it's not this:  Lishan Tieguanyin  ($31 for 50 grams), even though that's also from 2022.  That's too oxidized; it really can't be the same tea.  Or maybe it is, and that just seems completely impossible to me. 

It's lighter, more like this one:  Lishan Medium Roast ($25 for 50 grams).  But that's made from Qing Xin cultivar, and it's not the right year either (from 2015).  They might buy a lot at one time and then be ok with selling it out over years.  It might be similar to this version, Gaoshan Tieguanyin, just from a different year, with that one listed from 2025.

That second one seems to be this:

2021 Formosa Tieguanyin  ($25 for 50 grams)

Formosa Tieguanyin, hailing from Pinglin and harvested during the spring season, undergoes traditional processing methods, resulting in a tea with a medium to strong degree of oxidation. This oxidation level is notably reflected in the green leaves with a delicate red edge, creating a  a beautiful amber liquor.

The aroma of Formosa Tieguanyin is robust and floral, a quintessential trait of spring teas, accompanied by subtle toasted notes that add depth to its profile. Its fragrance evokes hints of jasmine and magnolia, creating a harmonious bouquet. Depending on the quality of the water used, it may reveal a refreshing, slightly acidic note, adding to its complexity. As you savor this tea, you’ll notice a gentle spiciness and honey-like undertones in the cup, making it a truly multisensory experience.

One of the unique attributes of this Formosa Tieguanyin is its enduring finish in the mouth. The reverberation of its flavors persists over an extended period, inviting you to savor and contemplate its intricate character in meditative silence. Thanks to its traditional processing, this tea is well-suited for storage without compromising its aroma. Over time, as it matures, the aroma transforms, unveiling its own distinct charm.

Harvest date: spring 2021

Aroma: floral notes, reminiscent of jasmine and magnolia, honey undertones

Oxidation: approx. 50%.

Roasting: medium

Terroir: Pinglin, Taiwan

I'm more familiar with sheng pu'er pricing, so I won't be able to add much about the relative value of these.  Are they good for costing in the 50 cents a gram range?  I think so.  You don't find versions as inexpensive as some other types range for better quality Taiwanese oolong; it seems you pay to get versions in that category.  Up towards $1 a gram is normal, and the 50 cents per gram range for good versions is quite fair.

Maybe that's not so much, or maybe it's out of some people's budgets; it just depends on expectations.  But I doubt that you can find anything in a similar quality level in a lower price range.  There must be some decent oolong out there for less, but these have all been exceptional, well beyond decent.

I usually talk through input factors a lot more.  This doesn't discuss any differences related to Tie Guan Yin and more standard Qing Xin variations, and barely touches on the aging issue, that these are nearly 4 and 5 years old.  It works to just describe them.

Review:

2022 Lishan:  this is a bit overbrewed (ok, maybe even more than a bit); I was looking at something online and left it for over a minute.  Not ideal as controlled review processes go, but the tea will be fine.

It's a little strong, but still quite pleasant.  It will interesting seeing how a light version works out, the opposite sequence I normally experience both forms in.  Mineral tone is positive.  Feel is thick and full.  A vegetal range note is harder to place; it integrates well, and it's not negative, but it's less clearly positive.  This includes plenty of that type-typical mineral base and floral range, it's just in an unusual form for being brewed a bit strong.  

Nothing negative stands out; this is one purpose of using stronger infusions, to identify flaws better.  That vegetal range should lighten at a normal infusion strength.

2021 Formosa:  this is in a completely different flavor and character range.  It was more oxidized and more roasted, most likely.  I've always loved that effect when those two things balance well.  I think they will for this version, but again being brewed slightly strong doesn't show it's true potential, beyond highlighting that it doesn't include certain kinds of flaws.  

There's an interesting spice range in this, difficult to determine between root spice and bark spice range.  My first guess is that it spans both; it's quite complex.  One part actually is along the line of cinnamon, but there's a lot more to it.  It will help trying it lighter; that can work better for separating flavors.

Of course both have full feel and pronounced aftertaste expression, brewed a little strong.

Lishan #2:  creamy, light, sweet, and rich.  It is much better in a conventional infusion strength, but it wasn't so bad extra strong.  There's a characteristic high mountain oolong range this covers really well, a mix of base mineral, creaminess, and floral range.  I suppose this is probably identifiable as a region-specific example, and I've tried plenty of tea from different areas in Taiwan, but not enough over the last few years to stay familiar with that.  It's hard enough tracking how that goes for pu'er, which I drink much more of.  

If Tie Guan Yin is an exception for plant type for this area--which it says in a different product description--maybe the type-typical character would be harder to identify, without a lot of exposure.

It's very pleasant.  It didn't lose any brightness of freshness over nearly 4 years of settling (it's from 2022).  It probably did change, and if I'd been drinking a lot of oolong for the past half dozen years I could speculate about how.  Picking up depth?  Who knows.

I can't identify that bright floral range as a specific flower aspect flavor but anyone with even limited exposure with Taiwanese oolongs would already have a pretty good idea of what I mean.  It's not vegetal at all, in this form; that part switches back over, from when brewed too strong, back to floral range, and a flavor that actually seems a little like cream.

Formosa:  more pleasant, again, but of course just a lighter experience of the first round.  Those layers of warm and sweet spice really stand out.  Warm mineral and rich, round sort of feel complement them.  Sweetness is pleasant, for both of these.  Part of the warm, sweet range seems to resemble honey, or maybe that's caramel.  Or maybe both; this is on the complex side.  It's not far off dried fruit but I'm not noticing that standing out.  For being less distinct that could really be floral range instead.

Lishan #3:  maybe vegetal range does enter back in a bit, infused a little stronger than last time, but not overbrewed.  Intensity is good, but that was true when brewed quite light too.  Floral range is still pleasant, and creamy feel and some cream flavor stands out.  The mineral base is quite strong.  

This is exactly what many people would be looking for in a Taiwanese oolong experience.  It's familiar range.  I like it, I guess apparently just not enough to break from drinking pu'er all of the time to seek it out (and some black tea, but that's limited, more a main alternate).  I could drink this regularly and appreciate it.  In a limited sense pu'er seems more intense (sheng pu'er, I mean, of course), including bitterness, strong flavors, and a particular astringency.  But this is very complex and intense in flavor, and the rich feel and aftertaste provide secondary supporting experience.

Formosa:  I could speculate about another half dozen flavors being included in this, it's that complex.  But describing it as primarily in spice flavor range, a broad set of inclusions within that, and including mineral base, sweetness, and other range like caramel mostly gets it.  

It would work to interpret part as being a rich, heavy floral range, or seeing some of that towards-earthiness range connecting with dried fruit.  Maybe dried longan?  Only people who have tried dried longan would recognize how much of a compliment that is.  It's probably my favorite dried tropical fruit.  There's something so catchy about it that once you start eating it it can be hard to stop.  It doesn't stick around for long.  Of course once you think of the association it seems obvious, and accurate.  Let's say this tastes like dried longan, and set aside the rich floral part for now.

In later rounds the roast input didn't integrate as well, which is actually normal for this range of oolong.  I didn't take notes past these early rounds but it held up to brew quite a number more.

Both are really good.  Both are extreme examples of the positive potential of Taiwanese oolong.  I'm curious what the aging input contributed, nearly 5 and nearly 6 years for both.  They mellowed and deepened?  It almost had to be positive, given where these are now.  

There isn't a hint of negative aspect range in either.  That can be hard to appreciate, noticing something that isn't there.  And intensity and complexity is great for both.  If this more oxidized and roasted version isn't too costly it would be ideal for buying quite a bit of, to drink over the next decade, and then to experience as a truly aged version (which of course would seem all the more true after 20 years, not "only" 16).  

Looking back at the included price, added during editing, this is 50 cents a gram.  It could pay off to buy some to drink and some to forget about for awhile.  

I left out part of the personal backstory, about the tasting.  I had changed countries less than a week before, which didn't add too much jet lag, but I had cut my thumb hand-washing a knife earlier that morning, and went on to get stitches later.  I don't think it threw off my perspective much, but in retrospect it was a little strange doing a relaxing tea tasting between those two steps.  I didn't think the injury was so bad.

Our cats are just now experiencing exploring the outdoors, two kittens that are about half a year old now, or I guess maybe even 8 months.  That's not so distracting, more a pleasant step to witness.  They both just learned to climb trees this weekend.  I do end up getting up a lot, from a table outside, to check that they're not walking out into the soi / alley, going around our gate.  On a later day I climbed that tree myself, to help one down, since she hasn't figured out the down-climb process yet.

Life is all about those ups and downs, isn't it?  In two months I'll be a more direct part of my kids experiences, which I just hear about by video call now.  There's lots more drama when I'm not there, which I guess is partly a good sign, that I help keep it all tracking well when I am there.

Tea Mania Meishan and Lishan dark roast oolongs

Meishan left, Lishan right, in all photos

I'm reviewing two more versions of Taiwanese oolong from Tea Mania, from a set of samples provided for review (many thanks!).  As much just shared to try them, since I know that owner, but reviewing tea is what bloggers do.

These teas were exceptional.  That can mean different things; in some cases it's about a tea really matching a great version of a well-established type, or in others one can be quite novel.  These seem like one of each, with one a bit different than I've tried much of before, although the more-roasted, light style Lishan version also isn't exactly standard.  You don't see that balance of significant roast input and a lighter starting point (not very oxidized) that works this well.  But the Meishan version is really something else.  Maybe related to age?  It's from 2012, while the other is from 2019 (well settled, but the other seemed to pick up age related notes, that plum and extra depth).

I'll cite the vendor description and move on to review notes:

Meishan Dark Roast  (2019; $22.50 for 50 grams)

This Qingxin from Meishan is a well-oxidised oolong tea in the traditional style, expertly crafted by a renowned tea master in spring 2012. A true rarity among today’s Formosa oolongs, it features a distinctive dark roast that enhances its complexity. Grown at an altitude of 1100 meters in Meishan, the tea develops an abundance of deep aromatics characterized by floral and warming nuances reminiscent of Dongding tea, yet distinguished by a richer aroma and more intense flavor due to its high-altitude origin. The infusion presents a warm, robust yellow hue, free from bitterness even after prolonged steeping. Its fragrance is notably floral, with elegant notes of osmanthus and blossom honey. The lasting aftertaste invites contemplative enjoyment, revealing the tea’s intricate layers in each subsequent sip.

Thanks to its traditional oxidation and dark roasting, this Qingxin oolong uniquely preserves the cultivar’s inherent characteristics while imparting a rich, distinctive depth. The traditional craftsmanship ensures excellent storability, allowing its aroma to evolve gracefully over time, acquiring an enchanting maturity with age.

Harvest date: Spring 2012

Aroma: notes of honey, floral and toasty

Oxidation: approx. 50%

Roasting: strong

Cultivar: Qingxin

Terroir: Meishan, Chiayi, Taiwan

In writing review notes I was curious about pricing for this, since it really is so exceptional that it would be hard to identify a standard level for that.  At nearly 50 cents a gram this still seems like a steal to me.  You would typically have to use less mainstream curator sourcing to find teas like this.  Tea Mania only sells pretty good teas, so I guess those vendor types tend to not be completely distinct.

Lishan Dark Roast  (2019; $31.22 for 50 grams)

Lishan Dark Roast is a medium-oxidized, medium-strong roasted highland tea from Lishan using tea leaves of the Qingxin cultivar. Qingxin means green heart. It is the cultivar with the longest history of cultivation in Taiwan, the most popular among tea farmers and tea drinkers alike, and by far the most widely cultivated. When people talk about Oolong in Taiwan, they usually refer to it as “Qingxin-Oolong”. It is the same cultivar from which the traditional, genuine Dongding is made...

Lishan Dark Roast is a medium-oxidized, traditionally processed highland tea from Lishan. Due to the medium oxidation, the tea has a honey-like yet flowery aroma, which is complemented by the stronger body and more intensive taste experience typical of Oolong tea. The leaves are processed traditionally, resulting in red edges. The reverberation in the mouth is still clearly perceptible even over a longer period of time and it is a pleasure to trace the character of the tea in meditative silence and to fathom its complex character more and more.

Lishan Dark Roast is medium-strong roasted, which adds layers of flavor including warm, nutty notes, hints of caramel, and roasted barley. But, the character of highland teas is still clearly visible. Due to the traditional processing, it can be stored without any problems and without losing its aroma. With increasing age, the aroma changes and develops its very own charm.

Harvest time: spring 2019

Aroma: floral, with notes of honey, nuts and caramel

Oxidation: approx. 40%

Roasting: medium-strong

Cultivar: Qingxin

Terroir: Lishan, Nantou, Taiwan

This is priced a little higher than the other.  Preference is what determines how much someone connects with each tea, and I've always loved a bit more oxidation balance in well-roasted oolongs.  But that other version is really something; all those layers of richer, deeper flavors, maybe related to it aging for an extra 7 years.  

This second tea is well balanced, and quality is evident, so it's also good.  And around 60 cents a gram is probably pretty standard for way better than average quality, distinctive Lishan oolong.  Maybe even still a good value, but that first version is really unique.

Review:

Meishan #1:  this brews a lot darker than the other; that's interesting.  I may or may not be able to guess why.  This is going to be too light to get much of a sense of.  I let it go a lot longer than the 15 second or so typical infusion time, maybe double that, but it wasn't enough to open the rolled form.  The first impression is good; this tastes like dark caramel, with a good bit of complex range beyond that.  Maybe plum?  As a 2012 tea, 13 years old, that aged effect could be present.  A little spice range shows up beyond that.

Lishan:  even light this is really creamy and pleasant.  Feel is creamy, and taste is sweet, and not unlike cream.  It might include a much lighter caramel note.  These are going to be pretty good.  If the other version, the first one, is as good as it initially seems it would be hard to set a fair market price for it.  Aged oolong is expensive, and it's most often what seemed to be left behind somewhere, forgotten about, but this initially seems to be something else, a truly exceptional version.

Meishan #2:  it's very unique; good luck having a vaguely comparable experience to this tea through any other version.  I'm not saying that it's that much better than a lot of other range, but this just doesn't come up, per what I've experienced.  Or maybe it often does, and I've been focusing on sheng pu'er for so long that I've missed a lot of range that's out there.

A set of complementary flavors balance against each other; there is no one or two dominant aspects.  One part is plum, but it's integrated with the rest.  Another is dark caramel, and that stands out more than most of the rest.  Beyond that a warm, sweet, earthy range tastes a bit like a light roasted coffee to me.  Or spice, or maybe it's that both are present.  A heavy, mineral intensive flavor could resemble aged leather.  In the wrong context that wouldn't be as pleasant, but in this it balances well with the rest.

Feel is really rich too.  It's clean in effect, with a good sweetness level.  Aftertaste experience adds complexity.  It's like a checklist of what can go well in tea.  There's even a cognac like aromatic layer that seems to only show up in really high quality tea versions, within a certain range of types, not so uncommon in exceptional Wuyi Yancha versions.  I suppose if someone was looking for flaws a touch of sourness might be interpreted as such.  But to me it integrates well with the spice layer, as a flavor that makes sense along with that, and it's likely to drop out quickly.

Lishan:  of course this comes across as simpler, but it holds its own reasonable well for also being a solid tea, and for expressing different character.  The roast level works well for this, perhaps a bit lighter than for the other, or maybe it's that aging effect warms the tone of the other.  This is a 2019 version so it has had time to settle.  Floral range stands out more, and creaminess.  The creamy flavor, and to some extent feel, are more balanced by other range, with the rest stronger.  Feel has good fullness and richness.  

I suppose to some extent it suffers in comparison with the other, because that other complexity is really something, so many layers standing out at the same time, along with novel and exceptional flavor range.  This is more what you would expect from a well-balanced, good quality, high roast level Taiwanese oolong.  Floral range isn't as bright and light as in light versions, but it's not completely unlike that.  Mineral depth is there; that's a typical positive balancing aspect.

Meishan #3:  I'm brewing these between 15 and 20 seconds.  They would work well brewed faster or slower; the character would just balance differently.  Intensity is fine for using 10 second timing instead, and nothing negative would probably stand out brewed for half a minute.  I just don't prefer them either of those ways.

Creaminess seems to pick up; interesting.  Dark caramel had probably shifted to a medium caramel last round, and this is lighter, more like butterscotch.  There is an awful lot going on beyond that, but it seems to integrate to a complex background range at this stage.  You get a sense of depth.  If it had included sourness last round, which would've been a judgment call, you can't detect that now.  

Lishan:  this evolves to come across as more complex, and warmer in tone.  It's interesting how they're transitioning in two completely different ways.  In a limited sense it's more like the other, but they're still kind of different.  It still resembles the typical floral range of Taiwanese oolong more, but the warm tones are something else.  Producers can set a roast level wherever they like, but this probably needed those extra years to settle to be this exceptional.  Roasting it this much might seem like a gamble, and my guess is that it's paying off more now than it would have within the first year or two.

Peter, the Tea Mania owner, has mentioned that it's hard to try oolong versions and get a clear sense of what is going to be exceptional years later.  They settle in ways that are hard to predict.  All of this is what I don't experience enough of to get a sense of it, since I drank a lot more oolongs of different types prior to switching mostly to sheng, maybe 6 or 8 years ago.  Even then I drank more Wuyi Yancha.  Even if I had been drinking more Taiwanese oolongs regularly my tea budget wouldn't have supported trying many teas of this quality level.  In the same way the highest end range of sheng pu'er has only been available through trying samples, I guess, and mostly some that are sent for review.

direct sunlight threw off coloration; the two were more balanced in color this round

Meishan #4:  not so different than last round.  It's creamy and warm, with good depth, a nice mineral base, caramel range (or butterscotch; it's a judgment call), and probably some spice beyond that.  People could interpret it differently.  It could taste like cacao to some, or warm floral range instead.  When flavors are this complex what you get is kind of an interpretation.  Seeing one part as a warm wood tone might make sense, or leather, which seemed to match better in an early round, or maybe even cinnamon.  To me it's closer to cinnamon than those others.  It's really clean for including some of that earthier range.

Lishan:  also not transitioning as much as before, settling into a nice character.  It's nice experiencing that typical floral and mineral base range in a completely different form like this.  I was worried that these might be a little like Tie Guan Yin versions that are really light, that are re-roasted to restore deadened flavor effect.  Of course they're better tea than that, made more intentionally, but the higher roast and lower oxidation level inputs taken together can be a little off-putting.  This isn't like that.  I suppose if someone hated the high roast effect (probably medium-high; high roast implies a tea is all but charred, and this isn't), combined with brighter oolong floral range, then maybe it isn't so good, but I think most tea drinkers could relate positively to this.  

The other tea is something else again though.  It's not just a better version of a style that I've tried before, it's something relatively new to me.  I've tried some aged oolongs, maybe a half dozen versions (in rolled style, this Taiwanese range; twisted style range is something else), but nothing that balances in this sort of way.  That reminds me; I bought a decent amount of a 1992 version that I liked, that I haven't retried in a number of years; eventually I should check in on that.

I'll leave off here, since the story seems to be mostly told.  It's a busy errand day, since I leave to go back to Honolulu in less than a week, and I'm still working through cats being sick.  I might go visit them at the vet today, where they stay, even though I was there yesterday, since it will be a busy week, and I may not see much of them. 

I visited the cats that day, and once more a day or two later, and they're back to normal, quite lively.

Baozhong comparison (Taiwanese oolongs), Lishan and Pinglin

 

A tea vendor friend recently visited Bangkok, Peter from Tea Mania, and he dropped off some samples to try (many thanks).  These are the first I've tried, Baozhong oolong, a light oolong style from Taiwan.

I've had great experiences with their teas in the past.  This was a main source I ordered teas from just a few years ago, but I've drifted on to trying and buying more local Thai and Vietnamese teas since.  Their earlier sheng pu'er versions were really nice; it will be particularly interesting trying some of those.  This oolong range I've tried some of but not that much in relation to other tea types; it should also be interesting.  In the past versions have been fresh, light, flavorful, and pleasant, novel in flavor aspect sets.

Ordinarily I'd cite the product listings to add more background but the site isn't pulling up just now, at least not to click through to the right page.  More information should be here, at some point.  There is another Baozhong sample with these that I didn't try yet; maybe I'll add a section about all three then, and talk through some background a little.  

It's interesting that one is 2021 and another 2022, and I didn't really go too far into what that limited aging input would've changed, not that I know.  It's often a habit to make things up and guess, but I didn't, beyond adding a couple of sentences at the very end.

I didn't comment on this nerd theme either; am I really a nerd?  I'm an engineer, and I take exploration of some subjects a bit far, and my personality is defined in some atypical ways, but I don't see much to gain from taking on a related label.  I suppose it would fit if I were into that.

Review:

Lishan #1:  fresh, sweet, and bright.  I'll need to be careful to give these longer steeps to compensate for using less, maybe 5 or 6 grams in these samples, but brewing a tea light the first round works for me.  This really is in between more conventional oolong and light and smooth green tea character, kind of as expected.  But it doesn't have the aggressive tone a lot of very light Tie Guan Yin can have, in the best cases straight floral, and then when not as positive maybe including sweet corn, or even new car smell.  This is floral, mostly, but there is a vegetal component to it, closer to sugar snap peas.  It's nice.

Pinglin:  this character overlaps a little but it's heavier, and different.  Floral tones are much deeper and heavier.  There's an aspect beyond the floral range that's hard to place as of yet, not unrelated to vegetal range, but not exactly that either.  It's aromatic and warm spice, I think, like incense spice, sandalwood or the like (I couldn't identify different incense spices, to be clear; my exposure has been very limited over the past 25 years).

Lishan #2:  being a bit stronger helps, although warming in tones is kind of neutral; the lightness and brightness of the first round was also pleasant.  Feel picks up.  Floral range fills in more depth, there is more of a broader set of floral tones, including some that are warmer.  The tea is still quite light, in comparison to other versions' range; I mean in comparison with the first round.  It's not exactly complex but there is enough going on to appreciate it.  

That one floral range that I associate with high mountain Taiwanese oolongs is present, a light floral scent.  In rolled oolongs that can be really intense, so that you might want to brew a tea lightly to offset it being a bit much, unless you really appreciate the rich feel and aftertaste parts more, then you'd just go for it.  Again this is pleasant.

Pinglin:  there's really something to the depth, complexity, and intensity of this.  Compared to the sheng versions I usually drink it's on the light side, in terms of feel and flavor impact, but there is a lot going on, more than in the other tea, I think.  Richer and warmer range makes it come across as more intense, although I suppose maybe it's just an illusion that it's more complex, tied to how I interpret a warmer and deeper flavor set.  Probably it's both though.

That one aspect I tried to describe might not be a spice input, as much as just an unusually strong and rich floral aspect, that stands out against a field of others.  It's like lavender, close enough that it works to call it that.  There is also a broad range of other lighter floral tones, and warm depth, some sort of base that's harder to separate out as specific flavors.  Often that would be underlying mineral range, but it's not so clear in this.  

It may really be a hint of a few things, underlying mineral, warmth tied to spice, and even some sort of vegetal note, which I'm not really pinning down.  Then for being so complex it's interesting how that one particular floral note is stronger than the rest, the lavender.  Not so much that it dominates the experience; in fact the opposite.  It's just stronger, so it sets up an unusual harmony, not really even a "foreground" effect, but just something standing out a little.

Lishan #3:  this transitioned some; somehow a fruit tone seems to be evolving.  Whenever that kind of thing happens it makes you wonder to what extent it had already been there, and you'd just missed it.  It tastes a good bit like yellow watermelon.  I suppose that it could taste exactly the same and it's just an association or new interpretation that I'm adding.  It seems a little more complex as a result.

Pinglin:  this may have just flattened out just a little, the opposite.  It seems possible that warm tone range is picking up slightly, while floral range fades, but it's a subtle shift.  Mineral seems more pronounced too, giving it just a little extra depth.  It comes across as a heavier range and stronger tea than the other.  Someone really into that one light floral note that's pronounced in Taiwanese oolongs might like the first better, pushing it harder than I have been to get intensity up.  I would imagine plenty of sheng drinkers could relate to the second better, for coming across as slightly more complex and intense, with the warmer tone range just depending on individual preference.

This seems like a good place to give these a longer soak and then leave off the notes, since I'd expect them to fade as much as to keep evolving from here.  I've been giving the half a minute infusion times, which is a lot longer than I use for a packed-out gaiwan proportion.  I'll only infuse them for a minute, nothing too crazy.

Lishan #4:  this really shines at this stage.  Intensity isn't so pronounced; soaking that for two minutes might have been even better.  It's fine for an experience though, strong enough.  There aren't really new descriptions to add.  Light and sweet floral tones are giving way to more depth of other range, with mineral picking up, and non-distinct vegetal range playing more of a role.  I could see this as including fruit but it's not as natural an interpretation this round.  Maybe that light vegetal input is close to fennel.

Pinglin:  fading, in a sense, but this still has plenty to offer.  It's possible that a 3 or 4 minute soak for both could be the best yet, although I would imaging trade-offs would enter in, and aspects that pick up wouldn't all be as positive as the first rounds' range.  

It's interesting how these are light in effect but also have a depth and odd kind of intensity to them; it's an interesting contradiction.  They're what I expected from minimal exposure to related types range in the past, among the least of any main tea types that I've tried.  Baozhong would be "main" in a limited sense; listing out the main half dozen types of oolong to me it may not make that list (Wuyi Yancha, Dan Cong, Tie Guan Yin, high mountain rolled Taiwanese versions, Oriental Beauty, then I'd go with "red oolong" as more standard, oxidized versions up near the black tea boundary).  That's even without dividing up types; more oxidized and roasted Tie Guan Yin is completely different than very light versions.

Lishan #5:  more vegetal range does pick up, brewing this for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes instead.  It's still pleasant, just not improved.

Pinglin:  that one floral note comes back stronger brewed longer; that is nice.  Vegetal range, mineral, and whatever else doesn't pick up much.  I suppose it regains more intensity and fullness, and that's it, nothing stands out as negative, or even pronounced.  

It's odd that I've not mentioned oxidation level.  It seemed as well to just focus on the tea experiences, since going on with guesses about causes wouldn't add much.  Sure, this may be oxidized a little more.  And it's from 2021 instead of 2022, but I'd expect that transition didn't include that much shift to warmer and deeper tones, although it should've been some.  I'd guess that it started out different, and then both might've changed in different ways over 2 to 3 years as well.

Probably one more long round will close out most of the positive range these have to offer, although who knows, maybe they'd keep going, or an extra cold brew from them could be good.  I'll leave off the notes here either way.

No extra conclusions this time; those descriptions seemed clear enough.