Organic Shui Xian Oolong (Arbor Teas)

I had ordered a sample of this tea about two years ago and thought it quite nice, so I put in a bigger order (7 oz. @ $14.25) this past fall.  This batch came across as much bolder than that earlier sample, and I find myself very conflicted about this tea.  It's actually a great counterpoint to the Lao Cong Shui Xian of the previous post.  That tea exhibited proper flavors and aromas, but left me wanting for something a bit more extroverted and complex.  This tea, comes at it from the other direction.  Here's how I see it.

The dry leaf of this tea is a typical dark brown, but there is quite a bit of variability in the leaf finishing.  Some leaf is well twisted, but much isn't. There are a large number of stems in this batch as well, and some of those stems are stout and hard. The dry leaf has quite a strong aroma, but it isn't a particularly refined one. Needless to say, the dry leaf is not inspiring. The relatively stiff and sturdy wet leaf is dark green with brown edges and splotches, suggesting a moderate oxidation and baking.

The tide turns upon brewing.  The tea liquors up a medium-deep amber/brown and gives off a generous aroma with a nice sweetness.  The aroma is multidimensional, with floral, fruity, and woody notes, and, in general, characteristics typical of medium-roast Wu Yi. At the same time, there is an underlying component to the aroma that I associate with summer teas. This may be viewed as a desirable complexity by some, but it puts me off.

This Shui Xian is medium bodied, quite flavorful and smooth. The flavor is surprisingly sweet, with fruit, wood, and, to a lesser extent, floral notes. The tea is quite quaff-able, yet has a  bit of grip on the swallow and a decent, tangy aftertaste. The "summer-tea" component shows here too, marring the experience somewhat for me.

The sturdy leaf delivers several infusions.

I checked reviews of this tea on the Arbor website just before writing this. Clearly, many really like this tea, and they have reason to. It's flavorful, it's exceptionally sweet, both in aroma and flavor, it's smooth and very quaff-able while still being multidimensional, and it pairs well with food. But, it's not a particularly pure tasting tea, and that's why I won't be purchasing it again. But, don't let my taste in tea stop you from trying it. Many others have enjoyed this tea and you might also.