
2012 Xiaguan T8653
5.6g in a Novak pot.
The damp leaves initially have a very rich smoke, more of a ringing smokiness than the 2003/2005 Changtai, which have a sweeter smoke. This is more of a drier woodsmoke.
Not very sweet, has quite some stiffness. Very strong flavour however. From the beginning extremely concentrated.
- A large amount of plummy acidity now shows and a very complex progression to a powdery resinous huigan. Overwhelming the senses with a lot of concentrated taste and aroma. Very pleasant incense resin aroma on the empty cup.
- Accumulating plumminess and sweetness now. Quite intense astringency on the sides and back of cheeks. Smokiness is somewhat reduced now but still very prominent. Very old fashioned kind of profile, seems very traditional taste indeed. Well-integrated smoke, plumminess, bitterness. But this is more forward on bitterness.
- Superheated now. Intense heat, sweat on forehead. Big aroma afterwards, emerging into nose and throat. Big and brawny, definitely not ready for drinking now in a relaxed way.
- Good continuation but losing a lot of depth.
- Long steep now gives quite intense bitterness. The puckering and acidity is gone or much reduced
- Thinner, more bitter, not much tannins or any astringency at all.
Undeniably rich with resinous, bitter and astringent content, this Xiaguan provides a traditional wollop of an experience. The astringency and acidity is strong in the initial steeps but reduces quickly, as often happens with such chopped material. The tea is significantly bitter, I would be interested to see what happens to this bitterness in the coming years.
July 21, 2020 @ 11:33 am
I once bought the entire stash of T8653s of a tea store that was about to close. For some reason most of the 8653 versions I’ve tried over the years resonate more with my system than pretty much anything else out there, including shengs that cost tens of times as much – can’t help it.
Great little review – keep them coming!
November 8, 2024 @ 7:39 am
Hi again,
4 years later still and I’m happy to report that my stash (see above, all from 2013) has aged considerably, even in the center of those hard bings. The tea is nice to drink now, still strong but distincitively sweeter, more mellow, balanced with good huigan, throat activity and long aftertaste . The smoke is still there but more integrated than before and I wouldn’t want to miss it since based on my collection of older XG cakes I can feel where this is moving forward to.
My idea of a satisfying daily bread and butter tea, YMMV.