Golden Monkey - Aura Teas

I thought it important to find out where this unusual name, Golden Monkey, comes from. "Golden" refers to the stunning golden tips that make up this tea (along with beautiful deep brown leaves.) There are two potential sources of the "Monkey" name. Some say it was because monkeys used to be needed to pick these leaves from between the rocks. Others say that it is because the wiry leaves look like monkey claws.

As I mentioned, the dry leaf is really lovely. Very thin, wiry leaves with a nice mix of brown and golden. Delicate in appearance. The scent was fresh with some smokiness.

I steeped the tea for 2 minutes with water just off boiling. The scent was slightly grape-y. Crisp. The flavor had very fruity notes, with a slight grape/wine-like quality. There was a little pepper to it, as with a Yunnan, I thought. It was bright and lively. It almost sparkled. It was very full in my mouth.

I generally only do one steep with black teas, but Aura said this one could provide at least 3. The second steep (2:30) seemed to bring out some lemony notes. It was slightly more mellow than the first.

The third steep (3:00) was nearly as rich and flavorful as the second. I wondered if I could have gotten even more out of these leaves. I was startled by the appearance of the leaves afterward as well. I'm used to black tea looking much the same after steeping as before (some color change, but not much else.) These leaves reminded me of what I see with oolong. They were full and open and large with a reddish brown color.

Tea: Golden Monkey
Source: Aura Teas
Type: Black tea
Brewing details: 1 1/2 tsp for 2 minutes, 2 1/2 minutes, 3 minutes
Comment: I think Aura has a real winner here. I think I'll be reordering this one soon.

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