Our Aged Tieguanyin from Anxi County, Fujian Province is intensely nostalgic, reminiscent of the carved sandalwood beads our Buddhist tea mentors carry, along with notes of rose, cinnamon and vanilla. This tea was traditionally processed, with heavy oxidation and roast, making it a wonderful and delicious brew right now and also a great candidate for aging. While most aged oolong teas on the market are reroasted every few years, destroying most of their natural aged characteristics, this traditional style Aged Tieguanyin has been left undisturbed. The end result is a tea rich with the aroma of plums and walnuts, and a distinctly crisp finish, reminiscent of a fresh Tieguanyin in the traditional 'nong xiang' (strong fragrance) style, but with an added complexity and depth developed during the aging process. Our fresh Tieguanyin is complex and intoxicating enough as is, so a slow subtle roasting and aging process over ten years brings this level of complexity to its extreme. When the tea is brewed, the liquor is bright, sweet and slightly sour, with complex aromas. The tea steeps out with strong notes of spiced rum-infused fruitcake, with its vaporous aroma and raisin-like sweetness. The texture on the palate is similar to a very clean well-aged puâ??er. Later steepings are similar to marzipan cake with an aftertaste of caramel apple and nag champa incense.