I got a box from Upton's with some disappointment and some delight both.

First of all, I am constantly looking for the same panyong congou experience
that I had years ago with a cheap one from Kam Man in NYC. Nothing I have
tried since (and certainly none of the other junk I got from Kam Man) has been
right. I tried Upton's ZP20 "Panyang Congou Select" and it wasn't right.
Others might find it fine but I have this idea stuck in my head about what I
want.

In the past I have also liked the low grade Vietnam black tea from Upton's,
and so I decided to upgrade slightly this time and try the TV35 "Shan Tuyet"
which is supposed to be a higher grade tea from the same area. It's just too
thin for me; there's no body to it. It's not bad, it's just farther away from
what I want.

But then....ZK99 "Keemun Mao Feng." Wow. This is really, really good... it's
got some body to it, some light flowery notes, some dark woody notes... this
is really an amazing tea. I wish I had bought more of this.

The folks at Upton's also say they should be getting some darker and more
fermented Darjeeling's some time in September.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."