This morning's cuppa is an odd one. @tealeaftheory "Autumn Exquisite Assam Black" from Latumoni. To talk about it, I have to flip the script to Rod Serling mode. . . Picture, if you will, an Assam black tea, hailing from a small garden. Instead of being made from standard, pruned and cut clonals, the leaf material came from a plot that was left to grow "wild". That's right: no pruning, no cutting. T17 assamica clones left to grow as their nature dictates. . . Over the last two years, I've tried a lot of offerings from Latumoni - even trumpeting that its my favorite small garden in Assam. This batch signals a bit of a departure for them. An experiment, if you will. Feral(-ish) tea bushes are difficult to pluck from. Not only that, but the yield is inconsistent, and the flavor profile - even after processing - might be unpredictable. . . Well, rest assured, this turned out fine. It wasn't as full-bodied as the other Latumoni wares, yet it had the requisite "floral malt" profile, which set it apart from other Assams. However, the journey doesn't end there. Oooooh no. . . Along with the usual palatial suspects is a distinct plum note that shows up in later infusions. (Yes, plural.) All the while balanced by an earthy sun-dried Dian Hong note permeating throughout. I got about four Western style steeps out of these whole, gold-tipped leaves. . . Is it my favorite of their offerings? I dunno. I have more stuff to try and (inevitably) write about. I just wanted to record my notes for this, now. Definitely a multi-layered morning thus far. . . Wow, this went long. . . #smallgarden #assam #assamtea #blacktea #latumoni #tealeaftheory #tea #morningcuppa https://www.instagram.com/p/B5LWUPhgGfb/?igshid=3zka2i9hm0wx