That Tea Guy

After years of exploring tea drinkers and producers description of tea. I would confine them to these 5 main points of the tea.

1. Attack – The first taste and aroma
2. Body – Texture and mouth feel
3. Flavor – Impression and characteristic
4. Balance – Astringency, sweetness, acidity,
5. Aftertaste (回甘) – Lingering scent

1. Attack
   This is usually the first feel of the tea, whether is it the name, reputation, aroma or distinctness
   This includes the name as some tea have long earned its fame such as Puer(Earthy), Earl Grey (Bergamot), Dragon well – Long Jing(Nutty), Lapsang Souchong(Smoky). The naming usually would attach certain taste and expectation of the tea.
   
2. Body
   This is about the mouthfeel and texture such as silky smooth, creamy, heavy, syrupy or light. It can also include temperature sensation such as warming, cooling or numbing.
   
3. Flavor
   Flavor perception is fundamentally constructed from our personal library of taste memories and experiences. This can be subjective and varied between different people. The best I have found to describe this is using the flavor wheel from Australian Tea master. Starting with main taste such as Floral or Nutty and then in depth flavor such as Rose and Almond.
   
4. Balance
   The backbone and structure of the tea. Usually to describe the overall sweetness, astringency, acidity or bitterness of the tea.
   
5. Aftertaste (回甘)
   Depending on culture, Chinese tea value returning sweetness from bitter to sweet in the back of the throat. Other usual aftertaste includes fruity persistence (common in Taiwanese Tea), Umami resonance, a savory and oceanic lingering scent from matcha and gyokuro or Warming spice such as Indian Chai.