When life gives you yellow slices, make some good tea! These large and wild-looking leaves and twigs are usually retained by the tea farmers for their own consumption, less sightly and intensely-flavoured as they are, but they are glad to share this rough cut for a much more affordable price. The Fenghuang Dancong-style processing it has gone though means it shares a hint of the same stone fruit-mineral-cream character as its siblings, in this case closest to yellow plum, but a higher proportion of twigs gives it a most pronounced roasted aroma, with the subtly-sweet aftertaste of liquorice root. An excellent choice for dipping one's toes into the Dancong world, for cold brewing, or even for culinary uses.
For best results in gongfu cha, brew in the traditional gaiwan or in a Yixing teapot. Too high water temperature would burn the leaves, resulting in bitter taste.
'Huang pian' tea
Literally 'yellow pieces', huang pian refers to leaves that have been sorted out after initial processing for being unsightly—having a yellow color, frequently, or irregularly rolled, etc.—relative to the desired appearance for the type of tea. Farmers often retain this material for personal consumption, usually being less valuable, but it is sometimes resold or pressed into 'huang pian' cakes, which depending on the provenance could still be more expensive than select teas from other regions. The flavor of the finished tea is not necessarily worse, per se, but can be milder or simpler and may age more gradually.
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