Teas and origins: Three white teas from the Satemwa Tea Estate, Malawi
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Today I’ll be tasting three wildly different looking white teas from the Satemwa Tea Estate available for purchase at What-Cha. Founded in 1923, Satemwa is a family-run estate that produces green, white, oolong, black and dark teas. The African tea scene really has some exciting things going on, and it appears Satemwa is one of the leading innovators. Read on to find out what I think about these three white teas.

Malawi Zomba Pearls

Dry leaf: The dry leaf consists of tightly wound leaves that have a pine cone shape. Each rolled leaf ranges in length between a half and one centimetre long. It has a light,  crisp, almost citrusy, aroma

Infused tea: The tea cups out a golden-coloured liquor with a moderate amount of aroma. I would liken both the aroma and the flavour of the liquor to boiled green beans. In the first three infusions, I detected subtle sweet undertones in the finish, but this disappears in the fourth infusion. It is a medium-bodied liquor with only a small hint of astringency

Infusion tips: Infuse this tea with 85C water for three to four minutes. The tightly wound leaves take five to seven infusions to fully unravel

Conclusions: The vegetal flavour of this tea took me by surprise. While the first three infusions had some sweet notes, a green bean flavour dominated the liquor. This tea is probably miles away from what many people think of as white tea – especially if they are just familiar with Chinese white teas – but its complex flavour profile is something that could really appeal to avid white tea and green tea drinkers

Link to Zomba Pearls

Retail price: 10 grams for £1.93 / 50 grams for £7.00 / 100 grams for £13.16

Malawi Satemwa Antlers

Dry leaf: The dry leaf is made of stems that range from a half to two centimetres in length. It has a light, woody-sweet aroma

Infused tea: The tea cups out a dark golden liquor (similar to a heavily roasted oolong) that has a subtle sweet aroma. It is a medium-bodied tea, although on the lighter side of medium, and it has almost no astringency. The liquor is sweet, and undoubtedly has lychee notes. There are also some plum-like undertones in the finish

Infusion tips: Infuse this tea three to four minutes with 80 to 85C water. Try infusing this tea four to six times

Conclusions: I’ve seen this tea a few different places and have been wanting to try it for some time. Every description I’ve read talked about its lychee flavour, and I can say that description is spot on. I was really blown away by the lychee flavour in this tea, and I think all tea drinkers (connoisseur or not) would appreciate the uniqueness of this tea

Link to Satemwa Antlers

Retail price: 10 grams for £2.34 / 50 grams for £8.50 / 100 grams for £15.98

Malawi Bvumbwe Peony

Dry leaf: The dry leaf consists of full leaves that range in colour from a rusty red to tan to green. It has a light sweet aroma

Infused tea: The tea cups out a light golden liquor that has a very subtle aroma. It is a light-bodied tea that has a sweet, apricot-like flavour. The tea has almost no astringency

Infusion tips: To draw as much flavour as possible out of this tea, I would suggest steeping it for seven to eight minutes with 80 to 85C water. Try infusing this tea three times

Conclusions: I personally need a tea with more body and stronger flavour. While I will knock off a few points for it being so delicate, I have to say that the apricot notes are amazing. Play around with the water temperature and steeping time to get the best out of this tea

Link to Bvumbwe Peony

Retail price: 10 grams for £1.38 / 25 grams for £2.75 / 50 grams for £5.00 / 100 grams for £9.40

Conclusions

I feel very fortunate to have tasted these three teas. Thank you very much, What-Cha! I found the diversity amongst the teas to be very interesting. Not only does the dry leaf for each tea appear vastly different, but they all cupped out unique liquors. I most enjoyed the Zomba and the Antlers. The green bean notes in the Zomba and the lychee notes in the Antlers really intrigued me and got my inner tea blood stirring. I think the Bvumbwe Peony would have made a bigger impression on me if it cupped out a liquor with more flavour and body. It is a good tea, but I don’t think it has the extra special characteristics found in the Zomba and the Antlers.