Thank you to Angel at teavivre for the samples, of which this was one of many! The day that box arrived I was as happy as Christmas morning! Since then though I have been crazy busy with my internship and weekending with my university friends and have not had a chance to really enjoy tea (or to review it properly). So I finally had a spare minute today and decided to brew a cup of this!
My first thought was that the leaves of this tea are huge. I only used half of my sample package for a mini-tea pot worth (about a cup and a half) and it was probably not the best brewing implement as the basket it a little small to allow tea leaves this large to steep properly. The dry smell was very vegetal, like hay or dry grass. I was intrigued because this is the first non-flavoured white tea that I have tried, so it was the first time that I have actually smelled the leaves themselves.
I brewed it according to package instructions, 90 degree water for only 2 minutes, and overall was very pleased with the results. The flavour is very smooth and pleasant, lightly grassy with a hint of floral notes. I am not sure that straight white tea is my favourite cuppa, I think I am more of a flavoured tea girl along the lines of Strawberry Fields or Gold Rush, but the quality of this white is better than any I have tried and a perfect smooth blend for those days where I have had enough of strong flavours and just want a nice cup of white tea, with all of the benefits that go along with it!
Just a note on brewing, my teapot holds about a cup and a half, and the remaining half of a cup typically keeps brewing after I pour the first cup. Therefore the second cup was steeped for over 5 minutes. The result was a slightly bitter, strongly grassy tea that overwhelmed all of the pleasant floral notes. Therefore I strongly advise paying attention to brewing time- for this tea it makes a big difference!
195 °F / 90 °C
2 min, 0 sec
