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“It’s been over a month but I’m finally courageous enough to try takgoti’s Dragonwell tea, the tea that began our tea swap. This Dragonwell is quite different. To start with, the leaves are heavy,...” Read full tasting note
“At the suggestion of many, I dialed the temperature WAY down. Like to the top of the first white zone, which I’m thinking is somewhere around 160 degrees. [1. I really need to get a thermometer. 2....” Read full tasting note
Among the most popular green teas in Asia, these broad, flat tea leaves are from the Chinese village of Lung Ching.
Sommelier’s notes:
8 oz water (180F) | 2 tsp loose tea | steep 3 minutes
great with a light lunch
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It’s been over a month but I’m finally courageous enough to try takgoti’s Dragonwell tea, the tea that began our tea swap. This Dragonwell is quite different. To start with, the leaves are heavy, flat spears, while Dream About Tea’s are light fluffy things.
She’s right, this Dragonwell has a slight peppery smell, like carnations. It has a stronger vegetal taste with something that makes the top of my tongue feel slightly numb. Interesting. But I like Dream About Tea’s Dragonwell better. It fascinates me that tea of the same name can be so different. I very much appreciate the chance to make the comparison. Thanks takgoti!
At the suggestion of many, I dialed the temperature WAY down. Like to the top of the first white zone, which I’m thinking is somewhere around 160 degrees. [1. I really need to get a thermometer. 2. If you’re just tuning in and have no clue what I am referring to, I use a utiliTEA.] I put in more tea – like 1.5, maybe even 2 tsp – and I let it sit for 2:15-2:30 minutes.
MUCH improved. Of course, this is a completely different company, so I’m not sure how much that played into it [I’ll have to try Adagio’s again], but this was much more aligned to what I was expecting.
There is a distinct smokiness to the scent as it rises off the cup, which I don’t enjoy but don’t hate either. It’s almost gunpowder-y? Kind of like that smell you get from a log-burning fire, but with more of a peppery tone to it.
There is still some of that saltiness to it, but it’s not too pronounced. This is definitely a tea with some subtleness to it, but this cup had that chlorophyll-sweet taste to it that I enjoy. The sweetness becomes more obvious as it cools, and the aftertaste towards the end is somewhere between roasty and smoky.
It’s an interesting tea, and I want to continue playing around with it a bit, but I think that I’d enjoy it more if I were eating something with it. Something with complex flavors and a medium kind of intensity to it. Balducci’s makes this smoked ham, pear, and gorgonzola sandwich that would likely pair masterfully with this. I think I know what I’m doing tomorrow.
This sounds completely different than the Dragonwell Spring that I bought in Chicago from Dream About Tea. My Dragonwell Spring is light, sweet, and virginal with no smokiness or pepper. It is fascinating to me that the same tea from different companies can have such different qualities.
Would you like me to send you a bit of my Dragonwell Spring for you to compare? (And report back on.)
Same here — the dragonwells I’ve been drinking are on the lighter, fresher side. From the photo these look a little more aged than the stuff I have though. Sounds interesting!
Carolyn Oooh, sure! I can send you some of mine, too, if your interested. Email's heather.takgotigmail.com.
@Jack Cheng It was rather interesting. Of course, the day after I tried it I came down with a pretty awful cold, so I’m not sure if it was the tea or my taste buds starting to go haywire. I’ll have to try it again once I’m not congested.
Oh Carolyn you tempt me hehe;)
Did you see my rating? Not my favorite of the teas that takgoti has sent. I understand now why she thought Dragonwells were not very good.
Yeah I did, I just was talking in the general dragonwell sense:)
Yeah, this would have scared me off of Dragonwell as well, from what I’ve read of the tasting notes of this one. I’m happy you were able to send takgoti something that tasted way better, Carolyn!
Me too!
I’ve only tried one Dragonwell but it had a very light, delicate taste, so your account of this tea makes me curious as to what others might taste like. :)
I really love a good Dragonwell but there can be a lot of variation in the flavors, from grassy to sort of nutty. They can sometimes almost taste like rubber. That same rubbery flavor can be found in some Japanese senchas, which is interesting since both sencha and dragonwell are wok-fired/wok-ironed, which is why you end up with the flat, broken up leaves. Something about the hot metal must add that taste?
Or it might have something to do with the cooking process itself maybe?
Dude. You have totally, totally spoiled me on Dragonwells now because I am comparing ALL of them to the one you sent me and all of them are really paling in comparison. I’d call Andrew and Dunham’s a noticeably distant second place.