Bi Luo Chun Competition Grade

Ho hum! Tried this months ago and then again the other day and I really just couldn’t drink this. I don’t have much experience with Bi Luo Chun and while “soapy scent” doesn’t sound appealing, I don’t think that’s the issue. It’s a bad taste, I’ve experienced before, mostly in green teas, usually from swaps but occasionally from my own stash. I think it’s just old and *Michelle*’s tasting note confirms that for me. So I shall not rate, just want to make a note for myself.

My New Year’s resolution I already began a couple months ago: I’m drinking down my greens. I will try to stay in season this year with them, but at least drink within six months, ideally four. After I tossed this, I had a nice long glass tumbler session with some Verdant Dragonwell-style Laoshan Green. I got my mom several Verdant greens for Christmas, a glass tumbler and just bought her a Zojirushi yesterday for her birthday next week. Can’t wait to try the Laoshan Bi Lo Chun green with her!

Home from work two hours early – my calender said 3; the wall chart at work said 1. I’m certainly not going to argue! So now it’s tea time.

I received this in a swap from Rachel about a month ago, and I’m not sure if I’ve tried it yet or just failed to log it.

The leaves are fuzzy, green and grey and twisted into long, thing shapes. They smell of grass and moss.

It brews up a surprisingly dark color – it’s not what I would describe as green or gold. It’s almost a pale bronze color, a light golden brown.

I’m being a little put-off by the color/flavour – it tastes very grassy, but it looks like a black. It’s easier to reconcile the flavor profile if I close my eyes and don’t look at the tea. There’s a little bit of dry astringency, some asparagus and spinach notes.

Not a tea I’d purchase, but thanks to Rachel for letting me try it!

From wikipedia: "The name Biluochun literally means “Green Snail Spring”. It is called so because it is a green tea that is rolled into a tight spiral, resembling snail meat, and is cropped early spring."

The dry leaves are beautiful and fuzzy, with pretty white hairs. The appearance of the dry tea is probably my favorite part of this tea. Unfortunately it’s rather downhill from there.

The tea when steeped comes out darker amber than I expected. The flavor is delicate and subtle. There’s a distinct astringency like an under-ripe apple or persimmon.

I have a hard time getting a perfect brew from this tea. It’s sensitive to overly hot water, easily becoming very bitter. On the flip side, if the water’s not hot enough, the tea comes out flavorless. My best results come from longer brewing times and cooler water temperature, combined with a large volume of tea.

This is the only Bi Luo Chun tea I’ve tried. I’d like to try others.