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“The last of my sample of 10 g, so I only had 5 g left to steep. The dry leaves are very pretty, a silver-green color with a fuzzy looking coat on a leaf curled in upon itself. The scent is light...” Read full tasting note
“The buds in this tea are fuzzy and plump. The dry smell in the bag isn’t too interesting – just smells like a typical white tea. In the warmed gaiwan, the leaves smell like soft fresh linen. With...” Read full tasting note
This 2016 pre-Qing Ming harvest is made exclusively from tiny fresh buds. These are the smallest and most plump white tea buds we have ever seen. The early delicate picking is incredibly downy and intensely sweet. The aroma is full of fresh baked bread, while the brewed tea is creamy and vanilla-heavy with fresh fennel notes and a touch of citrus. Perfectly balanced, sweet, lingering and impossible to oversteep. This is a perfect example of the elegance of silver needle white.
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The last of my sample of 10 g, so I only had 5 g left to steep. The dry leaves are very pretty, a silver-green color with a fuzzy looking coat on a leaf curled in upon itself. The scent is light and sweet, reminiscent of clover hay to me.
First steep at 6 sec. The wet leaves smell a bit sour to me, more grassy than before without a floral note. The brew is a very pale green color; from the first few sips, I can tell the flavor is going to be very light on this cup. It tastes faintly of grass to me, or maybe clover—the flavor is definitely something green/vegetal, but maybe a hint of floral to it. The overall impression is some creaminess, however, throughout the sip.
Second steep of about 9 sec. The same pale green color, the scent of the wet leaves seems stronger to me though. The flavors are stronger, which is good in my opinion. Heavier on the cream side, with some sweetness now, and a hint more floral and less on the green taste.
Third steep, 12 sec. This one is the creamiest yet, with a dash of sweetness and a hint of vanilla (maybe the marshmallow flavor the description on their site says?).
Flavors: Cream, Floral, Grass, Sweet
The buds in this tea are fuzzy and plump. The dry smell in the bag isn’t too interesting – just smells like a typical white tea. In the warmed gaiwan, the leaves smell like soft fresh linen. With the first steep, I get a steamed edamame smell from the lid – just like Verdant’s 2016 Bai Mu Dan and Shou Mei. The liquor is nearly clear and has a light sweetness to it.
The second steep is much thicker and a bit stronger. This stuff lingers on the tongue. The flavor is springy and vegetal. It tastes like snapping the stem of some sort of thick fresh sweet spring grass in half and having a lick.
Four steeps in and I feel like this tea would probably do better with some more heat. Steeped at 195F, the gaiwan lid smells like a fresh sweet pastry. The softness of the liquor is a little bit diminished but it’s fuller bodied. I think I prefer this tea at about 180-185F.
This tea is solid but (this may be sacrilege) I think their Bai Mu Dan is a better tea and it’s less than half the price of this stuff. The first steep of the Bai Mu Dan tastes very similar to this tea, but the Bai Mu Dan evolves significantly over the course of the session. This tea retains that first steep flavor all the way through – nothing wrong with that but I think the Bai Mu Dan is a more interesting and fun to drink tea.
Flavors: Grass, Smooth, Sweet, Vegetal
