75
drank Crescent Green by Spirit Tea
1677 tasting notes

Another new to me vendor, Spirit Tea, which I see Daylon has been posting notes for lately. I came across them looking for something but don’t remember what They have a gentle, relationship-building vibe about their work and marketing that I admit drew me in. If you get warm fuzzies seeing pictures of traveling tea hunters with tea farmers, one or all of them pointing at leaves or in the distance, Spirit Tea may be for you (tongue-in-cheek — they have a LOT of teas that sound fantastic). Looks like they really get around, offering landscape, production and intimate encounter photos of nearly every tea they offer, which are sourced from their travels through China, Taiwan, Korea and Japan.

Quick cups this morning before I try to take advantage of this spring weather in January. It doesn’t feel right that the daffodils bloomed this morning or that the blueberries are fully flowering.

From Yunnan, China, this green tea is grown and processed in a Muslim-Chinese minority village.

This large-leaved green tea is rich and so satisfying, unlike any other green tea I’ve had. Sweet, viscous, a little tongue-numbing and with practically no astringency. Aroma matches the taste and aftertaste of the tea. The tasting notes of honeycomb and sandalwood are spot on. Apricot is more of a bright undertone. A comforting toasty nature rounds out the flavor flawlessly. If you want to try a green tea without the typical beany, grassy or vegetal notes, or one that won’t upset an empty stomach, I highly suggest this nourishing tea!

I’ve had no communication yet with this company and am trying to not come off as sounding like a shameless plug. Hopefully the other 3 teas I ordered are just as satisfying.

Flavors: Apricot, Honey, Mineral, Round, Sandalwood, Sweet, Toasty, Viscous

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 3 min, 0 sec 3 g 10 OZ / 300 ML
Daylon R Thomas

I’m glad you liked it! I had a mixed opinion about the company at first. I tried them at a local coffee shop, and fell in love with their silver needle and Saigon Hebral. I really liked their approach to partnerships, and I’ve been using the Manual Gaiwan for years. I stopped buying a little bit after the Meishan they had, which I thought they overcharged for, but I think their selection has drastically improved selling some extremely unique teas. I just made a big order from them recently, and really look forward to what they’ve got. I am excited to see what you think of the other teas!

Evol Ving Ness

I am looking forward to hearing more about their teas from you both. goes to check their shipping to Canada policies

derk

Lucky you to have had their teas at a local joint. Some of their teas are a bit pricey and I did end up indulging in one of them. This Crescent Green is one of the cheapest ones and well worth the $0.24/g for my tastes!

It seems like you experience the same desire I do with wanting to try all the things so I like that Spirit Tea upped their package weight to minimum 50g. That encouraged me to be more thoughtful about my purchases. Hopefully everything in your big buy puts a smile on your face. I look forward to your notes, too :)

derk

Evol Ving Ness, the other day Leafhopper told me that their shipping to the great CA is only through DHL at $32. Maybe worth a group buy for you Canadians.

Leafhopper

Derk, there are no daffodils blooming here in snowy Toronto. :P Sounds like a nice green tea.

Evol Ving Ness, they only offer DHL to Canada and it starts at $32. This is sad, as they have some unique stuff.

Leafhopper

Derk, I think our comments overlapped. :) It seems to cost less to ship packages across the world than across the Canada–U.S. border.

Daylon, I also look forward to your notes on your Spirit Tea purchases. I hope there are some oolongs!

gmathis

Sigh. We’re weeks away from daffodil and crocus shoots yet. Green tea that sounds apricotty sounds like a lovely snatch of spring.

Daylon R Thomas

Leafhopper, I got three oolongs, two of them new-the Qin Xin/Jin Xuan hybrid and leafhopper bitten Dayuling, and two blacks, a Yin Hong and a Qilan fashioned into a black. I spent too much money…I have high hopes for all of them.

Leafhopper

Daylon, that’s a nice selection. I was looking at that Exuding Jade myself until I saw what it would cost to ship it to Canada.

Leafhopper

And of course, the bug-bitten Dayuling was what made me investigate the shipping charges in the first place. :)

Leafhopper

Derk, have you tried to gongfu this tea? It must be spring because I’m in a green tea mood.

derk

I haven’t yet

Leafhopper

Okay, I’ll go with Western since I want to avoid astringency and am not too confident about the proper gongfu steeping parameters for green tea.

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Comments

Daylon R Thomas

I’m glad you liked it! I had a mixed opinion about the company at first. I tried them at a local coffee shop, and fell in love with their silver needle and Saigon Hebral. I really liked their approach to partnerships, and I’ve been using the Manual Gaiwan for years. I stopped buying a little bit after the Meishan they had, which I thought they overcharged for, but I think their selection has drastically improved selling some extremely unique teas. I just made a big order from them recently, and really look forward to what they’ve got. I am excited to see what you think of the other teas!

Evol Ving Ness

I am looking forward to hearing more about their teas from you both. goes to check their shipping to Canada policies

derk

Lucky you to have had their teas at a local joint. Some of their teas are a bit pricey and I did end up indulging in one of them. This Crescent Green is one of the cheapest ones and well worth the $0.24/g for my tastes!

It seems like you experience the same desire I do with wanting to try all the things so I like that Spirit Tea upped their package weight to minimum 50g. That encouraged me to be more thoughtful about my purchases. Hopefully everything in your big buy puts a smile on your face. I look forward to your notes, too :)

derk

Evol Ving Ness, the other day Leafhopper told me that their shipping to the great CA is only through DHL at $32. Maybe worth a group buy for you Canadians.

Leafhopper

Derk, there are no daffodils blooming here in snowy Toronto. :P Sounds like a nice green tea.

Evol Ving Ness, they only offer DHL to Canada and it starts at $32. This is sad, as they have some unique stuff.

Leafhopper

Derk, I think our comments overlapped. :) It seems to cost less to ship packages across the world than across the Canada–U.S. border.

Daylon, I also look forward to your notes on your Spirit Tea purchases. I hope there are some oolongs!

gmathis

Sigh. We’re weeks away from daffodil and crocus shoots yet. Green tea that sounds apricotty sounds like a lovely snatch of spring.

Daylon R Thomas

Leafhopper, I got three oolongs, two of them new-the Qin Xin/Jin Xuan hybrid and leafhopper bitten Dayuling, and two blacks, a Yin Hong and a Qilan fashioned into a black. I spent too much money…I have high hopes for all of them.

Leafhopper

Daylon, that’s a nice selection. I was looking at that Exuding Jade myself until I saw what it would cost to ship it to Canada.

Leafhopper

And of course, the bug-bitten Dayuling was what made me investigate the shipping charges in the first place. :)

Leafhopper

Derk, have you tried to gongfu this tea? It must be spring because I’m in a green tea mood.

derk

I haven’t yet

Leafhopper

Okay, I’ll go with Western since I want to avoid astringency and am not too confident about the proper gongfu steeping parameters for green tea.

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Bio

This place, like the rest of the internet, is dead and overrun with bots. Yet I persist.

Eventual tea farmer. If you are a tea grower, want to grow your own plants or are simply curious, please follow me so we can chat.

I most enjoy loose-leaf, unflavored teas and tisanes. Teabags have their place. Some of my favorite teas have a profound effect on mind and body rather than having a specific flavor profile.

Favorite teas generally come from China (all provinces), Taiwan, India (Nilgiri and Manipur). Frequently enjoyed though less sipped are teas from Georgia, Japan, and Nepal. While I’m not actively on the hunt, a goal of mine is to try tea from every country that makes it available to the North American market. This is to gain a vague understanding of how Camellia sinensis performs in different climates. I realize that borders are arbitrary and some countries are huge with many climates and tea-growing regions.

I’m convinced European countries make the best herbal teas.

Personal Rating Scale:

100-90: A tea I can lose myself into. Something about it makes me slow down and appreciate not only the tea but all of life or a moment in time. If it’s a bagged or herbal tea, it’s of standout quality in comparison to similar items.

89-80: Fits my profile well enough to buy again.

79-70: Not a preferred tea. I might buy more or try a different harvest. Would gladly have a cup if offered.

69-60: Not necessarily a bad tea but one that I won’t buy again. Would have a cup if offered.

59-1: Lacking several elements, strangely clunky, possesses off flavor/aroma/texture or something about it makes me not want to finish.

Unrated: Haven’t made up my mind or some other reason. If it’s puerh, I likely think it needs more age.

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