This is one tea that I have been meaning to review for some time. I ended up with a ton of it several months ago and have been working on polishing it off ever since. In a way it is kind of a difficult tea to evaluate fairly. Compared to most gunpowder green teas it is very simple and light in terms of aroma and flavor, yet it is also attractively full-bodied with a comparatively thick texture in the mouth. It isn’t the highest quality leaf in the world, yet one must also understand that the quantity and quality relative to price are both more than fair. Overall, you sort of get what you pay for with this tea, but for what you’re paying you could do worse.
I prepared this tea using the two step Western infusion process I tend to favor for many Chinese green teas. I started off by steeping one teaspoon of loose tea leaves in 8 ounces of 175 F water for 2 minutes. I then followed this infusion with a 3 minute infusion at the same temperature.
Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted light scents of char, hay, and grass. After infusion, the aromas of char, hay, and grass remained and were joined by aromas of roasted vegetables and lemon. In the mouth, I detected mostly muted notes of lemon, roasted Brussels sprouts, hay, grass, and char. The second infusion was somewhat milder than the first. The lemon and char aromas and flavors were slightly more pronounced and there was a very subtle mineral presence on the finish.
I’m not certain that I can justify a high score for this tea, but I will say that I think this is a good tea for when one is looking for something simple and straight-forward. Since it lacks complex aroma and flavor profiles that change significantly over the course of multiple infusions, I would also expect it to pair well with a range of dishes. It has its uses and it is somewhat appealing in certain ways, but it is also not the sort of tea about which I can get excited. Still, I would encourage anyone interested to try it if and when you are looking for something affordable, basic, and filling.
Flavors: Char, Grass, Hay, Lemon, Mineral, Roasted, Vegetables
