Jade Dragon Mao Feng Green Tea

Now this is actually a very nice green tea, greener and creamier than the pricier Huang Shan Mao Feng it replaced and different than the Emerald Mao Feng I suspected they would use as a replacement, of course these thing could vary from harvest to harvest and it is possible they still got it from the same plantation, ahem, garden. I did not read the description before trying this at the mall with my friend Michelle today (it was one of the ones she hadn’t gotten to) but I could smell the umami notes from the liquor, I know, I know umami is a taste but seriously, it smelled all green and savory and soybean like. The the taste was fresh and umami and felt very creamy, the new girl was raving about it as well. Good find, $5 bucks cheaper, not sure how it will reinfuse, but I probably won’t pay money to find out, I’m sure one of the current employees on here can let us know though.

Teavana is what started this huge tea journey for me years ago and while I have mostly moved on to other tea companies that have better quality teas that are typically cheaper, I still come back to Teavana once in a while to see what they have to offer. When they came out with the new teas this year I wasn’t particularly excited. I know most of their teas have too much add-ons and not enough tea and their straight are typically too expensive.

Anywho, to this actual tea. When I finally went onto the site to see what new stuff they added I was surprised to see a decent straight green tea that wasn’t $20 for 2 oz. Granted this was close to that but I decided I had to try it. I wasn’t very disappointing either. The first steep was really nice! It was fresh and slightly creamy and sweet with a hint of umami. Yum! It almost reminded me of a Japanese green tea. Very delicious!

Now the what’s keeping me from rating this any higher, because based on the first steep this would be a lot higher, is the second steep. The first steep holds so much wonderfulness, the second steep…well, not so much. It seems that the first steep takes everything good out of the tea and just leaves behind a typical green tea. Not to say that the second steep is bad, just not nearly as good as the first. The second steep leaves a lot to be desired is the best way I can put it.

At any rate the first steeping of this tea is pretty delicious and I wouldn’t lose an ounce of sleep if all I ever get out of this tea is only the first one.

I had someone asking about this…yesterday? Saturday? the past crazy weekend is a blur…but since I hadn’t tried it yet, I called over a co-worker of mine who is big into greens. He stated that he loved it, and said that it reminded him a bit of gyokuro, but that it is quite a bit sweeter. Which all made me more curious to try it myself. Since I’m feeling a bit under the weather at the moment (although I think now it might just be some inexplicable allergic reaction), green tea sounded nice.

And hey, this is quite nice.

I’m pretty sure my water was a smidge too hot when it hit the leaves, but nothing that made them un-salvageable. I’m drinking it unsweetened, but it doesn’t have a strong vegetal or grassy taste to it that would normally put me off the taste of an unsweetened green. There’s a few sweet notes in it

Oh my god, okay, it’s cooling now, and there’s some notes coming out that are really awesome. Scratch “some sweet notes,” there’s actually a lot of sweetness around the edges and maybe three-quarters back in the sip (is a spacial designation that specific utterly ridiculous? but I swear that is where it is) that is very pure, like golden honey. It’s kind of heavy, like cream…if you don’t mind sweetener, I bet a few drops of actual honey would really make that pop.

There’s another taste here though which is dominant, but which I was at a loss to describe. Autumn Hearth is the only other person who has reviewed this tea so far, and she described this tea as having a “umami” taste to it. I admit that I had no idea what that was, but I’ve seen several people describe green tea with it. It is clearly an important taste to understand, so I looked it up on Wikipedia. Wikipedia sez:

“A savory taste […] Now it is widely accepted as the fifth basic taste. Umami represents the taste of the amino acid L-glutamate and 5’-ribonucleotides such as guanosine monophosphate (GMP) and inosine monophosphate (IMP). Although it can be described as a pleasant “brothy” or “meaty” taste with a long lasting, mouthwatering and coating sensation over the tongue, umami has no translation. […] Umami has a mild but lasting aftertaste difficult to describe. It induces salivation and a sensation of furriness on the tongue, stimulating the throat, the roof and the back of the mouth…"

Well! That must be it! That’s what I’m tasting. Thanks, Autumn! (Also, a combination of “sweet” and “umami” basically describes my entire diet…)

…Oops, work just called me in. On my day off, sigh. (We have a guy who is quitting, he probably won’t ever show up again.) So I gotta go, and cannot review a re-infusion of these leaves, so it will have to wait.

Still, I’m happy! I think I finally found a green tea that I like enough to replace that orchid-infused green from Teaopia.

This is by far the best Teavana tea I’ve tried, and they had it for 75% off, so it only cost me a few bucks. The brewed tea is EXTREMELY light in color – the first time I steeped it, I was really confused, it looked like there was just water. The taste and smell are really unique, though. Supposedly, it’s supposed to have that “umami” flavor/smell. I don’t really know what that’s about, but there’s definitely something different about it. It also takes VERY well to multiple steepings, I’ve found that the second and third are often better than the first.

Overall, I highly recommend this, it’s given me a bit of renewed hope for Teavana.

We couldn’t decide where to eat one night so she called me and had me look up reviews of two different restaurants.

“Well,” I said, “there are mixed reviews. Some say it could be better. Others say its pretentious. They have good mashed potatoes, apparently. But the food might come out cold if its busy.”

“What’s another good review?” she asks.

I read some more and something catches my eye. I have to read it twice because I don’t understand it.

“I don’t know if this is good or bad,” I say, “Let me wrap my head around it for a second.”

I read it again. “I still don’t get it,” I say. “It doesn’t make any sense.”

“What does it say?” she asks.

“It says that this restaurant is like the movie ‘Labyrinth’…just without David Bowie.”

There is a pause on her end of the line. Then she says, “That might be the greatest review of a restaurant I’ve ever heard in my life. Now we have to go.”

So we went. ‘Labyrinth’ it was not. We had a nice meal but nothing amazing. You can’t always trust reviewers/bloggers/writers, no matter how well they think they can write or how creative they think they are.

…

I hope Teavana didn’t discontinue this tea because it is nowhere to be found. Shame, really. This is one of my favorite teas to fall back on. I’ve got about two teaspoons left and I’m a little disheartened at the prospect of having to find another green tea that I can feel confident enough to share and call my “go to” tea. I’m going to miss this when it’s gone…or until I find the exact same tea for half the price on another website ;)

After rinsing, the wet leaves smell faintly roasted brussel sprouts with olive oil. There’s a mellow, chocolate sweetness to the odor. I love the light, vegetal sugariness, the “umami” that stays lightly on the tongue. A hint, and I mean hint of mineral acidity. Clean, sweet and calm. My intro to green teas was great beginner’s luck. I’m happy to have found/drank/tasted it, regardless of where I bought it from.

Maybe its just Mao Feng but I have a special place for this tea in my tea-soaked heart.

…

Other than Steepster, I found only one other “review” of this tea that I wanted to compare my notes on. Trying to find information on the Internet is sometimes like walking through a labyrinth of misinformation and not-so-clever-attempts at advertising in the form of blog posts with links in the paragraphs. You eventually learn to identify who is getting paid to subtly sell you something and who is just writing it because they really enjoy/don’t like what they are trying.

That being said, if someone read the review I found on Jade Dragon to me when I was looking for a green tea to try, I would buy as much as I could based on this review alone:

“Perhaps the best choice. Is it essential to have info. We propose that the Teavana Jade Dragon Mao Feng Loose-Leaf Green Tea. It is a thing to be utilized as nicely. I am utilizing it now. It functions very nicely . Teavana Jade Dragon Mao Feng Loose-Leaf Green Tea to use as much, you can not skip it. Because the best thing. It is very likely. You ought to be utilized. The easy to use. I also use Teavana Jade Dragon Mao Feng Loose-Leaf Green Tea. It is amazing. The course is right for you. Perhaps I could use it. It functions nicely. I would recommend that you use. Then you will like it.”

…just without David Bowie.

My only concern with this tea is that if you wait too long between sips (like more than 40 seconds), the silky coating on your tongue gets complicated and when you do take another sip, you are left feeling a bit dry and tasting a bit bitter. But I think this is due to the secretion of saliva and the effect it produces when it lingers on the sweet taste buds. Altogether, not unpleasant and nothing another few sips can’t cure!

I’m looking forward to seeing what this tea will be like when I re-steep the leaves.. I think this is called “re-infusion”? I’m afraid i’m not terribly well versed in the language of all things tea :) I strongly suggest this tea to tea and non-tea drinkers alike, regardless of green tea preferences.

I got this tea purely by accident. I ordered from the Heavenly Sale in 2012 and they put 20z of this in by accident and they told me to just keep it. I am not a fan of straight green or white tea but I thought I would try some plain, just incase. This didn’t change my mind, I just don’t like tea without flavor. Plus I think I burned the leaves on this brew. The next time I made it i added a tsp. of Wild Orange Blossom (my favorite) and perfection! I gave the rating based on how it tastes with the orange.
Steep time: 45sc.-1 min.

I found this tea in my cabinet a little while ago still in its bag and I totally forgot I bought it. I was actually deciding whether I should keep it or throw it away. I had no idea when I bought it, if I had bought it online or in the store so I just decided I’ll smell it first to see if it’s still good. It smelled ok, so then I decided I’ll make a little tester glass to see what it tastes like. It actually didn’t taste that bad. It was very clean and fresh and had a nice buttery aftertaste. It’s very light bodied and can be enjoyed by anyone. Just be careful not to oversteep it or it will get bitter very easily.

I could pick up the umami as well, it made for an interesting cup. Not grassy either. Light n smooth.

Edit: had some more today, and let it cool off more. There’s an immediate light sweet note followed by the umami flavor. It’s almost meaty. The finish is crisp and peppery. I don’t think it pairs well with sweets such as cookies, but by itself or with a savory meal, it would be fantastic.

This really is the best tea that Teavana has had…ok maybe the best green tea. I truly did not know what to expect when I picked up 2 pounds of this tea on clearance for 60 bucks. I was amazed by the creaminess to this tea. It’s very flavorful…but I always do add more tea then they suggest. Overall I would definitely recommend this tea to anyone looking for a good green tea. I’ve got a lot and am willing to share…