Classic Laoshan Green Tea from Shandong * Spring 2017

Tea type
Green Tea
Ingredients
Green Tea Leaves
Flavors
Grass, Seaweed, Vegetable Broth, Vegetables, Broth, Chestnut, Fruity, Pleasantly Sour, Strawberry, Sweet, Vegetal, Asparagus, Honey, Lettuce, Malt, Maple, Mineral, Peas, Roasted Barley, Soybean, Spinach, Sugarcane, Toasted Rice, Vanilla, Walnut, Nutty, Umami, Butter
Sold in
Bulk, Loose Leaf
Caffeine
Not available
Certification
Not available
Edit tea info Last updated by eastkyteaguy
Average preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 2 min, 0 sec 6 g 5 oz / 159 ml

Currently unavailable

We don't know when or if this item will be available.

From Our Community

1 Image

2 Want it Want it

1 Own it Own it

7 Tasting Notes View all

  • “Seaweed, salty, bitter, vegetable, a little sour on the ending. A very pleasant and nice green that kept his full flavour after 2 years of storage.” Read full tasting note
    72
  • “A very good green tea, not as pungent and delicate as the imperial version, but in terms of the price/quality ratio they are comparable. The dry leaf smells of chestnut, seaweed with a hint of...” Read full tasting note
    83
  • “While I ordered the black version of this tea, and indeed Yunnan Sourcing marked my bag as such, what I received is this green version. Well, it’s Spring-time I suppose, so OK, why not: Picked in...” Read full tasting note
  • “I am very quickly getting caught up on my reviews. I should be able to completely clear the backlog within the next three days. This was another of my recent sipdowns, and I have to say that I was...” Read full tasting note
    93

From Yunnan Sourcing

Laoshan village is near Qingdao in the province of Shandong at an altitude of just 300 meters. Laoshan village is also near a sacred mountain, and not far from the ocean. Tea has been grown in Laoshan area for many generations. We are offering this “Imperial Grade” Laoshan Green tea made from the tippiest first flush of spring 2017 tea leaves.

Our Laoshan teas are grown by the Liang family, who have a small family operation growing Laoshan tea and doing all the processing of the tea themselves as well. You will notice that the tea is grown undercover of greenhouse which are fully covered in the winter to protect from frost and also in the earliest part of spring as well just as the leaves are starting to sprout. In the middle and later part of the first flush growth stage the coverings are removed and the tea bushes grow in full view of the sun until plucking in the first week of April. Our Classic Laoshan green is second flush tea, picked in the first week of May.

Our Classic Laoshan green tea is small leaf, tippy (but without silver hairs) and tightly rolled, but not compressed like a Tie Guan Yin. The varietal grown is Long Jing #43 and as such the tea from Laoshan shares it character. The Classic Laoshan taste is thick, pungent, savory and vegetal. It’s perhaps slightly less sweet than the first flush Imperial Grade, having slightly larger and thicker leaves gives this tea a more robust flavor. Many seasoned tea drinkers might appreciate the niceties of the the more elegant Imperial Grade, but may find themselves wanting to drink the Classic grade for it’s pungent green taste (which is very stimulating). I find the classic grade to be very enjoyable and a worthy counterpoint to the daintier Imperial grade.

We feel confident you will enjoy family-sourced Laoshan teas and invite you to try them all!

Area: Laoshan village near Qingdao in Shandong

Time of harvest: early May

About Yunnan Sourcing View company

Company description not available.

7 Tasting Notes

72
6 tasting notes

Seaweed, salty, bitter, vegetable, a little sour on the ending. A very pleasant and nice green that kept his full flavour after 2 years of storage.

Flavors: Grass, Seaweed, Vegetable Broth, Vegetables

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 0 min, 15 sec 3 g 3 OZ / 100 ML

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

83
943 tasting notes

A very good green tea, not as pungent and delicate as the imperial version, but in terms of the price/quality ratio they are comparable.

The dry leaf smells of chestnut, seaweed with a hint of sweet (maybe vanilla) aroma. Wet leaf has more of a beef broth smell, complemented by some fresh grassiness in the background.

The taste has a mix of brothy, vegetal, mildly bitter and surprisingly also fruity (strawberries) notes. My favourite steep is probably the third, because of the thicker texture, cooling aftertaste and a bit more astringency. Taste-wise, it is not extraordinary, but definitely a pleasant savoury drink with sour and fruity undertones. In fact, this infusion somehow resembles a brighter version of Dong Ding oolong. I know it sounds strange, and maybe I am just imagining it, but that’s what came to my mind now.

Flavors: Broth, Chestnut, Fruity, Pleasantly Sour, Seaweed, Strawberry, Sweet, Vegetal

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 1 min, 0 sec 6 g 5 OZ / 150 ML
Bluegreen

This is currently the highest-rated YS green tea. Wow. I guess I have no choice but to add it to my next order.

tea-sipper

Laoshan green is one of my favorites, no matter who sells it. Yum.

Togo

Indeed, Laoshan green teas are a great midpoint between Japanese and Chinese green tea in my mind, possessing qualitites of both.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

73 tasting notes

While I ordered the black version of this tea, and indeed Yunnan Sourcing marked my bag as such, what I received is this green version. Well, it’s Spring-time I suppose, so OK, why not:

Picked in April, 2017 (likely a few days after my son was born), this might no longer be at the peak of freshness. I’m also using filtered Santa Monica tap water, no scale, and no thermometer – so my results could probably be improved upon – although this tea seems very forgiving.

Infused at 15, 30, 45, 60, and 90 seconds. The liquor is a a lemon-lime-like shade of chartreuse. Nutty, vegetal, almost briney aroma with notes of wakame, and hay initially. The flavor follows the nose, adding in some fresh herbs (oregano?) and melon in the finish. More sweetness and less complexity towards the end of the session. Dry but not drying – energizing but not excessively so. Fairly rich and clean overall – hard to over-steep.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 0 min, 15 sec 3 tsp 5 OZ / 147 ML

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

93
1048 tasting notes

I am very quickly getting caught up on my reviews. I should be able to completely clear the backlog within the next three days. This was another of my recent sipdowns, and I have to say that I was sad to see this tea go. It was an impressive and thoroughly likable green tea.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a flash rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 176 F water for 5 seconds. This infusion was chased by 14 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 7 seconds, 9 seconds, 12 seconds, 16 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry tea leaves emitted aromas of honey, toasted rice, and roasted chestnut. After the rinse, I detected emerging aromas of spinach, asparagus, and roasted walnut. The first infusion then brought out something like a combination of soybean and sugarcane on the nose. In the mouth, the tea liquor offered notes of roasted chestnut, roasted walnut, asparagus, spinach, soybean, and toasted rice balanced by more delicate impressions of honey and sugarcane. Subsequent infusions introduced impressions of maple candy, vanilla, lettuce, grass, malt, peas, seaweed, minerals, and roasted barley. The final infusions presented lingering notes of minerals, seaweed, and grass chased by fleeting toasted rice, soybean, and sugarcane impressions.

Though I have seen some tea snobs thumb their noses at the green and black teas coming out of Laoshan, I am a huge fan of them and find them to be some of the most consistently pleasant and accessible teas on the market. This was yet another high quality Laoshan offering, one that would make a fantastic daily drinker or a great introduction to Chinese green teas. As I found this to still be a great tea nearly a year after harvest, I would recommend that those who just have to have a large amount of green tea around for regular consumption make a point of picking this one up if it is still available.

Flavors: Asparagus, Chestnut, Grass, Honey, Lettuce, Malt, Maple, Mineral, Peas, Roasted Barley, Seaweed, Soybean, Spinach, Sugarcane, Toasted Rice, Vanilla, Walnut

Preparation
6 g 4 OZ / 118 ML

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

94
167 tasting notes

This is a wonderful green tea. It has everything you’re looking for – sweet, floral, vegetal, fruity, savory, nutty… It also responds well to different brewing parameters to pull out the flavors you’re looking for. Really a classic tea at an unbeatable price.

Most notable for me was this tea’s marine notes and fruitiness. It has some saltiness and nori-like umami that added a great dimension to the tea. Also has a really powerful fruity taste both in-mouth and in the aftertaste. It’s like a mix between sencha, green oolong, and Chinese green tea.

Also really good for grandpa style – it stays rich and flavorful for quite a while and does not overbrew to anything harsh or unpleasant.
*
Dry leaf – toasted nuttiness, sweet like vanilla/maple confectionery, chocolate, soft sweet herbal, fresh mint and cilantro. In preheated vessel – honey butter, cream, cinnamon, yeast roll notes arrive.

Smell – honey butter, hint of cinnamon, edamame, vanilla/maple, mint

Taste – nori, edamame, marine air, cinnamon, honey butter, yeast roll, hints of chocolate, honeydew melon, mint, coconut, notes of pineapple in aftertaste

https://www.instagram.com/p/BgedQXdBZn0/?taken-by=apefuzz

tanluwils

I liked this one too. Hope to get me some again this year.

southwestender

Nice review, this tea went on my wish list.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

88
1 tasting notes

This tea was a great surprise for me after ordering it. I bought 250g and wish I purchased more. this tea does well in a giwan, but I prefer it grandpa style as it gold onto its thickness and body longer than many other styles of green tea. The flavors are strong, yet smooth with absolutely no bitterness unless you use boiling water( I may have done this once or twice). Anyway, this tea has a wonderful nutty/umami flavor and thickness that makes me want to drink it over and over again.

Flavors: Nutty, Umami

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 8 min or more 10 g 7 OZ / 200 ML
apefuzz

Just tried this grandpa style after doing gong fu the other sessions. Absolutely fantastic.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

100
661 tasting notes

I’ve had this tea for a few weeks and have been enjoying it but failed to leave a review until now. Of course it’s just as good as last years tea. This is one tea that remains a staple in my tea cupboard. It’s not fussy when brewing. It’s got an in-between caffeine punch for a green tea. Some might think it has quite a bit for a green tea since it’s pretty robust but it still doesn’t have as much punch as a sencha or gyokuro.

Best of all – the taste. Oh the taste of this tea! Buttery, slightly sweet, nutty, spinach, & a good umami. All the things I love in a green tea. It’s a top notch tea I can even brew at work. What the heck, why bother figuring out a rating for this tea? I love it so it’s 100.

Also want to add that this tea is such a good price at Yunnan Sourcing.

Flavors: Butter, Nutty, Spinach, Sweet, Umami

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 1 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML
Doug F

Wow. High praise indeed. This will go on my YS wishlist. I almost exclusively drink Japanese greens for the intense flavor, so I think I’ll like the “punch” on this one.

LuckyMe

How does it compare to Verdant’s Laoshan? Would love to be able to buy a similar quality tea from YS for less.

apefuzz

Definitely not a fussy tea. I like being able to pull out more savory notes by upping the temps a little bit. Really satisfying.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.