1 scant TB for 500mL water, nothing added.
I love jasmine tea. It can be tricky to brew, and I learned recently, thanks to this very site, that for years I’ve been using water that’s too hot. Water that’s too hot can scald tea leaves and blossoms and make the overall tea bitter.
Today, I followed instructions … at least, as best I could without a thermometer or fancy adjustable kettle.
Dry leaves are medium to long and twisted. Liquor is pale straw. Scent is heady and heavy with jasmine … with REAL jasmine. No fakery here. Assertive and pleasant finish. Clean mouth-feel, which I really like and generally only find in white teas.
The green tea, as another Steepsterite has noted, is not especially strong and is almost as delicate as white tea. Almost, but not quite: there’s a slight bit of vegetal and (ooh, look at me with my new word!) mineral tastes from the green tea. The mineral taste may come from my tap water, either; my city’s water supply comes from a lake. In winter, when the city lowers the chlorine levels, you can catch bits of reed and rocks in the water, very refreshing.
But back to the tea. The jasmine mouth-feel is fairly heavy; someone else compared it to soap. I wouldn’t go that far, but this is a serious jasmine tea. The scent alone intoxicates, in a good way; can’t wait for the jasmine “hit” from this brew. AHHHHH, there it is … laughter and smiles and peace. Any word on whether jasmine flowers are narcotic at all? ;)
Final note: aftertaste goes from clean to slightly powdery.
I slightly prefer the Dragon Pearls I got from my local teashop, but Andrews and Dunham’s Jasmine Green is also excellent. I’ll be sorry to finish this little tin, but I won’t be hoarding it, either.
