This tea looks like Pine Needles! I am also told that this tea has a vegetal aroma and taste to it. If it tastes like Taiping Hou Kui, I’m sure I’ll love this tea.
Leaf Quality
The dry leaves are very thin, and deep green. They are also very delicate- the slightest touch of one of these leaves could brake it in 3 pieces. They smelled sweet, and floral. The wet leaves had the smell and consistency of cooked Spinach. I even noticed a very slight sulfuric aroma, as in cooked broccoli or cabbage. This tea, just by the leaves, was very vegetal indeed.
Brewed Tea
The brewed tea smelled of buttered Brussels Sprouts, which I happen to like (I know! How strange!) The color was a hue of lime green, but very clear. I could mistake this for a vegetable base in a soup. The taste was vegetal, and almost savory. However, this tea was also slightly sweet, and it reminded me of Sugarsnap Peas. How much vegetables have I mentioned so far?
This tea is very different in character to Taiping Hou Kui, which is more sweet, and less vegetal. Also, this tea is more robust. The taste does not change very much between steeps either. This tea still succeeds in pleasing the palate.
Love B-sprouts!
Thank goodness I’m not the only one! LOL. So many people give me weird looks when I tell them I like Brussels Sprouts.