We don't know when or if this item will be available.
“I was surprised to receive an unopened 10 g sample of this from a Steepsterite. Even more surprising is that Camellia Sinensis reviewed and boosted the rating for this tea, most likely to justify...” Read full tasting note
“Hmmm. Unfortunately I just can’t seem to brew this tea in a way that I like it. I get a decent Chinese green tea taste, with a fair bit of minerals, but other than that it just feels weak with no...” Read full tasting note
“This is a sweet and lightly nutty tea with a unique look and lots of flavor. I brewed this one in a tall glass to accentuate the leaves. I used 2 grams of the leaves with 160-165 F water poured...” Read full tasting note
“Extremly delicate green tea ma de with beautiful long leaves.” Read full tasting note
It takes one hour of twisting dirt roads in the Huang Shan mountains ånd ån hour on å boat to reach the breathtaking garden of Tai Ping Hou Kui. This isolated garden takes a∂vantage of the fresh mountain air and the constant mist, ideal for this style of tea. Long, flat leaves are transformed manually in the tiny family factory of Mr.Ye. A rolling between two fine grills and wood-fired gives the bright yellow liquor notes of grilled squash, asparagus and fennel. This famous tea with its well rounded aromatic relief best såvoured in a quiet moment of contemplation.
Company description not available.
I was surprised to receive an unopened 10 g sample of this from a Steepsterite. Even more surprising is that Camellia Sinensis reviewed and boosted the rating for this tea, most likely to justify the price they are charging at $58.25 for 1.76 oz. The 10 g sample I got is thus a $10 sample! Much thanks for the opportunity to try this.
Tai Ping Hou Kui is one of China’s 10 Famous Teas, and the real stuff is grown from a larger leaf tea cultivar known as Shi Da Cha. To be the genuine stuff, it must be from one of three villages in the Anhui Province at the foot of Hwang Shan (mountains). The pluck is 1 bud/ 3 leaf and then a repluck is done at the local small factory by hand to remove 2 of the four leaves. This is part of the expense of this tea, as no branch without the bud should be picked, and the leaf with the bud must be perfectly straight. Next it is partially dried in bamboo, and then heated three times in the bamboo over charcoal. After this the leaves are laid flat by hand onto mesh screens and a roller is used on the screens to press the straight leaf/bud combo flat and straight. Then the tea is dried in the screens.
After all this, yet another quality inspection is done and the final product is sorted and graded. The top quality earning the title of Tai Ping Hou Kai must have 1 bud/1 leaf exclusively. Any leaf missing a bud, chopped bud, any 3rd or 4th leaves, any loose leaves, any chopped leaves must be labeled Hou Jian and sold under that name.
A tea is not a Famous Tea worthy of the title unless it is what it is supposed to be. The criteria for this tea is one of the strictest and extensive, not to mention all the processing involved. It must be judged by this criteria, especially with the high prices associated with this tea. This tea is also made and sold from villages outside of the Three, and may be just as good, but it is sold as a fake and few would ever be able to tell.
This tea is not fake, but my sample is Hou Jian. Being a sample, and undergoing all the shipping and handling would no doubt break buds off. But in 5 grams brewed I found 1 intact bud/leaf, a few broken off buds, lots of extra leaves and a lot of chopped leaves. Looking at the rest of the bag, it is all leaves and chop. The mix is dark green with some yellow ones, the color should be more of a uniform medium green, not dark green.
As a Hou Jian, this tastes pretty good. Because the leaf is already heated over charcoal 3x, you get the taste of a stronger Dragonwell flavor without needing to fuss over the water temperature. The tea is already scorched so it can take hot water. I got a good 5 quick steeps of 5 grams in 115 ml water before the flavor gave out. Very warm, a little spice from the char, yellow soup. For me the flavor is like a Dragonwell/Longjing but more intensely so.
Would I recommend this? Sure, but not at this price. You can get basically this same tea at 1/5 the cost on a lot of other sites. They will call it Tai Ping Hou Kui too, but only charge you $13/oz. Still pricey, but even Hou Jian has a lot of processing behind it. I am doubtful that the real Tai Ping would be sold outside of China and especially not to a western buyer. It is an imperial product. So, buy yourself some “Tai Ping” and know that Camellia Sinensis isn’t really doing anything different from other western vendors, but their price is high and it is going to be Hou Jian no matter where you buy it, so might as well just get the best price you can someplace else.
My rating is for taste, I quite liked the tea.
Flavors: Dry Grass, Green, Spicy
Hmmm. Unfortunately I just can’t seem to brew this tea in a way that I like it. I get a decent Chinese green tea taste, with a fair bit of minerals, but other than that it just feels weak with no character.
I love the shape of how pretty these leaves are, but dare I say that this is a tea that is even too delicate for me.
New Ranking
Taste = 82
Representation = 80
Price = 19.1
New Ranking of 60.35
This is a sweet and lightly nutty tea with a unique look and lots of flavor. I brewed this one in a tall glass to accentuate the leaves. I used 2 grams of the leaves with 160-165 F water poured over them, steeping for 3 minutes. I did three infusions thus far. It could likely go for more.
hahah, afraid it wasn’t unopened! I helped myself to a pot. It is super pricey though, the only reason I bought it was so that I could do a comparison to the Teasenz “Monkey Picked”.
I’ve been pretty satisfied by Camellia Sinensis in the past, so if they did buy an artificial Tai Ping Hou Kui, I’m inclined to believe it wasn’t intentional.
It wasn’t opened though, I had to tear off the top. Anyway the real Tai Ping, an imperial product, would be gift boxed to the nines in China. The leaf would have to be 100% intact as a 1 leaf/1 bud, exquisite condition, and the price would be high like it is here. The whole idea of this tea is the look of the leaf, more than for just about any other tea, the long and perfectly straight and flat, uniform combination.
you had to tear off the top? That’s strange, I just closed the ziplock seal in the bag. Unless it got so hot in the USPS truck/plane that it sealed itself!
Yeah judging from what you said it most likely isn’t the real deal, but I trust Camellia Sinensis so I’m inclined to believe that they bought the wrong one on accident (or were told that they were buying the real deal).
No, this would just be usual practice for this tea. The vast majority of leaf wouldn’t turn out perfectly, and it has to be shaped straight and that is the luck of the pluck, as it were. A factory would have a lot of tea to sell that isn’t premium. Hou Jian is the same tea, undergoing the same process, it is just broken leaf. Everyone is doing the same thing, buying bulk Hou Jian, so the only thing Camellia Sinensis is guilty of is overcharging. If you look at other sites, “Tai Ping” goes for around $13-15 an ounce.
Check out this page, and scroll down to the section called “Modern Process” and you will see these individual and perfect leaves laid out one by one on the screens. This is true Tai Ping Hou Kai. These leaves are treated better than a diapered baby. As you can imagine, a lot of lead won’t be this perfect, so it would graded Hou Jian. Tastes the same, but not Imperial quality.
http://hojotea.com/item_e/g07e.htm
I love the detail you put into the description. No wonder the ‘real tea’ is so expensive!