Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea

Just got the fresh spring harvest of this in, and as always it’s a soothing delight. I’m not really noticing any different notes from previous harvests, but my stash of those are LONG gone, so it’s not like I can compare them side by side. Glad to have this in the cupboard again.

My second cup of tea since the Great Detox of 2014. It has a much stronger, greener, buttered-vegetables flavor than yesterday’s exquisitely delicate Hou Kui – both part of my Teavivre preorder. I have never really appreciated Long Jing. I’m just not much of a sensitive soul and require stronger flavors. I don’t know if it’s the recent detox or the fact that this is the year’s fresh batch, but I could drink this every day. There is no shortage of flavor here, and it leaves a delicious aftertaste too.

I received a set of sample from Teavivre this morning, thanks so much again to Angel of Teavivre.
I never had Dragon well before but this tea is exactly the kind of green I can drink : it is a mellow green, finally it exists even if I already met one in my life, this is a rare quality with so many greens.
The texture is almost like an Oolong. Taste is quite vegetal but with nutty notes. A very light acridness at the very end of the sip but pleasant.

This is really a good surprise for me : a straight green I can drink with a lot of pleasure.

Mmmmmm, this tea is so fresh tasting! It’s like tasting Spring! This is another sample Angel sent me. Thanks, Angel! It really makes me rethink green tea. I’ve had a hard time really enjoying green teas, except for toasty genmaicha, but this is really hitting the spot!

It’s so fresh, like the leaves were just plucked from the farm. Amazing! I had a cup directly after another dragon well from another company and this one was noticeably fresher. It could be that the other company’s sample was probably sent to me about a year ago, though, which proves the point that green teas should be enjoyed as soon as you get them. Good to know. ;) I’ll have to make sure of that in the future!

The Leaf: Very long, flat, and light. buds and fuzz very visible. generally a fresh green look to them. scent is not weak, with a nice roasted grass fragrance

The Brew: The liquor is very light green, not cloudy, almost white or clear. The aroma is quite strong with fresh grass and roasted tones. The taste is nice and grassy but light with a light body. leaves almost no dryness on the tongue.

I drink all of my teas cold.

This morning, courtesy of Angel Chen & TeaVivre, I brewed Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Green Tea Western style: 7g / 8 oz / 176*F / rinse, 1, 2, 3 min. without sweeteners, milk, or cream. (This sample packet contained 7 g.)

Intro: I’ve been enjoying black tea all my life. To date, my green tea experience has been limited to Gunpowder Green tea. This is my first ever cup of Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Jing. Why have I waited so long to explore better quality green teas?

Leaf: Beautiful uniformly large – 4 cm long x 6mm wide & flat
Fragrance: A very pleasant green tea fragrance that is hard to describe given my experience as a black tea drinker.
Liquor: Light gold
Aroma: Moderately sweet
Flavor:
1 min.: Wow! TeaVivre’s Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Jing is so smooth, rich and thick. It’s like a slightly salty, sweet butter with savory notes. There is no hint of astringency, bitterness, or off-putting strong vegetal flavors. I’m very impressed with this excellent green tea in just the first cup!

2 min.: The 2nd cup tastes like the first with just slightly less butter & slightly stronger savory notes. There’s no hint of astringency, bitterness, or off-putting strong vegetal flavors.

3-min.: A well-balanced cup that is both a little less buttery & savory than the 2nd steep, but still very smooth. Like the 1st & 2nd steeps, there’s no hint of astringency, bitterness, or off-putting strong vegetal flavors.

Impression: This buttery-smooth green tea should not to be missed – highly recommended!

Thanks to Angel Chen and TeaVivre for their gracious sample of this superb tea!

Method:
RO water re-mineralized with an Aptera filter http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/39532-puregen-aptera-alkamag-water-filter
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/37731-my-weigh-durascale-d2-660-digital-scale
Brewed western-style conveniently in a tea mug with a brew basket http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/29177-finum-brewing-basket.
http://steepster.com/teas/davidstea/36677-thermometer-and-timer

Very Nice tea

This tea is so good! I’m on a green tea kick and this is by far the best one I’ve tasted. It’s light, crisp, sweet, refreshing, and smooth. Oh, it has a definite mineral quality to it – amazing. I’ll be ordering a tin of it soon. (Thanks for the sample, Angel!)

This is one of the better draon wells that I have tasted. It is light yellow in color with a sweet smell. The taste is also light with a vegatable like sweetness.

Probably the best Dragon Well teas we’ve tried ever, bar none.
We are not into bitterness at all, so we use a lower temp and not too many leaves.
This tea is smooth and not too tannic at all. Very nutty aroma. Flavor has hints of Chinese Five Spice and pineapple. Some floral hints, too — rose.

It is not as strong/bold/tannic as their Premium Dragonwell (which is another stunning tea), but is softer with very similar characteristics.

Teavivre is a company we are discovering and really learning to trust. So far we are loving their teas and customer service.