Red Dragon Pearl

Thanks to terri for sending some of this my way, I also got some in thepuriTea reserve black tea sampler I just got. Couldn’t resist the free shipping deal they have going on.

I wasn’t sure how many pearls to use exactly so I ended up with 5 in a mug of tea. This may have been not enough leaf because the tea seems a bit watered down to me. I am getting the lovely malty aroma and flavor and yes, there is a bit of apple like fruitiness present, which is really cool. So far I like it but I need more tea vs. less water I think. Not going to do a rating for now. Has anyone tried to gong fu this? I might need to!

This a sample from the box that LiberTEAS sent me forever ago (I always forget to thank her for all the wonderful samples she included!). I’m trying to work through all the samples that I have because quite frankly there are too many to handle and it overwhelms me sometimes. I guess that’s kind of good, though, because it just means that I have a LOT of different kinds of tea to enjoy.

This is nice. I don’t think it’s a secret that I really enjoy a good black tea (it’s my favorite tea variety). This is no exception. The little balls brew up a beautiful, dark red-brown liquid that is very delicious! It’s very bold and malty, and reminds me a lot of an Assam, though the website states that it’s from Yunnan. I don’t get a lot of the nuances that they state. The main flavor I taste (I’m on my second infusion now, boiling water for 7 minutes, and the leaves have held up the same flavor as the first) is the cocoa note. It’s more of a dark chocolate, as others have said. It’s full bodied and has a slightly sweet tang at the swallow. There’s pretty much no astringency.

I did enjoy this and I hope to try more teas from thepuriTEA soon!

Time for more tea and this shall be yet another sample that I can remove from my cupboards. I have been busy trying to find some cool designs to make with my laces on my new shoes but there are so many designs out there I’m just not sure what to pick. I also made an orange sponge cake this morning to surprise my husband with when he gets home.

Anyway let me get to the review. I have 5 pearls/balls and shall be using my new teapot again to brew them. Unfortunately they have very little scent whilst raw so at this point I can only imagine what they will taste like other than the musky malt scent I could detect.

Once steeped the tea is dark brown/red (mahogany) in colour with a rich malt aroma with a musky sweetness.

So far this tea is very similar to other black tea based pearls/balls but this one seems to be a little muskier and not as sweet. The malt is rich with a cocoa like sweet/sourness to it and dark musky tones. It’s smooth in body with those sour tones coming through just before the after taste of thick malt.

It’s so similar though to other pearls that I am wondering if they all come from the same manufacturer? I mean they are from the same place being Yunnan, China.

Malty! I love a malty tea and this is no different. It does remind me of a similar tea from Teavana, but I like this one better. I’m getting the cocoa hints as promised with this one. I’m really picking up the malty flavor and a hint of spice too. I used two too many balls in this cup. But thankfully I was looking for a strong wake-up call with my first cup of tea. I must say we have a winner here! This is a really great full bodied tea. It will be on my next order with thepuriTea!

Sweetish, woody, malty and a bit smoky with fruit tones.

These are pretty delish little pearls. Thanks, Sil, for finding more and sharing!! :)

These pearls are so fat! I love them.

Steeped 3 of them, instead of 2, per 8 oz. of boiling water. That totally did the trick. It tasted better now than I remember. Brown sugar notes seemed more disctinct and the body fuller – a great start of the day.

The liquor looked a little “dusty” but it was probably my fault since I hadn’t rinsed the leaves – I hate doing it because I feel like I waste water :( So I usually don’t.

As I went to research information on this tea for review purposes, I discovered to my dismay that thepuriTea actually closed, as of December 31, 2013. However, I already had in my possession a sample of these intriguing tea pearls, and it was decided that the review should continue – thank you, Terri HarpLady for the sample. (When have defunct tea companies ever stopped me, before?)

Instructions for steeping this pearl tea involve six pearls, eight ounces of just-boiled water, and three minutes of steeping time. Just before dropping them in my mug and dousing them with water, I inhale the aroma of the dried tea…not too strong with just a touch of maltiness, somewhat like an Assam. Into the cup goes the tea and water, and my timer is set for three minutes.

Contemplating the myriad varieties of tea, which are formed into pearls, I have often wondered how many of those are just gimmicks (due to their form). I have tried jasmine green tea in pearl-form and loose-form, yet one was only better than the other based on the quality of the tea and not the manner in which it was packed. I could make a comparison to loose versus compressed pu’erh, but the reasons for one over the other, there, are far different than for most green and black teas.

My three minutes are done and so is my tea. Decanting it from the brewing vessel into a pre-heated mug, the smell now is more reminiscent of molasses with the undertone of malt. Perhaps due to the three-minute steep time, the scent is quite light. Then I take a sip of the tea. Initially, the flavor seems small, but it explodes across the palate with a sweetness that is unexpected. The molasses and malt flavors are combined with cocoa undertones in a deliciously complex combination of tastes. I drink my way through the cup, slowly, enjoying the nuances and ways, in which this tea shows off the various facets of its flavor.

Adventurously (and for the sake of my curiosity), I decide to resteep the leaves, while I am sipping the first cup. This time, they are left in my two-cup brewing vessel with just-boiled water for an indeterminate, long time (twenty-plus minutes). The result is much darker, due to the extra time, but surprisingly low in astringency. Cocoa notes have become more dominant, but the flavor is still reminiscent of that first, tasty cup.

I am very glad that I got to try this tea, before it became unavailable. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate thepuriTea’s Red Dragon Pearl Tea an 86/100.

I won these in the Art Contest that AmazonV held – thanks AmazonV!

Having tried (and loved) something similar from Teavana, I was very curious about these pearls. Alas, since I don’t have the pearls from Teavana anymore … I can’t do a side by side.

Anyway… this is nice. There is a slight smokiness to it but I don’t find it off-putting, perhaps because it’s paired so nicely with the chewy, bake-y flavor of it. And the malty note is quite pleasing.

I like!

Yikes,what an odd tea!
I’m generally not a black tea fan (get that out there). This one smelled and tasted strongly of chocolate and cocoa powder to me. I may have made it a bit strong (used 4 balls for about 12 oz). A tad astringent and as described bittersweet.

Like another reviewer said, this is a nifty tea. I need to spend more time with it, but I like its sweetness and its light body.