White Thunder by The Love Tea Company, a mint white tea that also happens to be the last of the three teas sent to me by CuppaGeek as part of the Tea It Forward program. I have mentioned it before and will mention it again because Tea It Forward is a great program that allows you to let someone know they’re loved and in doing so, a $1 donation to The Flagg Foundation for Mental Wellness is made in your name.
The tea utilizes a Bai Mu Dan base with peppermint and spearmint on top. This makes for a more full and floral tea thanks to the base. It is sweet and mild and despite the strong mint ingredients, the flavoring remains gentle and smooth. Overall it is very fresh and clean while also being very natural tasting. The Love Tea Company says the White Thunder name is drawn from the Boom and Crack sounds of your taste buds loving this blend but to me the natural and fresh taste of the tea is more comforting and reminiscent of the feeling one might get while sipping on tea and listening to the cracks of thunder outside (as a storm lover, this is a very calming scenario for me).
Since The Love Tea Company was so generous with their samples, I was also able to try this iced and see how it compares to the hot cup. My first impression of the iced tea is that the bai mu dan is far more floral iced than hot. I think for me, it is too floral here as the mint is more of an after thought as opposed to a partner. It is not bad, but it is more like drinking just a plain bai mu dan than a flavored one and given white teas are not my favorite, I am finding that I prefer the hot cup of this more.
This tea definitely has some high quality ingredients and the flavors are nicely balanced in the hot cup. It is a delightful tea that is flavorful enough to be interesting while also remaining mild enough that it is easy to drink and drink and drink. As someone who doesn’t love white teas, especially bai mu dans, I was surprised I enjoyed this like I did. Thank you CuppaGeek for sending this one to me to try and even better, I am glad in doing so that you also helped a great cause!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: The Love Tea Company
Description
Bai Mudan, also known as White Peony is a type of white tea made from pluckings of one leaf shoot and two immediate young leaves. Bai Mudan is sometimes preferred by white tea drinkers for its fuller flavor and greater potency than other major types of white tea. For an extra kick, peppermint and spearmint are added to this blend. Boom, crack, that’s the sound of your taste buds loving this blend.
Caffeine: Medium
Steep 2 teaspoons @ 195° for 3 – 5 minutes
Ingredients: White tea, bai mu dan, peppermint, spearmint
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Bai Mudan Organic White Tea from Samovar Tea Lounge
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Samovar Tea Lounge
Tea Description:
Hand-picked, sun dried for three days, baked, then cured. Woody hints of roasted hazelnuts, and sweet corn. Lingering notes of hot cocoa. A golden infusion to soothe monkey mind. Explore the darkest of the white teas.
Tea Type: White
Origin: Fujian Province, China.
Caffeine Level: Low
Processing Details: Hand-picked, dried under the sunlight for 1-3 days and then briefly oxidized from 30 minutes to 3 hours, varying by weather, before being baked to package.
Tasting and Aroma Specs: Smooth, sweet, woody flavor with hints of roasted walnuts, sweet corn, and hot cocoa.
Food Pairing: Any dessert, including chocolate walnut brownies and Samovar’s Honeycomb Platter.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The aroma of Bai Mudan Organic White Tea from Samovar Tea Lounge is so scrumptious that I almost don’t want to drink it, but I will. You don’t have to twist my arm either! I am not a big fan of white tea as a rule, but when I find one that I do like, I am overjoyed! I like this one a lot! Samovar spares no effort in finding the best teas to offer their consumers. I only wish there were a Samovar Tea Lounge local to me. I am happy that they offer their fine teas to us online, and if you keep reading you will find a special surprise for their online customers!
I agree that this tea would pair lovely with a dessert as mentioned in Samovar’s tea pairing suggestion, because it has such a sweet, yet earthy quality to it. I can see how it would compliment dessert beautifully. The notes of sweet corn are prominent, and the cup provides a full, but cleansing mouthfeel. I love the earthy flavor in this tea, and there is such a wonderful caramelized note within it but my taste buds keep going back to the more woodsy, nutty notes. There is also almost a mineral like quality to the tea that is deeply intriguing. A bit like a Wuyi rock mineral flavor without the oolong taste.
There is a velvety, buttery sensation on the palate as I allow it to sit in my mouth, and it causes a mouth watering effect in a slightly vegetal way. The tea finishes with a dash of sweetness that lingers on the palate but as you exhale you taste fresh hay, sunlit fields, a very slight flavor or sesame. I also think this tea would pair wonderfully with Asian food.
This tea is so mysterious, so much mystique, it romances your mouth and makes you want to just take sip after sip to uncover the next note, the next tease on your tongue. The sensation in the mouth long after the sip leaves it feeling slightly numbing, but not medicinal. It is sparkly and tingly, and kind of trippy.
And now, for a limited time, you can use coupon code sororiteasisters for 25% off any online order! The coupon is active now, and is good through May 11, 2013. This is an amazing discount offered by our friends at Samovar Tea Lounge. Thank you to Samovar for offering this special discount to our readers! The coupon is active now, and is good through May 11, 2013.
The head feel of this tea is something else! It leaves you feeling heady, dreamy, and a bit outside of yourself. This is a tea to drink before and after meditation, or when you just want to release and escape from the troubles of the world. Perhaps with a great book, or movie. This is like the champagne of tea, not to steal from the description of a darjeeling, but this is a tea you could toast to or serve at a romantic occasion, or as an aphrodisiac! It does release stress and gives you a freeing feeling.
Love it!
White Persian Melon from Golden Moon Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Golden Moon Tea
Tea Description:
First in the world to find flavored white tea, Golden Moon Tea presents rare white tea enlivened with the nectar of succulent melon. This luxurious delicacy is light, refreshing and exotic.
Ingredients: White Bai Mudan Tea Scented with Sweet Melon Nectar
WHY IT’S SPECIAL:
** Persian Melon has a flavor that is a mix between a cantaloupe and a honeydew
** Uses the flavor of the Persian Melon, which is a popular flavor in the Middle East
** Emits a sweet and refreshing aroma of freshly cut melons
** The subtly of the White Tea base allows the Persian Melon to shine
** Fantastic iced
WHAT TO BE CAREFUL OF:
** This tea is only for those who love cantaloupe and/or honeydew
** The Middle Eastern Persian Melon is rarely found in the U.S.
** The melon flavor is assertive, yet balanced
** White Persian Melon has low amounts of caffeine
** Recommended for up to 3 steeps
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
White Persian Melon from Golden Moon Tea is one of my top five favorites from this company.
There is just such a light and lively flavor to this delicate Bai Mudan. The aroma is sweet and juicy fresh and reminds me of why I am longing for summer.
This tea is so excellent iced but also wonderful hot.
I love cantaloupe but unfortunately eating it gives me a headache every time, but this tea I can drink endless amounts of with no nagging headache. Perhaps this is due to it being Persian melon and not cantaloupe but the flavor profile is very similar and I can get my cantaloupe fix this way. It is a little lighter than cantaloupe though and I see where the description of a mix between cantaloupe and honeydew comes in because honeydew to me was always a bit more watery in flavor.
White Persian Melon also has a tad bit of a wine like flavor to me, almost bordering on a brandy like essence which I really enjoy.
As the tea cools even slightly the sweetness peeks out more. I would not personally add sweeteners to this tea although I could really see the flavors explode with it, especially a sweetened iced tea. I just usually try not to add sugar to my tea and I really do not feel this one needs it. I can see how adding sugar could take it from this light refreshing state to a decedent dessert tea.
Unfortunately I only have a sample of this one, thanks to a Steepster.com friend, but this is one I plan to order for summer time sipping!
White Peony (Bai Mudan) from Peony Tea S.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Peony Tea S.
Tea Description:
The White Peony from Fuding is one of the most popular authentic White Tea around with its sweet aftertaste and refreshing taste. Affordably priced, there is no better time to try this remarkable tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Up until a couple of years ago, I would have considered myself to be quite a novice when it comes to white teas, having only tried one or two up until that point. Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to try quite a few white teas, but still, I am learning more about it each time I try a new-to-me white tea.
It wasn’t until very recently (within the last year or so?) that I started to notice a distinct difference between Bai Mu Dan teas. Many (if not most) tea companies out there carry a Bai Mu Dan, but even though they have the same name, not all Bai Mu Dan teas are “equal.” And one thing that I’ve learned is that the dry leaf of a Bai Mu Dan will tell you a good deal about the quality of the tea.
For example, the tea leaves here are large and whole. There are varying shades of color to the leaves, starting from a very pale grey-white color, to a pale silvery-green, to a light tan. The leaves feel soft to the touch and are covered in tiny, white hairs (sort of like a fuzzy down). These different qualities tell me a few things: these leaves have been handled with a great deal of care and they are of high quality.
The color of the liquor is a gorgeous color – it’s almost alabaster. Even with as many white teas that I’ve consumed over the past few years, I think only a handful of them (at most) had such a pale color liquor. But that doesn’t mean that it lacks flavor.
The flavor here is delicate, but, it is so lovely. It tastes sweet and clean, reminding me a bit of hay and fresh sweet grass. It has a very smooth texture to it, almost like silk, and the finish is dry with a dry, sweet aftertaste that reminds me of the winter air. That cool, crisp “taste” of the mountain air in the winter … that is the taste that notice in the aftertaste.
It is an extraordinarily soothing tea: calm and serene. Even though I know there is caffeine in this, the delicate, luxurious quality to this tea inspires a sense of relaxation from within.
An excellent White Peony, this!
