Floral teas done just right can really deliver an experience like no other tea can. There is something so romantic, so alluring, so down right comforting about having a floral tea that delivers. And after the last few weeks of constant meetings and trainings, I needed some comforting.
So while I was organizing my stash I saw this delight that had gotten stuck behind a few other blends. Jasmine Pearls are typically a tea that I gobble up eagerly so to say the excitement was real would be an understatement.
Brewed with water prepped right around 175 and steeped for about well, the tea is still steeping because I’m using my Wall mug (from Boreal Wildcraft- do yourself a favor, check out this mug and get one. Game Changer!) Even with the tea constantly steeping, this tea is simply perfection. Soft subtle green tea notes mingle with stronger floral flavors to present this romantic combination that I have fallen in love with yet again.
What I adore most about this tea is that even with using this unique brewing vessel, the tea is not overwhelming or giving me that really overpowered floral note that makes the tea too harsh to enjoy. Each sip is just providing so much enjoyment and allowing me to really dive into the tea while enjoying watching the tea sit at the bottom of the mug. Simple, beautiful, and comforting. All the attributes you want to find in a good cuppa tea.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: My Tea Guy
Description
Jasmine Pearl tea is a fragrant, refreshing tea made by combining jasmine flower blooms with green tea leaves. The flowering jasmine plant originated in Persia and was brought to China around 300 A.D. Tea scented with jasmine became popular during the Song Dynasty between 960 and 1270 A.D.
Our Jasmine Pearls are hand-rolled under the supervision of tea master LIN ZHENG KAN (The fourth generation tea family descendant). The spring picked tea leaves are hand-rolled into pearls and then dried until summer when they are blended with unopened jasmine flowers which bloom overnight, releasing their aroma into the tea. The flowers are then removed and the process is repeated several times.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Jasmine Pearls from Silk Road Teas. . . .
These charming, tightly-wound light-and-dark green balls unfurl dramatically into curls that Shirley Temple would be proud of. Watching them expand is like watching a slow-motion figure skating performance.
The resulting flavor is a delicious, buttery, almost nutty green. Its flavor is subtle. The light touch is not to be confused with weakness, however. It manages to leave a lasting impact that’s the epitome of a warm afternoon in a sunlit window, watching trees wave in the breeze. The perfect pillow upon which to meditate.
Speaking of which, my meditation practice has stalled, and this reminds me: I need to get back to that. It felt really good. I’d like to get back to that state of mind. Until then, there’s this tea.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Silk Road Teas
Description
Jasmine Pearls is a delight to watch unfold as well as to drink. This tea is certainly one of China’s finest quality jasmine offerings. The quality of the Pearl rests with two key attributes: a high-quality, spring pick green that is hand rolled then kept in cool place to await the jasmine harvest. Secondly, the number of scentings the pearls receive is key to the quality of their jasmine taste. The best quality pearls are scented up to 20 times but more typically 7-8 times for today’s “high-grade” pearl. The resulting jasmine flavor should be smooth and naturally sweet building on the sweet notes of the green tea pearl. Lot is 2018 crop and is made to EU Standard. Lot # JP-1.
Why we selected this particular lot. The white downy color that wraps our pearls indicates an early spring green tea harvest. This indicates the pearl is higher grade and the base green tea taste is sweet. Our source for this tea is in Fujian Province where we believe the best jasmines teas are made. The leaves unfurled and showed two leaves and a bud and a rich green color. The scenting of this lot is natural, soft on the tongue and lingering. The jasmine flower petals are minimal, again indicating a higher grade. Once rolled, the pearls wait until the jasmine flowers are harvested later in the summer. For a high-grade pearl such as ours, the flower petals are introduced and then removed after imparting their fragrance.
Tasting notes. The aroma of this tea is exquisite. With water, the pearl releases a sweet and delicate green tea redolent with the fresh scent of jasmine. The taste is very natural, smooth and clean. The jasmine will soothe. It goes very well food as well.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Jasmine from Arbor Teas. . . .
Arbor Teas is a family business based out of Ann Arbor, Michigan which is surprising to me as I did not take Ann Arbor as a town with a tea scene. Nevertheless, Arbor teas is sourcing some of the world’s finest organic teas for those looking for organic options.
My Sororitea Sisters were kind enough to send me a sample of Arbor Tea’s Jasmine tea. Normally I would not pick a jasmine tea for myself but I am happy to try anything once and this tea is no exception. I was given just enough for a hot cup of tea and an iced cup so I got to brewing per the company’s suggested brewing parameters.
The hot tea tastes like most other jasmine teas I have had, dark and floral with an intense briskness that comes off almost drying. The iced tea is more of the same with that drying floral flavor that tastes as if potpourri is what was steeped and not tea.
Basically this is like all other jasmine teas and by that I mean it is not for me. People who like this flavor can always give this a try but nothing stood out to me as distinct or particularly unique so unless you like this flavor and are placing an Arbor Tea order, it might be better to go with a more easily accessible option.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Arbor Teas
Description
This organic, Fair Trade Certified Jasmine Green Tea offers a wonderful jasmine fragrance backed by a fuller-bodied organic chun mee green tea base. This is acquired by picking the jasmine flower late at night when the blossom is in full bloom. The flowers are layered upon the organic tea leaves to impart their fragrance and create the most exquisite jasmine green tea experience around! By morning, the jasmine fragrance has transferred to the organic Chinese tealeaves and the blossoms are then discarded. This process is carried out on multiple successive evenings to impart the superior flavor and aroma of this specially selected organic green tea.
Ingredients: organic Chinese green tea
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Jasmine Creme Brulee from DAVIDs Tea. . . .
Picture this: young tea reviewer-Mary, at a fancy lunch with her dad, celebrating her 16th birthday. Side note: my parents often took us out for special one-on-one time (hello, life with siblings), especially around our birthdays– but this year was a special one, so my dad pulled out all the stops. After a particularly decadent dinner, my dad insisted we order some dessert. Who was 16-year-old-I to say no? Faced with a delicious decision, I decided to go rouge– crème brulee, a dessert I’d never tried before. All I knew was this: it looked delicious, and had some serious bonus-fun in the form of crackling that burnt-sugar topping before diving in. Sugar AND an activity? Count me in?
Needless to say, ever since that first burnt-sugar-crack, I’ve been a fan of crème brulee. So of course, when I saw this latest offering from David’s Tea, I knew this one was coming home with me. This green tea boasts creamy, burnt-sugar-and-vanilla flavors, with just a hint of floral jasmine on the side. Brewed up solo, it’s delightful– but definitely leans more heavily on those floral notes. I was looking for something creamier, something more reminiscent of the fancy-dessert-nostalgia of my youth. With juuuuust a tiny, tiny touch of honey and a splash of steamed coconut milk on top, this one transforms from creamy floral green tea to magical, burnt-sugar-esque crème-brulee-in-a-cup. In fact, I’m not sure how they manage to perfectly capture that slightly toasty creamy note (almost like a genmaicha, but without a bit of toasted-rice in sight) through flavor alone, but I love it. This is one I’ll be brewing up to share with my dad, for sure.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: DAVIDs Tea
Description
Meet our newest obsession: the crème brulée. French for “burnt cream,” this rich and creamy dessert is famous for its silky custard base and crunchy toffee crust. This decadent green tea captures all the vanilla-cream sweetness of a classic crème brulée – with a pop of jasmine for a light floral touch. It’s satisfying, sophisticated and downright addictive.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Emily Dickinson’s Jasmine Tea Blend from Simpson and Vail. . .
I think it must be very rare to meet a tea lover who is not also a book lover. The Simpson and Vail Literary Blends are an incredible way to celebrate both of our passions – drinking tea and reading. Good books are always better with tea!
This blend is inspired by the flowers Emily loved to grow. The base is listed as jasmine tea, and my best guess is that this is a pouchong. There are jasmine flowers, rose petals, marigold petals, and blue cornflowers as well, making an absolutely stunning presentation. This is a tea that needs to be displayed on the table in a tea scoop or in a little glass before steeping, because it makes a beautiful display to begin your tea time, and shouldn’t tea time engage all of your senses? Your eyes will feast on this one!
The steeped tea is a medium gold color. It is a smooth and lightly brisk tea, which is very fitting for Miss Dickinson. The floral taste is surprisingly light. This isn’t a heavy jasmine and rose blend, but rather a confident green base with light floral notes sweetening it.
“Bring me the sunset in a cup.” Yes, thank you. This is lovely and comfortable with hubby and daughters sipping away and draining the pot as we wind down for the night.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Simpson and Vail
Description
Emily Dickinson was born on December 10th, 1830 and lived in a home that was central to Amherst political society thanks to her father and brothers. Growing up around powerful men prepared Dickinson for a life of the same, but society dictated that, as a woman, she was relegated to seemingly less meaningful ventures. Her anger at this slight comes across in her poetry and letters where she explored complex ideas of meaning and self while examining the smallest details of the world around her. She withdrew herself from society and lived in relative solitude until her death. Only a few of her poems were made public during her lifetime, but four years after her demise, a collection of poems was published and met with popular and critical acclaim. Her poems reveal a complicated mind that examined itself with as much attention to detail as it examined the world. Dickinson’s defiance of categorization and simplification make her a popular poet to study even today.
In the years she spent away from society, Emily Dickinson cultivated an extensive garden. In it, she grew jasmine flowers, cornflowers, roses, and many other flowers, plants and herbs. These flowers appear repeatedly in her poetry so our blend had to be floral. We created a delightful combination of jasmine tea and rose petals that brews to a light ecru cup with long green leaves and rose petal accents. This delicate tea hits you with a strong jasmine taste that’s sweetened and mellowed with the subtle flavors of the rose petals.
Ingredients: Jasmine tea, rose petals, jasmine blossoms, marigold petals and blue cornflower petals.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
