Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Empire Tea Services
Tea Description:
Small down covered leaves are curled into spiral shapes. Also called “Green Snail Spring”. Two infusions. Great taste.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is an AWESOME Pi Lo Chun!
The flavor is sweet and very fresh – like the new green-ness of springtime! It has a clean, vegetative taste. Not what I’d categorize as “grassy,” I’d describe this as steamed, mild-tasting vegetables. There is a cream-like taste to this, but not so much a buttery creaminess, instead, this is like sweet cream.
There is also a hint of flower in the distance. Imagine, if you would, standing in the middle of a vegetable garden that is in the state of harvest. The vegetables are fresh and young, and there is a blooming patch of flowers nearby. Now, imagine what that air might smell like … might taste like. There you have what I’m experiencing now with this delicious Pi Lo Chun.
This is exquisitely refreshing to sip, sweet with no bitterness to interrupt the sip. The astringency is quite low, in fact, I found myself having to search for it to recognize it, as it was so subtle that I didn’t notice it outright. This tea simply wants you to focus on it’s lovely sweet flavors, and does nothing to stand in the way of that.
I highly recommend this Pi Lo Chun to all tea drinkers, if this one isn’t already in your tea cupboard … it should be!
Golden Bi Luo from Chicago Tea Garden
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Chicago Tea Garden
Product Description:
Other Names: Hong Bi Luo, Yunnan Bi Luo
Origin: China, Yunnan Province
Harvest: Spring 2010
Taste: Creamy with sweet, malty notes of vanilla.
Behind the Leaf: David Lee Hoffman has been traveling to China for over 20 years. His work has led to vast improvements in the quality of tea available to the West. David is especially proud of this tea. Golden Bi Luo is a high-grade black tea made in Yunnan Province in the style of Jiangsu Province’s Green Bi Luo Chun. The name means “snail spring” — “spring” because this tea is harvested in the spring and “snail” because the two leaves and down-covered tips are carefully rolled into tight spirals that slowly unfurl to release more flavor during steeping. The spirals are formed in a heated wok, using three different hand movements. This tea is a master at producing multiple infusions: you can easily get eight infusions from one serving of this tea. Golden Bi Luo is a great reintroduction to loose black tea. Whether you are looking for an alternative to coffee or are just getting started with loose leaf and are ready to ditch your tea bags, Golden Bi Luo is a wonderful choice for an everyday tea.
Taster’s Review:
Are you looking for a truly DIFFERENT black tea? You need look no further than this amazing Golden Bi Luo from Chicago Tea Garden. This tea has such an intriguing flavor – it keeps me sipping!
This tea has a very nice malty quality to it. There is a baked biscuit-y flavor to it which gives it real substance. This is a hefty tea!
About mid-sip, I taste a hint of vanilla (as the above description suggests) – it is a very heavy, heady kind of vanilla taste that when brought together with the malty note it creates a wonderful experience for the palate. Sweet, almost creamy, and thick! Yes … thick! There is also a background note of bitter that provides an excellent contrast to the sweetness of this cup. The cleansing astringency in the finish prepares the palate for another sip.
These “snails” or spirals of tea also submit several delicious infusions. With each infusion the flavor seems to develop into a smoother, richer experience. I managed three very flavorful infusions from one measurement of leaves!
This is a fantastic black tea that I would recommend to all tea enthusiasts. A MUST try tea!