Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Steenbergs Organics
Tea Description:
Steenbergs Organic White Tea is an Organic Pai Mu Tan – literally White Peony – is an organic white tea from the Fujian Province of China. Pai Mu Tan is sometimes spelt organic Bai Mu Dan. Organic white teas – which were the favourite tea of Emperor Hui Tsung in 1100AD – are the least processed of all organic tea drinks. The organic white tea leaves are dried on the ground or on a shelf in the sun. Then, these organic white teas are immediately dried without any rolling and packed. It’s the rolling process that would normally have started the oxidation of the organic tea leaves – for organic green teas, firing occurs soon after rolling to prevent any significant oxidation. As a result, organic white teas release the least amount of caffeine of all teas (generally 5 -10mg per cup) and have a flavour as close to the fresh leaf as you’ll get.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I am so impressed with these leaves! They look so fresh – some of the freshest white tea leaves I’ve ever seen! They’re actually variegated shades of pale green to silver, rather than dull grey and brown the way so many other Pai Mu Tan teas that I’ve encountered appear. The look as though they could have just been plucked!
And the quality of the leaves is evident in the flavor. This tea is sweet and delicate in taste, with lovely notes of fresh hay and crisp, clean mountain air. There is a very pleasant creaminess to this cup as well as hints of flower in the distance. The creaminess, as well as the crisp, fresh flavors has a very comforting effect, making this an ideal tea to enjoy as evening approaches and you want to unwind a bit after a hectic day.
This is a really fine quality Pai Mu Tan – but then, I’ve come to expect nothing less from this company… one that a few months ago was rather unknown to me, but now, even though I’ve only tried fewer than a handful of teas from them, I’m very impressed with everything that I’ve tried. They seem to strive to deliver nothing but the best, and it shows!
Citrus Spice White Iced Tea from Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Description:
Citrus Spice White Iced Tea is an exclusive iced tea blend that combines choice White Peony tea with real pieces of spicy ginger, zesty lemon and fragrant rosemary herbs. Our specially blended iced tea allows the brightness and tanginess of the lemon to soften the distinctive piquant bite of the ginger while allowing the aromatic essence of natural rosemary to shine through. This perfect balance of sweet, spicy, citrus and savory is a taste sensation you will want to experience again and again by the glass or by the pitcher.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I hot-brewed this and allowed the tea to cool to room temperature before chilling it, but I admit to taking a quick sip or two of it while it was still hot to see how I liked it served hot. And while I did enjoy this as a hot tea, I agree with Nature’s Tea Leaf: this tea excels as an Iced Tea!
And yet, this is quite unlike any iced tea I’ve ever tasted … and I mean that in a very good way. That is not meant to slight any tea that I might have tasted in the past, only to say that this is so refreshingly DIFFERENT.
The white tea offers a soft, creamy undertone to the bright, sunny citrus tones and the SAVORY spices. Yes, that’s right, I said savory. This is not a chai … which is immediately what I think when I see “spice tea” … and that is what makes it so different. The ginger tastes zesty and peppery, but it lacks a certain heat that you might ordinarily experience with ginger because it doesn’t have other exotic spices like cinnamon, cloves or cardamom to enhance the spicy-heat of the ginger. Instead, the ginger tastes a bit more mellow – peppery, yes, but without the heat.
The rosemary is what allows these flavors to translate into a more savory kind of taste. The rosemary enhances the citrus-y tones while bringing in a delicate pine-like taste (and aroma!) to the cup. So the tea does indeed have an exotic kind of taste to it, but, not a spicy-hot-chai kind of exotic. Instead, it is more of a balanced taste with its bright citrus notes, sweet white tea, warmly spiced ginger and savory rosemary.
This is not only wonderful because it is so different, but it also gets BONUS POINTS for being incredibly soothing. With winter time right around the corner and with it comes the cold-and-flu season, this is the kind of tea that you want to have on hand when you’re feeling a touch under the weather.
Very refreshing … deliciously different. I like this very much! OH… and it tastes great cold-brewed too!
Strawberry Ginger Peppercorn from Utopia Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Utopia Tea
Tea Description:
Our Strawberry Ginger Peppercorn is a warming and fruity organic blend. The freshly hand-milled ginger and peppercorns give this tea the perfect combination of sweet and spicy. White tea contains an abundance of polyphenols, which are plant-derived antioxidants, lowers cholesterol, and protects the body against harmful free radicals. White tea provides the body with potassium, magnesium, calcium, vitamin C and K. Ginger helps the body with digestion, fights fevers, and soothes aches and pains. Try this tea hot or over ice!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This tea delivers exactly what the name of it promises: strawberry, ginger and pepper. But – for those who think it might come off as too hot or spicy, you needn’t worry. While this does have a certain peppery zing to it, it isn’t what I’d categorize as hot or spicy … instead, I’d say it’s got a mellow warmth to it that develops as I sip.
I think that this is due to the fact that the ginger here is not a peppery/spicy kind of ginger, it is more of a sweet, soothing ginger that complements the sweetness of the strawberry, which manages to temper the heat from of the spice. The pepper is a pink peppercorn, which doesn’t deliver that same peppery impact that a black peppercorn would, and I think that works to this blend’s favor as well, because a black pepper might overwhelm the delicate quality of the white tea leaves.
Instead, what you get from this tea is a beautiful medley of contrasting flavors. It is at once sweet and peppery with a hint of tangy tartness that tickles the tongue in the aftertaste. And what I like is that there is a certain balance to it all. The strawberry and ginger seem pretty evenly matched, with a touch of peppery heat … again, not too much, and the sweet white tea with its hints of fresh vegetative notes.
Overall, it’s quite lovely. Serve it hot to enjoy on a chilly evening, or serve it over ice for a refreshingly different yet delicious iced tea.
Giddapahar White Orchid – 2nd Flush from Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
This tea has been made from PURE AV2 plants at an elevation of 6500 ft. A specialised team of tea pluckers pluck the finest 2 leaf and a bud under the full moon beam. No wonder this tea is distinctive from the others.
It gets its name ‘WHITE ORCHID’ as Giddapahar T. E. Is situated in the town of Kurseong which is also known as ‘The Land of White Orchids’ as this valley produces some high quality WHITE ORCHIDS.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! Just wow! This is a white tea?
When someone says “white tea,” thoughts of a pale, delicately flavored tea come to mind. Even now, even after all the tea that I’ve tried, even after trying some intensely flavored, pure white teas … the majority of the white teas tend to have a very “light” overall characteristic, and therefore evoke the thoughts of a very soft taste.
But this white tea simply shatters those thoughts immediately, with the very first sip. Yes, it does have a delicate quality to it, but, that certainly isn’t the first thing that comes to my attention. I first note a sharp floral note that tells me exactly why this tea is called “White Orchid.” This flowery note is not at all delicate! It is there … and it is quite bold.
It isn’t until the tea cools just slightly that the delicate qualities of this tea come into focus. Beneath the bold flavor of the orchid (which, I guess it could be argued is a rather delicate flower and perhaps the term delicate applies), there is a light, crisp note. Here is where the real “delicate” quality that I mentioned previously comes in. The flavor goes from a very powerful floral note to a much softer set of flavors … and while the presentation is on the delicate side, it is incredibly complex. I taste layers of fruit (white grape, hints of peach, and even a honey-like tone that evokes thoughts of Honeycrisp apples), whispers of an airy quality, and sweet notes of vegetation.
This is one of the most amazing white teas I’ve yet to taste. It is deliciously sweet, floral and possesses such an intriguing complexity. It is refreshingly full-flavored. This is a white tea for those who seek to challenge their previous thoughts about white tea. This is unlike any white tea I’ve tried before, and I love it!
Tangerine Spice from Kally Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Kally Tea
Tea Description:
We’ve taken our high quality Bai Mu Dan white tea and blended it with cinnamon, orange and spice. We’ve come up with a flavor that will surprise you as well as invigorate your senses. Kally Tea is proud to present you with this highly gratifying taste sensation.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is delightful!
I’ve had a good number of cinnamon orange spice type teas, but, most of them are a black tea based blend, not white tea. So I was very intrigued by this Tangerine Spice, which appears to have the same idea of those other cinnamon orange spice teas, but, using a white tea base rather than a black tea.
I don’t know if Kally Tea actually used tangerine flavoring rather than orange – the name of the tea suggests one thing while the description suggests another. Then again, there are those who consider these two fruits to be so similar that they lump them together. Personally, I prefer the tangerine over the orange, because it’s sweeter and is a bit more delicate and less tart than the typical orange.
The white tea is a lovely base to use for these flavors, and I’m glad to say that the spices have been toned down appropriately to be in step with the lighter, softer flavor of the Bai Mu Dan. The white tea gives an almost creamy taste to the cup, which melds really nicely with the flavor of the citrus. The citrus is not sharp or too tart here, it has a sweet, juicy flavor, and a slight tangy note that lingers into the aftertaste.
The combination of flavors in this blend really works beautifully. It has a delicate quality to it, as one would expect given that it’s a white tea blend, but, its all balanced out really nicely to provide a very pleasing and refreshing flavor. It reminds me very much of the earliest days of autumn (which … interestingly enough, is right now!) just as the leaves begin to change color and the air begins to take on a cooler, crisper tone, this gently spiced, citrus tea offers just the right flavor … and it’s delicious hot or iced!