Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Canton Tea Co.
Product Description:
The long silvery tea buds are hand-picked from the white tea varietal used for Silver Needle, but are heated as in a green tea process. They are then carefully stored for several weeks until the Jasmine flowers blossom. The tea buds are very skilfully hand rolled into perfect spheres and layered over several nights with the fresh Jasmine blossoms. Just a few pearls yield a highly fragrant liquor, bright with refreshing jasmine and sweet with the soft creamy undertones of the tea buds.
Read more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! What an exquisite tea!
Jasmine has long been one of my favorite tea flavors, and I am especially fond of jasmine pearls. Up until about a couple of years ago, though, I was of the belief that a pearl is a pearl … and boy was I ever wrong there. Not all pearls are created equal, and this one deserves to be recognized as one of the very best!
The flavor is so soft and creamy. Not a buttery kind of creamy taste (although every once in a while, I could swear I taste a buttery note). Instead it’s a smooth, rich kind of creamy taste. The green tea/white tea tastes so fresh and even though it is a lighter tasting tea, it has a richness to it that ties in to that creaminess I mentioned.
But a jasmine pearl is not a jasmine pearl without the jasmine, right? Here, the jasmine tastes so light and sweet, it does not have a perfume-y taste to it at all, nor does it have that chemical-y kind of taste that sometimes is detected in jasmine teas. This must be the real thing, folks!
This is a phenomenal jasmine pearl, certainly one of the very best I’ve yet to try. I’d recommend it highly to all those jasmine aficionados out there.
Sun Dried White Tea from Sakuma Bros.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Sakuma Bros.
Product Description:
A refreshing unique tea grown in the rich alluvial soil of Washington State’s Skagit Valley. Our high latitude location give Camilla Sinensus a distinctive taste.
Sakuma Tea is a unique type of WhiteTea.
Taster’s Review:
A friend of mine sent me a bit of this tea to try, and having so much tea in my cupboard, I just kind of put it in there and forgot about it. Sorry Geoff! But, mostly, I’m sorry for myself, because, what a wonderful tea I’ve just discovered!
First of all, I’m super excited about this tea because it’s grown RIGHT HERE in Washington State! Wow! I didn’t know there were any tea farms here in Washington. What a joy it is to be tasting a tea grown locally.
Second, this tastes like no other white tea I’ve ever tried. It has many similar qualities to other white teas: a delicate nature, a soft sweetness and a fresh lightness. But there are other qualities to it that were rather unexpected but quite enjoyable.
It has a creamy sort of consistency to it, with a mouthfeel that is soft and luxurious. There is just a hint of fresh cream taste that remains on the palate when I sip this. It’s quite remarkable and reminds me a bit of a fine quality milk Oolong, although it isn’t quite as thick as one. The astringency here is quite light. I notice a slight drying of the palate in the aftertaste, but that it.
There is also a hint of fruit to this tea that reminds me of apples. Maybe it’s just my mind playing tricks on me because Washington is known for its apples so maybe when I taste this fruity note in the background, my mind immediately conjures up images of an orchard of apple trees that might be grown near the tea bushes. That being said, I distinctly taste a fruit-like note in the background.
I love this tea… a love it a whole lot! Now… I just have to be patient for the spring harvest, because this tea will not be available until then!
Pear Spice White Tea from Teas Etc.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Teas Etc.
Product Description:
1st Place Winner of North American Tea Championship – Flavored White Tea
This lush blend of Bai Mu Dan white tea,spice and botanicals is intoxicating. Aromatic and flavorful the essence of natural pear is the primary cup character balanced by the spice and blossoms.
A full bodied taste experience that will warm and soothe the day away.
Taster’s Review:
This is a very interesting and beautiful tea. I received a sample of this tea with my most recent order (free samples with each order!), and I’m glad to have the opportunity to try it.
Although, I do find myself disagreeing with the above description a bit. I don’t think that the pear note is the primary character here. Yes, I can taste the pear, but, even stronger than the pear flavor is that of the star anise. From the first sip, the licorice-y flavor of the star anise greeted me with its sweet presence.
The white tea is also one of the main flavors I taste, adding its sweet, gentle flavor to the cup. The pear is coming in as a softer flavor than both the anise and the white tea, and it does take a few sips to really come into focus. Now that I’m nearly finished with the cup, I notice the pear flavor first, although I still would argue that it is not the strongest flavor, only the first flavor to be tasted.
Just after the pear flavor, the anise brings in a snappy licorice flavor. Unlike the pear flavor, which took some time to develop, the star anise started out strong and has since tapered off a bit, allowing for the smoothness of the white tea and pear flavors to come together to form a sense of balance. There are hints of floral notes in this too, which compliment the fresh flavor of the white tea very nicely.
Overall, I find this to be a very pleasing cup. Quite soothing and soft, none of these flavors are incredibly strong, which is a good thing because when it comes to white tea, too strong a flavor can lead to an overpowering presence. Here, the flavors are nicely balanced, and I like how this balance is achieved slowly. With my first couple of sips, it wasn’t so balanced, I noticed the strong anise flavor and then the white tea with the pear flavors dangling out there somewhere, but, when given a little time for contemplation, the flavors manage to create a very harmonious taste.
I like that this tea inspires that time for contemplation. It insists that you take time to enjoy the tea!
Ye Sheng Wild White Tea from Canton Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where To Buy: Canton Tea Company
Product Description:
Other names: Wild White
This is a glorious, limited edition tea with a great story. This tea farm was once owned by the government but had been abandoned for many years and the tea bushes were left to grow wild. Our producer recognised the potential in the farm, the natural tea bushes, the excellent terroir and particularly the yellowy, rocky soil – perfect for giving the tea a delicious mineral note. He bought up the estate and produced this great tea from the first, small harvest of all the tea bushes that had been left untouched, in a natural state for decades.
We are the only people in the UK (and probably anywhere outside China) to have this tea. It is an ideal all-day, summer tea, very soft on the palate with a creamy depth and a satisfying full-bodied, warm fruity note, lifted by the mildest hint of flint (from that excellent ground).
Taster’s Review:
I find myself somewhat surprised when I hear someone say “I don’t like white tea.” It is such a blanketing statement and it almost irks me because I have learned that just because I have tried one white tea, does not mean that I’ve tasted them all. There are many white teas out there, each with their own unique nuances. Just because you may not like one that you’ve tried, doesn’t mean that you’ll dislike all of them.
This is a wonderful white tea that is so very different from others that I’ve tried.
The dry leaf smells a bit like hay, and it keeps that fragrance after its been brewed. The liquor is such an enchanting color. So pale, almost like alabaster!
After seeing such a lightly colored liquor, I figured that the flavor would be equally as light. And, it does start out that way. But by the time I’ve reached the bottom of the cup, the flavor and body have both developed significantly.
The flavor is very pleasantly sweet with a mild undertone of citrus and wood. It feels incredibly soft on the palate, almost creamy, which seems to encourage my taste buds to taste a cream-like flavor as well. These delightful flavors intensify as I continue to sip it, and by the time I reach the end of my cup, I recognize it as a bright, full-bodied, delicious cup of tea.
I highly recommend this one!
Nuttier Than a Fruitcake (Custom Blend) from Ovation Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: You can create your own custom blend at Ovation Teas
About My Custom Blend:
Nuttier than a Fruitcake – White tea blended with nutmeg, sunflower petals, almonds & pecans with apricot and vanilla flavoring.
Taster’s Review:
Not long ago, Ovation Teas made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. Well, not just me, but to the first 100 customers who placed an order for a custom blend. The offer: 4 ounces of their very own, custom blend – FREE – just pay shipping and handling. Well, like I said, it was an offer I couldn’t refuse, so I placed my order immediately.
But the hard part for me was coming up with something unique. Something I couldn’t find elsewhere. Then, I recall tasting a fantastic “Wedding Cake” lollipop that I wanted to try to duplicate in tea form. I started with a white tea base (this appears to be a Bai Mu Dan, based upon the look of the leaves), then chose to add apricot and vanilla flavoring, almonds and pecans and finally some nutmeg. Then I added some sunflower petals to make it pretty as well as add some defining sharpness to the tea.
I decided to call this blend of mine “Nuttier Than a Fruitcake” because I was often told in my younger years that I was, indeed, nuttier than a fruitcake. And given the inspiration and the ingredients I chose, I felt it was a suitable name.
The outcome: A tea that … while doesn’t taste exactly like the fruitcake lollipop that I remember, still tastes pretty amazing. The white tea base tastes light but doesn’t allow itself to become overpowered by the other flavors. The nuts (pecans & almonds) are not a particularly strong flavor, but then, I didn’t really expect them to be. As is generally the rule with flavored/blended teas, it is the flavoring oil that is used to flavor a tea that really gives the tea it’s POP flavor … fruit and nut additions don’t generally contribute a lot of flavor.
The apricot and vanilla flavors are pretty evenly matched … sometimes I’ll taste a little more apricot, while others I taste a little more vanilla. It is smooth and creamy and sweet. As I had hoped, the sunflower does add some sharp tones to the cup … just enough to keep it lively.
But the real star of this blend is the NUTMEG! Every time I brew this tea, the scent of the nutmeg is delightfully strong. As it brews in the kitchen, I can smell it in the next room! The flavor of the nutmeg is equally as strong, and it lends a rustic, nutty, and deliciously warm flavor to the cup.
I am really thrilled with my custom blend from Ovation Teas, and even though they aren’t currently offering the free custom blend that inspired me to place this order, I am happy enough with this custom blend that I will order another custom blend sometime in the future (whenever the inspiration hits!) It is well worth the price, in my opinion, if for no other reason, than to enjoy something truly unique.