Yunnan White Jasmine

1st infusion, 5s: The liquor was a delicate, yellow-clear shade. The scent, so much more vibrant than any jasmine I have had—it wafted out even as I had just begun cutting the packaging open. Bubble gum? Yes, indeed! But none of the artificiality of bubble gum flavoring, just pure florals and vanilla. Depth, perfume, fragrant oils, clean.

2nd infusion, 5s: Gathering richness, slightly less light, some middle notes rounding it out. Honey-caramelized banana? Again, yes, but lighter, more fragrant, floral, honeydew melon.

3rd infusion, 5s: There is so much here that I don’t have the vocabulary to describe. The floral strength is fading—delicate now, instead of intense. The tingling sensation of the description has begun to appear.

4th infusion, 8s: The jasmine is much subdued and part of the chorus now. Light tasting, though the aroma is still rich, if not overpowering.

5th infusion, 15s: Incense now, in the aroma—frankincense. The liquor is mild but enjoyable, a slight astringency giving body.

6th infusion, 30s: Gentle, soft flavor, with body and a bit of pine when aerated. Warm and comforting, a sense of sweetness, with flavors now married—nothing standing out over anything else. Warm vanilla-sugar.

7th infusion, 60s: Aroma of fragrant spices, an Eastern market. Flavor delicate, but spicy. Seven infusions in and it begins to remind me of the first jasmine teas I ever tried.

8th infusion, 2m: It is done now. Not much flavor left, but still a pleasant tingling spice.

I left the cup unfinished while I cleaned up, then drank what remained in one swallow. Still lovely, the flavor more noticeable for having taken a short break from it. An incredible jasmine tea. As I have become increasingly enamoured with straight teas, I thought I would no longer enjoy a scented tea—just a covering for poor quality. This is clearly untrue. This is a jasmine tea to love.

3.2g • 90ml Gaiwan • 175°F • 8 Steepings

Very strong jasmine flavor, almost like perfume, with a slight hint of banana coming through on later brews. Good energy that lasted through the night.

A very special tea in the best sense, and quite different from other jasmine teas I have tasted.

The fragrance is overwhelmingly rich but very pleasant and memorable, so that opening the package was a real surprise for me. I could sense peaches (or apricots) and banana intertwining with the jasmine but it is a good fresh ensemble, not something stale or over the edge.

The needles are quite long so that the dosage has to be more guessed than measured. I tried to use 2 somewhat (unwillingly) sparse teaspoonfuls per 250-ml cup but perhaps I should experiment with even a bigger quantity.

The first steeping is, without doubt, most impressive. I can feel no bitterness, and I can taste the same peaches and bananas next to the jasmine. It seems to me (maybe it is only me) that this tea is very lovely, maybe at its best, when steeped at around 70-75 degrees centigrade. At that temperature, the fragrance feels closest to what I smell when I open the bag.

When the tea cools down a bit, the taste becomes even deeper and lingers for quite a long time after I have finished the cup.

Somewhat surprisingly I could taste a very slight hint of bitterness in the 2nd and 3rd steeping. Not something really irritable but many jasmine-scented white teas do not do that. Maybe it was because I have done those steepings at a slightly higher temperature, around 80 degrees centigrade. Anyway, I could taste the pine needle, as promised by many, at the end of the 2nd steeping.

I would use only superlatives for this tea but first I have to figure out whether the slight unsmoothness or, perhaps, spicy tingle in the aftertaste (in all steepings) is a pro or a con. I have felt it also in some other good jasmines but not in too many. It will certainly not discourage me from ordering more of this tea, which I definitely want to do. This tea is definitely a masterpiece, somewhat addictive and warmly recommended.

This lasted through 3 wonderful steepings and may have even made it through more. I wish I could say I tasted all of the things everyone else did, but even still, the delicate jasmine flavor here was amazing! Just perfect. I will be buying some of this for sure now! Thanks, Ost, for letting me try it first!

I’m not gonna lie – I was super excited about this tea. The updated description of it, on Verdant’s site, just added to everything. When it arrived, it was the first I opened to smell and my goodness – what a delightful smell! So sweet and almost pungent with Jasmine. But it really did (and does!) smell like real blossoms; not artificial, at all.

So, I went and made myself a good mug-full of this yesterday, after receiving some extremely distressing news about an elderly lady I’d grown to love. I needed a good distraction, and something sweet and comforting, and this tea really seemed like it would fit the bill.

It did.

After the 30" steep (6g in 300ml, as per instructions on Verdant’s site), I was hit by just the most wonderfully sweet, honey-like Jasmine aroma. And the taste… Well, I was sceptical when I saw a description of bubblegum-like. But it almost is like a perfect, fruit-flavoured bubblegum. Honey, jasmine, vanilla, cinnamon, banana… Just amazing! Though this is obviously a jasmine tea, it’s so complex and wonderful. There’s a mild, fruity astringency, but no bitterness in this cup at all.

I drank another three steeps yesterday (all amazing, though I overbrewed the second and third so they were a little bitter) – they were slightly less complex, but still flavoursome and full of jasmine.

I did another two steeps so far today (2" and 3" respectively) – the silver needle base is more prominent now, with its delicious peach-and-apricot notes. The jasmine is still very much present – I can’t believe how long the flavour has lasted for! I still have the leaves and will probably have a cup or two more with them (and, perhaps, a few more if they’re still going).

My only caveat with this tea is how damn expensive it is hahaha. $8 for 1oz, which only makes 4 lots of brews in this manner, is quite a lot to ask for. I can appreciate that, given how thorough and no-doubt labour-intensive it is, the production requires a fairly steep asking price. But it is nonetheless, for me, a small downside.

Still, it doesn’t take much away from this incredible tea; I’ll just have to make it a treat and really make sure I savour every drop. I can’t recommend it enough.

This tea came my way a long time ago from JustJames. I’ve been avoiding it, because I generally do not enjoy floral teas. But I finally thought it was time to sip it down, so that’s what this morning’s cup is about – the sipdown.

When I opened the packet (a couple of days ago), I remember how sweet it smelled, almost like candy. I was a little worried. After brewing though, the candy-like sweetness toned down. I had a few cups prior to this sipdown, but wasn’t able to note it.

Today’s cup was lightly floral, followed up by sweet hay. For a non-floral tea drinker, I find this one is actually pretty good. But, I can only handle 2 steeps, and then I’m done.

For me, this is only ok, but that’s because I have different tea preferences. Although I can see the appeal for those who do enjoy jasmine tea.

Thanks for the sample JustJames!

The tasting notes for this tea were super good, so I decided to order some.
I don’t know what I was expecting exactly, but I feel ever so slightly disappointed with this one. I mean, it’s a good jasmine, don’t get me wrong.
It’s just really light, much like silver needle is anyway.
It just tasted like a light jasmine tea. Probably as light as a jasmine can be (which isn’t super light, since it’s such a strong flavor anyway xD).
I’ll definitely enjoy the rest of this. It’s a lovely jasmine tea. Just nothing to write home about!

Jasmine isn’t always my thing, but guests seem to enjoy it, thus I have a yixing dedicated to it.
This tea doesn’t disappoint, nothing artifical in the taste or smell, just a lovely, delicious white jasmine.

Lewis & Clarke TTB

Another jasmine tea! I figured this would be nice to start winding down for sleep soon. And I’ve really enjoyed Verdant’s teas so far! Visually, this one is basically a silver needle, I don’t see any jasmine flowers in it. Dry scent is very jasmine and very sweet.

Once brewed, this tea smells like jasmine candy. Seriously, it’s that sweet-smelling! I’m a bit saddened by this tea… The jasmine flavor is actually very good, it’s quite sweet which I like. However, I can’t taste the silver needle underneath at all. It adds a creamy texture, but that’s about it. So while the jasmine is nice here, I’m missing the base tea! :(

Lewis and Clarke TTB

This smells jasmine-y and juicy fruity. I steeped it up and then put it in the freezer to cool it down quickly. The result was cool and refreshing, juicy and jasmine, this tea is spring. It siting outside on cool spring day, birds chirping, fragrant jasmine wafting all around, butterflies fluttering by, and juicy ripe honeydew and cantaloupe in your lap.