Jasmine Bi Luo Chun Green Tea

Well, I overleafed it, but I still want to reorder this wonderful sample. It has a briskness that appeals to my inner Earl Grey drinker and still with a delicious sweet/savory creamy green underneath. I’ve been hunting for a jasmine anything to keep on hand, and I think I’ll stop here. We have a winner!

Happy Wednesday!

I have a job interview later on this morning, so I thought that something new and fresh would perk me up. I really liked the plain Bi Luo Chun from last week, so I thought I’d try the jasmine-flavoured version this time.

First off, the scent of jasmine is very strong in the leaf. I remember the unflavoured tea smelling very vegetal and seaweedy, but this one is just straight up jasmine. The leaf looks very different as well – the plain Bi Luo Chun was very fluffy, with lots of long threads and lots of fuzz/down visible. This version looks like nuggets/beads – like pearls or a rolled-up oolong.

I ended up using about 2.5 tsp of leaf for 24 oz, but because of the rolled-up nature of the leaves, that used up at least 2/3 of a single sample packet. The leaf was quite dense, and that led to a very strong jasmine flavour in the cup, so be warned: it’s better to slightly underleaf this one.

The taste: jasmine, and a of very straight, no-nonsense kind, too. It’s not quite soapy, but it’s heading in that direction, with very little of the vegetal greenness of the base coming through.

This was ok, but I think that once I finish off my samples, I’ll stick with the unflavoured Bi Luo Chun, which seems like it would be an excellent “comfort” green tea.

Many thanks to Angel for letting me try this!

I was pretty excited to see a new jasmine in the Teavivre lineup because they do jasmine so very well. Bi Luo Chun is one of my husband’s favorite teas to drink with Chinese takeout so I am eager for him to try it, too.

This is a free sample they sent to me for review, and many thanks to Teavivre!

Since my daughter made the tea for our tea time yesterday I didn’t get to smell the dry leaves yet, but when I gave the pot a sniff I knew it was Teavivre’s classic jasmine. Just smelling it made me relax and sigh.

Since Bi Luo Chun is an oat-y tasting tea I wondered how it would blend with jasmine. No worries. It is beautiful. With our food, I did not pick up on the briskness, but when I had some later I did. Not sour, not mouth-puckeringly astringent, just brisk. And really, really nice.

Hubby hasn’t tried it yet as he came home from work exhausted and literally went to bed as soon as he had supper! Maybe tonight he can try it and I can give him a sample. My youngest, who doesn’t really drink greens, tried it and said it was very good.

Thank you Angel for this sample. Bi Luo Chun is a favourite of mine but I have never tried it mixed with jasmine before.

The little tea balls/pearls are a mixture of brown, dark green and silver coloured leaves with a few pieces of twig/stick present. The silver leaves shine beautifully and have tiny hairs. They have a fresh and sweet jasmine scent that is very pure with a hint of grass.

4 steeps : rinse,30s,50s,70s,90s

First Steep – 30 seconds
I can taste the sweet jasmine which lingers wonderfully in the after taste. Also hints of roasted grass and perfume with a little dryness and astringency. A very flavourful first steep.

Second Steep – 50 seconds
Strength is vastly increased as has it’s toasted grass quality. Sweetness and jasmine still linger in the after taste and still only a hint of astringency. It is a little dryner now too.

Third Steep – 70 seconds
Reduced in thickness from the previous steep but carrying it’s flavour nicely still. Very similar to the first steep and it’s beautiful sweet jasmine dominates once more. Still only a hint of astringency.

Fourth Steep – 90 seconds
Still lots of flavour is present. and though the jasmine is toned down from the previous steeps it is still very much present and dominant. A little more astringent now but still at an acceptable and pleasant level.

Overall I found this tea to be: pure, sweet and full of flavour. It had the thickness of Bi Luo Chun (which I love) but the jasmine adds a sweetness lingers and perfumes my breath. If I were to note something I didn’t like then it would be the dryness in-between steeps, though it started subtly it increases rather rapidly, though remains pleasant.