Jasmine Silver Needles White Tea of Yunnan - Yunnan Sourcing
Notes of artificial jasmine, soap, and nutty attributes.
Jasmine Silver Needles White Tea of Yunnan dry tea leaf
Name: Jasmine Silver Needles White Tea of Yunnan
Source: Yunnan Sourcing
Price: $7.50 / 50g
Harvest: Spring 2021
Origin: Silver Needles from Simao, Jasmine flowers from Yunnan
Varietal: Yun Kang #10
Tea Quantity: 5g
Brew Temperature: 85ºC
Water Quantity: 100 mL
Brew Time: 30s
Wash: No
Scent Notes
Strong jasmine floral notes, but seems artificial, almost like jasmine scented hand soap. There is a certain chemical like note that you get on a slow inhale that in my opinion is not that pleasant. However, the scent is undeniably similar to stuffing your face in a bouquet of flowers.
Tasting Notes
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The taste of the jasmine matches the scent. It is not as sweet as something like a jasmine pearl, and to me, I just think it tastes artificially scented. The taste is too similar to what I imagine a jasmine hand soap would be like. There is the sharp scented jasmine up front, that moves to the back of the tongue. The texture is mildly soft. Then there is a finishing sweetness that has a slight hollowness of Splenda or some artificial sugar. This tea does have some warmer nuttier notes, it just feels more round in the mouth. I think that this tea can benefit from a wash despite being a scented tea. The first is that since it is a large loose leaf, not all the leafs are contacting water on the first infusion. Second is that it might lessen up the strong initial scenting. Let’s see what the second infusion holds.
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The jasmine notes are a bit more relaxed on the scent of the tea. The tea leaves them self do give a very strong chemical aroma however. The more I focus on this tea, the more flaws that I seem to find with it. This sip tasted kinda funky. Some odd acidic notes, some soapy notes, and maybe some white tea if you try really hard.
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The color is still a nice light color, but the flavor is no better. Texture is neutral, overall flavor profile tastes like soap, but it has an odd warming quality to it that I attributed to the nuttiness before.
Rating: 2.5/5
Tasting this tea right after a more preferred Jasmine Dragon Pearl really emphasizes just how artificial this tea tastes. To begin with, I was disappointed when I saw that this tea came with jasmine flowers mixed in with the silver needle. I felt like I was mislead by the photos on the Yunnan Sourcing website that show the loose leaf with no jasmine flowers. I know that traditionally, Chinese prefer the flowers to be absent, as the loose leaf tea is more beautiful than itself, and that sometimes the flowers are left in to appeal to the eye of a western audience. However, based on what I have read, whether it contains the flowers or not is not as important as to how much care is given to the scenting of the tea leaves. Jasmine scenting is a long process of leaving the tea and flowers together so that they infuse in flavors. To me, I couldn’t help but think that this tea seems artificial from the scent of the dry leaves, wet leaves, and tea itself. The thing is, I have drank this tea multiple times before and thought it was okay. It wasn’t great, but it was a jasmine tea. However, comparing it right next to the Jasmine Dragon Pearls that I had right before this, really highlights every flaw that this tea has. When I really focus on the tea, it tastes like soap to me. For the rating, it passes as tea, as I have chosen to drink it a few times, but I would most certainly not get this exact tea again. I guess it really goes to show that not all jasmine teas are made equal, as one type I have found that I absolutely love, and another type I found that screams artificial to me.
Tea Seller’s Description
Spring harvest silver needles white tea from the mountains of Simao was infused with high quality Yunnan grown jasmine flowers. A nice balanced sweet jasmine tea with notes of sugarcane and fruit. Naturally processed from start to finish. Very pleasant to drink!
Late-March to Early April Harvested White Tea
Jasmine Flowers Harvested in May.
Varietal: Yun Kang #10
Pure Bud Pluck
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