White teas perplex me for two reasons; one mental and one practical.
First, I always think that white teas will be either boring or overflavored. I don’t know where I picked up this notion because I usually really like white teas. This one is no exception. Rishi’s silver needle is really delicate. It has a bit of a sweet aroma. The taste is a bit more on the vegetal side, but really nice. I’d describe it as a mild green tea with any bitterness absent.
The second reason white tea perplexes me is steep times. More than any other tea, white teas have an enormous range of steep times. I’ve seen recommendations ranging from 30 secs to 8 mins. I think 30 secs-2 mins yields a pretty watery cup. It seems like 5 mins is a pretty popular time to use for this tea. Personally, I went with a longer steep time (7 mins) on this tea and have not tasted any of the bitterness I associate with oversteeping.
In any case, this tea is a solid white tea.
