Dragonwell

Again with the sourness. I guess my theory was wrong shrugs
This was ok. A little too vegetal for me. I had a busy day at work and ended up forgetting about the second steep of this…
The teaopia version is much toastier, and less nausea causing. Meh. I’m biased, being a lover of toastedness so I’ll not rate this one now!

Well I am off to Florida for two weeks. See y’all in 2012!! and Merry Christmas everyone!!! (Or Hannukah/Kwanzaa/whatever you celebrate!!)

My third Dragonwell batch (or fourth, if I count my Mighty Leaf baggy). Steeped the same way as my A&D cup, it’s already smells more vegetative and roasted than the others.

First steep: I’m picking up a hint of astringency. My mouth is puckering ever so slightly leaving a dry sensation- that’s different! The buttery moistness that I experienced from Dragonwell in the past is still vaguely there but it’s not as prevalent as I would like it to be. If I do some funny things with my mouth the nuttiness really comes out though. I want to say “walnuts” but that isn’t quite right. Second steep and it remains dry and nutty but with an added melting mellowness. So much better.

The tea exhibits basic Dragonwell characteristics yet still tastes and feels so dramatically different from the other cups of Dragonwell I’ve tried! Am I imagining it? I was sad at first to see that it wasn’t as buttery as the others but I think the dry nutty flavour is growing on me.

I have been CRAVING this tea like none other. And after a super long week at work I think I deserve a nice pot :] So I made one. The flavor is vegetal with hints of butter, nut, and pepper flavors. MMMmmm really nice

On the first sip, grassy and brothy. Very full flavour. Hints of roasted taste, especially near the end of the sip. This tea reminds me of pepper taste and a peppery smell can be detected in the dry leaf as well.

First time I had dragonwell and don’t think I’m a huge fan. I’m fine with the overly vegetal but I also had tastes of peppery meatyness and I felt like I was eating a meal more than drinking a tea. Not a fan so much but thanks for the sample Alysha

So somebody ate too many V-day chocolates and cookies yesterday. My tummy is shaking its head at me. Please be nice today, it says. I’ll try, but no promises (it is Friday after all). So I decide on a simple straight green. I love the name of this tea; it sounds like it has mystical powers. I’m getting a slight unexpected hint of ginger. It starts out a little astringent and then pleasantly smooths out. It doesn’t have the roasty notes I was expecting; the flavor is quite simple, but it’s nice. I think this is a tea I’d drink when I’m in the mood for something straightforward, or something I’d have with food rather than savor on its own. I’m actually enjoying it more as it cools down. I like it, but it’s not one I’d rush to buy more of. I’ve ordered a few different dragonwells so I’m going to wait and see how those ones stack up (perhaps a tea tasting is in order?)

It’s a decent green tea. The liquor is a bright yellow green, and the leaves are uniformly shaped, flat and silky. However, the flavor is a little more vegetal than I’ve come to expect from a Dragonwell, and it seems a bit weak. On a couple of sips I’ve caught hints of sweetness, but nothing consistently. On the whole, I much prefer Teavana’s nuttier, toastier Dragonwell. This isn’t bad, just not something I’d order more of.

Technically, I am hard at work on a projet, so don’t tell anyone that I’m sneaking onto steepster!

Made a pot of this to accompany my hard work. Added a dash of honey as I tend to do with straight greens and served it bit by bit into my teeny tiny teecup (so in love with that thing!)

I found the tea to be skewed on the bitterness to flavour ratio. A high amount of bitterness for a surprising lack of flavour, even in the first understeeped cup. Yet, I finished the pot with pleasure.

Honestly, this tea was good, but compared to some awesome greens out there, there just isn’t any place in my cupboard for it. Literally. Bags fall out when I open the door….

The name intrigued me, what can I say?

Frist steep: I’m not usually very good at steeping green teas, I usually make the water too hot or the steep time too long. Today, I brewed this up perfectly and on my first try too! Dragonwell is an interesting green tea, reminiscent of a Japanese sencha, but considerably less vegetal and more “toasty” in flavour. Pairs really well with bacon & eggs that I had for breakfast, cutting through the grease with it’s smooth and light flavour.

Second steep: Upped the temperature a bit for the second steep and it still came out lovely, light and toasty.

EDIT: 100th Tasting note!

This is finally what I have been looking for in a straight green tea. I may have hit the steeping temp right on this one first try. Of course trying to duplicate it with our regular kettle may be hard but at least I know I can do this right. Only steeped for 3 minutes. Lovely light colour and tasted. Can’t wait to have this again. Need to rebuy soon though since I only bought a small amount.

My Dragonwell came in the Orient Express sample pack. I’m not exactly sure how to rate this because it’s my first experience with Dragonwell (I’m also not a big fan of green tea).

Drinking it, the flavor starts out very vegetal, slightly buttery and ends with nutty. The aftertaste is something different and hard to describe, it lingers in my mouth for a while too.

Not sure how much I like this. It’s enjoyable for a green tea that’s heavy on the vegetal flavor. But the aftertaste just leaves me feeling confused. I probably won’t buy any additional Dragonwell from David’s, just so I can try a different company and gain more experience.

Mmmm I liked this one! This is what I expected of a straight green when I started drinking them (using bags, which omg were horrid). Slightly earthy, not grassy, and full of flavour without tasting like I’m drinking the water I boiled my greens in.

I can see why some people experience a buttery or a nutty note, I suspect that those are what I was experiencing as well, but I was just too happy to be sipping a straight green that I enjoyed to put more thought into the why!

This one is a tea i’ve had for my birthday… as a gift OF COURSE.

The taste is really smooth and vegetal and have a little earthy aftertaste.
What a pleasure. I must say it do have a little nutty aftertaste.

Exciting I know… I LOVE YOU. haha.

I just got this tea and was nervous on how to prepare it since I’ve never tried a dragonwell tea before. I’ve read some articles on how to prepare a dragonwell tea but ended up following David’s Tea directions. From this, I found the brew to be very weak. I’ll have to experiment more with this one!

This is one of the teas that could surprise you and then… surprise you again. At least that’s what happened to me. You can check out my interesting introduction to Dragonwell in my blog:

http://paradiseinmyteacup.blogspot.ca/2013/01/my-journey-with-dragonwell.html

I just love this tea. It is my every day after breakfast tea. My morning doesn’t seem right without it.

After steeping it smells vegetal, a little grassy with a hint of spinach I dare say. The taste is very gentle and vegetal and the color bright, delicate green.

If you’ve never tasted loose green tea before it might surprise you, and then, work it’s magic on you like it did on me.

I have tried several longjing’s and I believe I’ve developed a good palate for determining what is and is not authentic west lake longjing. This one would fall into the latter category for me, the flavour was very mild, the scent equally faint, the infusion very light. This is not a bad introduction to longjing as it captures some of the characteristics of the real thing, but please to anyone don’t be dissuaded by this experience to foresake longjing in the future from other suppliers. What really disappoints is the pricetag on this, $10 for 50 grams here.. David’s tea might be a bargain to your average starbucks consumer, where $10 buying you several cups worth of tea is better than $10 for one cup of fancy coffee, but this is still very expensive, especially for an inauthentic longjing. There are many reputable suppliers online for this wonderful tea and you don’t need to spend a fortune either, unless you are wealthy or a connoisseur a 3rd Grade longjing should only cost about $30 – 45 for a lb! Compare to David’s tea $90/lb. This 3rd grade dragonwell will also be authentic and you will know it’s authentic because the scent and flavour will be far more pronounced and lingering, not this tepid concoction David’s tea is passing off.

Steeped this up at work, so I didn’t have much of a chance to sit and really get a thorough tasting. I also forgot it was steeping, but thankfully a co-worker was a bit more on the ball and reminded me.
I really liked this one. Vegetal with just enough seaweed taste to “be there”, but not give the “THIS TASTES LIKE SEAWEED” reaction. Kinda made me crave sushi. Next time I go for veggie sushi I’m grabbing a cup of this.

It’s decent. Not a bad green tea but not one that I’d restock on either.

I find I like Chinese greens better than Japanese and this one didn’t disappoint. Surprisingly little “green tea” flavour and with an interesting finish. I’d almost call it a little bit of a spiciness as it’s swallowed. First cup I steeped for 3:30 and it was ok, second I steeped for 5 minutes. 5 minutes still had the spicy flavour and added more of the “green tea” flavour without adding much bitterness.

I love this tea. I’m not a very regular green tea drinker, but I do make this one fairly often. It’s wonderfully earthy and vegetal with a buttery finish. I’ve managed to get my steeping time and temps just right a few times and it is absolutely fantastic!