Dragon Well - Lung Ching

After a busy Monday, I wanted a nice green tea with its lower caffeine and its characteristic buttery taste. Knowing that Dragon Well (Lung Ching) has a reputation for being the champagne of Chinese green teas and that it’s known as being a fairly light tea, I thought that this was the ideal time for me to try this tea.

The dry leaf is long and pretty and fairly flat. It’s green but not the neon green of some Japanese greens. It smells a but nutty with hints at complexity that will arise with steeping. Brewed at approximately 175 degrees, the results are very pleasing. The brew is mid-yellow in color and the aroma is both vegetal and nutty. It is not particularly sweet on its own but I will use some sugar crystals when I’m half way done.

The tea is a great drink unfolding layers of nuttiness and some vegetation—not so much that you can call it a “spinach” or an “artichoke” tea but enough so that the vegetal taste plays a strong second fiddle to the primary taste of roasted or toasted nuts—I’d like to say roasted walnuts more than other kinds of nuts. It’s very satisfying and would make a great accompaniment to a meal or as an after-dinner tea. It would also be a great afternoon tea.

SECOND infusion: This Dragon Well has not lost anything but has gained perhaps more of a nutty focus. I added a few sugar crystals and the added sweetness was nice. There were not enough crystals to take away from the tea’s essential flavor. I would serve this to myself without the sugar but would offer some sugar to guests.

The rich toasty nuttiness and the deep flavor make this tea well-worth trying. I think it will become a staple at my house.

Hey, look what I found! I thought I’d tried all my TeaFrog samples, but this was buried in the “green tea” box. I really do think this is the last one, though.

As with my other TeaFrog samples, I can’t get aroma other than the fruit of another blend that was packed with this bag, but the leaves are pretty; medium green, fairly long, flat and shiny.

The first time I tried this, I fear I did not use enough tea and may not have steeped long enough. I steeped for 1:30, which is what I usually do with greens unless they ask to be steeped for a shorter time. The flavor was pleasant but not very strong.

More leaf and longer does seem to be an improvement, though I’m still finding this a subtle one. I get a light yellow liquor, and an aroma that is buttery, almost milky, a little salty, with a vegetal echo.

The flavor isn’t particularly buttery or vegetal, though. I’m not really sure how to describe it, other than to say it is “green” tasting, which isn’t very helpful. There’s a slight toastiness, but it’s very slight. There’s an interesting dryness on the tongue after drinking that’s almost like the feel of the grab you get from putting certain dried, chip-like treats on your tongue and letting them sit there. After they get moist, they start to feel like they’re grabbing onto your tongue. That’s the feeling I’m getting here. I’m not getting nuttiness, at least not strongly. Maybe more like the aftertaste of pumpkin or sunflower seeds.

Even on the second try with more leaf and more time, I’m not finding this to have much depth in terms of flavor. I have had greens that were more flavorful. Perhaps I’m not a Dragon Well fan, but since this is really my first, I can’t conclude that just yet.

I’m sticking with green teas today – Japanese in the morning and Chinese in the afternoon. Don’t know if it was coincidence or subconscious, but both of them feature nutty/roasty flavors in significant measure, so it’s been nice to contrast them on the same day. I think I may have had the water a touch too hot for this though – it was noticeably more bitter than the last time I had it. Still enjoyable, but I’ll be more careful next time.

Natalie writes: “I’ve been dipping my toe into the waters of the world of green teas and discovering the results can be sensational. I’ve only tested and tasted Japanese green teas, so I’ve been eager to try more Chinese green tea. Knowing that Dragon Well (Lung Ching) has a reputation for being the champagne of Chinese green teas and that it’s known as being a fairly light tea, I thought that this was the ideal time for me to try this tea from Tea Frog….”

Read the full review at: http://www.itsallabouttheleaf.com/493/tea-review-teafrog-dragon-well-lung-ching/