Bi Luo Chun Green Tea (Pi Lo Chun)

I have loved saying “Pi Lo Chun” for years. I overheard it in a tea shop, and my husband used to drink it a fair bit, so it stuck in my head as something to mumble absentmindedly to myself. Oh, Pi Lo Chun…..

Anyway, giving this a try using a few rapid steeps as per the husband’s technique. It’s quite a light tea, very grassy. It’s kind of the tea equivalent of rolling in a fresh haystack on a sunny day. (I’ve done this! Girl scouts!)

Relaxing, yes. Perhaps not standoutish to me enough as a genre that I will reach for it over other teas though.

My thanks to Angel @ TeaVivre for the generous sample, & also for your willingness to send these samples out! Thank you!
This is pretty, delicate, kind of fluffy olive green tea.
2 tsp + 8oz @ 1 min (175) = a very light, pale yellow green infusion with a pleasantly sweet flavor that hints of hot breakfast cereal with butter. I’m seeing a field of newly harvested hay bales, drying in the sun. Sweet, mildly vegetal flavors & a pinch of saltiness make me think of a cup of sweet white miso broth with Kombu floating around.

A very mild & pleasant cup. No astringency or bitterness.

The first few times I tried this one I can’t say I was a fan, however after returning to it, it seems to have mellowed out a bit.

Let me explain: I had tried this type of tea once before and it was delicately sweet with hints of citrus so I was expecting something similar. But when I took a sip of this one I was immediately hit with a salty smoke taste that brought to mind smoked meat (if anyone wants to make a bacon-inspired tea perhaps this would work well as a base…). Now, some people might like this flavor in a tea, but I’m not one of them.

This time however, after my sample had been open for several months, the salty smoke was much less prominent and now I see what everyone is saying about the light “miso” thing. While the tea is now much more palatable, it’s still not really my thing (though I do love miso soup!) but to each their own.

Carrying one of the longest names I have ever seen in tea, Teavivre’s Dong Ting Bi Luo Chun (also known as Pi Luo Chun) is a non-fermented green tea with a bold taste. In my tasting, I used three teaspoons of leave in two cups of water for one and a half minutes of steeping. The leaves do give off a fruity aroma, and I wonder if the tea will taste the same way.

This tea is certainly far less vegetal than others, such as gunpowder greens. “Fruity” does not not quite describe it, but it has a certain fruit edge to it. Other prominent flavors include a distinct nuttiness and natural sweetness. This tea is quite pleasant and provides an enjoyable drinking experience. For green tea fans, it is well worth a try. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would give it an 85/100.

Let it begin.

Today marks the day I received my first samplings from Teavivre. And quite healthy samples they are. Much thanks to Angel & Teavivre! From the postmark it appears they took 10 days to arrive in Southern California from China.

Preparation Method: Glass tea infuser following Teavivre recommended amounts, times and temp. 5 steepings, no rinse. Increased brewing time for 3rd-5th steeping.

Impressions: The dry leaves were quite attractive and bunched up in the package, appearing almost sticky, though they were not. The aroma was quite pleasant, lively, green and gardeny. Am I smelling cocoa as well?

Brewing resulted in a pale yellow liquor with a hint of green, kind of the color I’d imagine steeping green apple skins would make if they didn’t oxidize and turn brown. As the leaves opened I noticed quite a bit of broken leaf, but that’s no surprise with small samples like this.

Immediately I got the smoke that others have reported, like lightly smoked steamed vegetables, both in smell and taste. Smoke carried through to the 2nd steeping but was absent from the 3rd on.

The mouthfeel was light and bright with a mild astringency. This held through the 4th steeping, becoming more prevalent in the the final two steepings. The 5th steeping was essentially a bust, more of a palate cleansing than anything.

Overall it had a pleasant sweet afterglow but was fading on the 3rd and 4th steep. I was more attracted to those latter steepings, though they were a bit two dimensional.

I picked this tea primarily because I’ve read Pi Lo Chun has a healthy theanine content. From a caffeine/theanine standpoint I was neither up nor down with this tea, nor did I feel particularly calm or alert. It was much more about the taste experience for me than the effect the tea had on my nervous system.

I would be pleased to be served this tea while out at a restaurant, impressed that they’d offered a more interesting tea, but for home brewing it’s not enticing enough for me to pursue more quantity.

Teavivre just might make a non-flavoured tea person out of me yet! Up until their samples, I had been firmly in the fun flavours camp, without fully appreciating tea for itself! This tea has certainly changed that!
1st Steep: This tea smells rather earthy and bitter, but it is really very sweet (I was quite surprised). It is smooth, mild, still earthy but nice and sweet. It is a pale green colour, with very few stray pieces, indicating the quality of the leaves.
My teapot makes about a cup and a half (Its one of teaopia’s tea for one sets), so I left the half a cup steeping for about 5 minutes, and the result was quite bitter (still decent, but too strong for my taste) so I would advise paying attention to steeping instructions and only steeping for a minute or two.
2nd Steep: And this tea just got a whole lot sweeter! Most of the earthiness is gone, now I just taste yum. This is much better the second time around! I can’t believe how sweet it is (and its still healthy for me to boot). From the tastes of things, these leave would probably hold out for 4 or so steeps, I may just have to try it!
Overall, my favourite pure green that i’ve tried (although its the only), but still, the bar has been set high!

Free sample provided by TeaVivre. Thank you!

Dark greenleaf is twisted and lightly rolled in snail shape with about quarter of white buds. This Bi Luo Chun reminds me of White Monkey Paw since its so fluffy and doesn’t seem to deviate much in appearance. When I phisically compared the two, they’re almost identical!

I brewed two one-minute infusions using 250 ml glass teapot using 3 gr of leaf and 80 Celsius water.

First infusion, strained after one minute shows off light green-yellow tone with steamed vegetables (something like zucchini or peas, not sure) along with some leaf sediment at the bottom. Initially, the liquor doesn’t seem to show any signs of astringency, it’s fresh, light and moist. Second sip reveals some chestnut note hiding in background. Half way in, astringency silently moves in stiffening the gums and leaving the tongue dry and on the very root sweetness lingers. As I go past half the cup the intensity of dryness and astringency increases but still not shifting to leaving off unwanted overall impression.
I’m not a big fan of Bi Luo Chun, but I can keep up with astringency/dryness as long as it doesn’t get past this point.

Second infusion shifts more to vegetal element with accent to dryness and somewhat astringency that are in the same range as second half of first cup. There isn’t any sign of that sitting sweetness from previous cup. Half way in and dryness moves to throat with starchy texture and tongue registers just a hint of bitterness righ just after the swallow.
The leaf could take one more infusion that would be even more dry, astringent and even bitter. I’m really satisfied with first cup but I would pass the second one if I’m in ‘spoiled palate’ mood.

Wet leaf reveals notable broken leaves due to handling and transport. There’s a large of first leaf that has just separated from the bud which is characteristic for this tea that is harvested early in season. With deep sniff fresh and grassy profile is savored with vegetal note in background.

This pi lo chun, like many I have had, seems more like a white tea than a green. A fuzzy, fluffy dry life, not entirely unlike the silver needles, but curled in on itself rather than straight.

The scent on both the dry leaf and the brewed cup is also much like the silver needles. Sunny hay on the dry and sweet roundness coming off the cup — but the flavor on the tongue is more astringent and not nearly as sweet.

I love the soft, curly, almost cotton-like, green-white leaves. The smell is very light green and musty. I steeped this in my 4oz clear glass pot and watched the leaves unfurl and rise to the top. I love this clear glass pot. I feel like I am at peace when I stare at the leaves dancing. The liquid was a very light yellow/gold. The taste was refreshing. It was light, slightly sweet and fruity and malty. The fresh green came out as well, but its not as fresh tasting as sencha or gyokuro. This one would make a great staple in my cupboard as a green. This tea is so incredibly smooth.

The dry leaves have a very fruity smell and sweet aroma, bringing to mind dried strawberries. The leaves are silvery and very tippy; they are covered in the white down that often characterizes a well-harvested and gently processed green tea. I infused this at about 85C for 1 minute for the first infusion.

The wet leaves retain a little of the fruit flavor which comes across as a gentle smokiness. In the mouth, the aroma continues to remind me of strawberries. The tea is highly sweet and mouth-filling, like a honeydew melon with a bit of the woodiness of a young sapling.

The second infusion was also at about 85C, for 1.5 minutes. The woody flavor increased here, but not in a bad way. It’s almost like a young sheng puer, carefully brewed: the aromas of cut hay and straw.

Although I usually follow Teavivre’s brewing instructions exactly as recommended, today I deviated from them for this green tea. Teavivre states on the packet that you should brew this tea for one minute at 176 degrees. I didn’t have a problem with the temperature but I knew one minute of brewing was not going to produce flavor strong enough for my tastebuds to tune in. So, I brewed the tea for two minutes instead.

I am very glad that I added an extra minute of brewing for this selection. Even with the additional steeping, this tea does not have a lot of flavor. What is there is pleasant, light, and grassy, but there just isn’t enough taste to rouse me or make me count the minutes until I try it again.

If you prefer green teas over the bolder and more robust black teas, this tea may be just fine for you. Personally, the teas that get me most excited are the ones that flood my senses with flavor and linger on my tastebuds after each sip.

Experience buying from Teavivre http://steepster.com/places/2857-teavivre-online—

Age of leaf: advertised as spring 2011. Received fall 2011, brewed up days later.

Appearance and aroma of dry leaf: Characteristic Bi Lou Chun green tea look: a mixture of fuzzy, curly light and dark green leaves and buds; vegetal aroma.

Brewing guidelines: _{based on past experience, I used longer steeping times that my standard green tea parameters normally call for.} Loose in glass Bodum pot. Stevia added.
……….1st: 172, 2’
……….2nd: 177. 2.5’
……….3rd: 180, 3.5’
……….4th: 185, 5’

Color and aroma of tea liquor: cloudy greenish yellow; slightly vegetal.

Flavor of tea liquor: similar to other Bi Lou Chun green teas I have had: mildly vegetal, with notes which have a pleasant roasted flavor, or something else earthy or smoky; I don’t exactly know how to describe it, but I know I like it.

Appearance and aroma of wet leaf: the leaves were hanging on top and standing on the bottom of the pot during the second steeping: very cool! Fairly decent quality leaf: a number for whole leaves and buds, a few bud sets and fewer stems, and many smallish sized broken pieces throughout.

Value: This is the least expensive Bi Lou Chun I have tried (less than $3/oz); it is a great value for the quality.

Overall: This BLC has good flavor, which held up fairly well through the third steeping (there was a little mild flavor on the forth); even on the forth steeping there was no astringency what-so-ever. This seems to me like a decent grade Bi Lo Chun. I could easily drink this daily.

THis was my first time trying Pi Lo Chun and although it’s good it’s not exactly my cup of tea ;P. It holds up really nicely to several infusions and reminds me a lot of gunpowder tea. Be careful though because it can turn astringent fast. The dry leaves are very pretty and have a nice smokiness to them which translates over to the cup. If you like smokiness to your greens by all means you’ll love this! I simply prefer something a little sweeter and floral.

Either…

1) I’m sick and am not going to get the best taste or flavour out of this tea
2) I used too much leaf or did something wrong with the brewing
3) I’m just not a fan of straight green tea anymore

Or it could be all of the above, in parts. This steep is feeling heavy and a bit astringent.

More after I have finished this cup and attempt a re-steep.

Many thanks to Angel Chen for sending this to me to try…

EDIT:

The second steeping has brought out a milder taste, though I’m still leaning toward the notion that I used too much leaf, and that I am just not as much a fan of Chinese greens.

I really like the the look and texture of the leaves though, when they are dry. The white tips are a nice touch.

I have to say that I think this tea is a bit savoury and astringent or drying. Next time I will use less leaf and maybe a shorter steep time as well.

I have to admit that I was disappointed with this tea. I tried it at least four times, and the result was always the same. Maybe the flavor was just too subtle for me. I like my Pi Lo Chun to be a little more robust. It also had a slight smokey flavor—almost like Dragonwell. Don’t get me wrong, this tea is not horrible. It just is not quite the chun I like.

I feel like a lot of the subtlety of some teas, this one in particular, is lost on me. I didn’t really like this one. I mean, the leaves smelled wonderful, and the infusion smelled just as awesome and fresh, but when I drank it, I was overwhelmed by the taste of smoky leather. I would have liked to have liked it, but I can’t say that I did.

Opening the bag, little curly, fluffy,corkscrew leaves in lovely shades of green from pale to deep. When steeped, sweet vegetal taste with a hint of smokiness and honey. More subdued in flavor than a good dragonwell, tending more towards a white in its lightness. Very smooth with a silky, slightly smoky aftertaste that lingers. A good alternative to Dragonwell and a good added staple to a green tea lover’s larder. Inexpensive, for the quality. An excellent value for everyday drinking.