Dragonwell Lung Ching

Sipdown! Thanks to Indigobloom for letting me have a sample of this tea.

I seem to have become quite fond of dragonwell – the rock sugar/caramelly sweetness is better than anything I’ve tasted in a flavoured tea, and rather addicting. This particular dragonwell is no exception, producing a delicious caramelly green tea flavour. However, it’s not as intense or as fresh as some dragonwells I’ve had, and there was some astringency (I’d prefer none). Overall, I’d happily drink it again, but I do think I’ve had better. I think on average, dragonwells rate between a 90-95 on my tea deliciousness scale; this one’s about a 91. :)

ETA: I killed the re-steep. Combo of oversteeping and leaving the leaves to sit overnight. I’ve really got to remember that straight greens in particular need to be fully re-steeped quickly as they just don’t last.

A very light green – perfect for those who want the health benefits of a green without the typical green flavor notes.

Not my personal favorite but I can see why some love this.
Full review on http://sororiteasisters.com/ on January 2nd 2013 but here are some review snippits:

Dragonwell Lung Ching as far as I can recollect is the first tea I have sampled from The Kiosque. Thanks to a Steepster friend I am getting to try this light, lovely, green tea, and a new tea company. The leaves look much greener in person than in the photo.

(note – Thank you to Indigobloom for this sample!)

For me, its a bit simplistic, and lack luster. Its not bad, please don’t get me wrong. It is good enough that I do want to try more teas by The Kiosque and I will, its not a turn off, just not something that is making me want to purchase a tin.

Now I will note that the mouthfeel of this tea is creamy, very creamy, and I like that – a lot. Yet I do miss the buttery, nutty nature that many greens have that this one is lacking.

This was my morning tea. Quite yummy, I was impressed!! a bit light for my liking but the leaves were dried straight so they fit jaggedly in my teaspoon. I think I have enough left for a second serving… and it will be had in my Gaiwan! Yup yup, most definitely… as I need to discover what hidden secrets lie beneath!
See, the first steep was ok. Vegetal and toasted, with a hint of caramel, or maybe spun sugar. At first I thought I was imagining it, but then it was even stronger in the second steep!! and as I got through my sips, there was a distinct aftertaste of maple/caramel spun sugar. I’ve never had that in a green before! It was amazing.
The third steep had a little less caramel, and more toastiness, but then it was back in the fourth. No time for a fifth…
Either way, I am seriously considering getting a tin of this. One sample will likely not be enough for me. That is IF I can find something besides caramel, I do like my complex teas :)

Thank you indigobloom for this sample. It’s quite delicious! and that’s pretty high praise as i don’t love a lot of greens. I’m not sure if this would have a permanent place in my in my cupboard as I tend to stick with blacks. BUT if there was a green to stay in my cupboard, this would probably be it. It’s not very vegetal at all, which is what i really enjoy about this green. mmmm looking forward to additional steeps of this! Thanks Indigobloom!

I’M BAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!!!!!! As a married woman!!!!!! :D

The wedding day was absolutely perfect! It was a whirlwind of a day, and already I can feel the details slipping. All I remember is marrying my best friend and soul mate, supported by our closest friends and relatives. It was a beautiful sunny day filled with unbelievable food, great live music, and the most beautiful floral arrangements I’ve ever seen. I can’t believe it’s actually over! So much buildup and now it’s in the past. I CAN’T WAIT to get back the video and photos. I’ll be sure to post some in case anyone is interested. For now, all I have is our engagement photos, which you can see here: http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/finally-our-engagement-photos-yay-pic-heavy

We took a mini-moon the week after the wedding. We spent 2 nights at a local B&B in Newport, RI and then 3 days/2 nights in New York City. It was a blast! We saw The Phantom of the Opera, which was the hubby’s first Broadway show. :) We had lunch at the best restaurant in the whole city, Bouley, and then went shopping on Fifth Avenue. I, of course, stopped by DAVIDsTEA on Bleecker Street and picked up some more samples. I also found a delightful surprise in Bergdorf Goodman: Mariage Freres!!! WHAAAAT??! Yep, I bought my first ever Mariage Freres tea, Marco Polo. I also discovered a new-to-me tea company called Bellocq Tea Atelier. So, I grabbed a sampler of 8 of their blends too. Like I needed any more tea, right?

Well, my dear husband has decided that he wants to start drinking tea on a more regular basis!!! I’M SO EXCITED! Now I get to teach him all I know about tea!!!! Okay, well I suppose I shouldn’t come on too strong or he’ll just hate it, LOL! He bought a black Perfect Tea Mug with infuser and lid from DAVIDsTEA. Quite the minimalist, but now his tea journey can officially begin! Hehehe!

I’m going to try and spend most of today drinking down some old swap samples. I have some that date back to 2011! With all these new teas being added to the cupboard, I’ve got to make some room. Here come the tasting notes!!!

ON TO THE TEA:

I received this tea just before Halloween last year from Indigobloom. That makes this swap sample only about 6 months old. :P Hey, I’ve been busy! LOL! I’m finally brewing this one up, and I’m excited about it. All the reviews to-date have been glowing.

Oops, accidently sloshed a bunch of tea on myself in my haste to raise the cup to my lips. :( What a pain. Well, after running upstairs to change, I can now sit down and enjoy this tea. :) Mmmmm! This is great! It’s not very green or grassy like the other Chinese Dragonwell teas I’ve tried. Instead, it’s very softly green. Not in-your-face chlorophyll.

Bigger sips bring in more of the vegetal grassiness. Smaller sips bring in the roast-y toast-y elements. There are also caramel notes here, and am I detecting a nuttiness? Something akin to pistachio I think, though it’s very light. Yum! I’m not getting any spun sugar sadly, but that could be attributed to age. This is unlike any other unflavored green I’ve tried, and I’m really enjoying it! Big thanks to Indigobloom for the sample!