Ever since I had my first jasmine tea, I will get these cravings for jasmine. I just really love the smell of it, and the soft taste of it. Nommy. No wonder it’s been part of the tea tradition for so long now, and I’m happy to be a part of it.
takgoti gave me this one, and I love the look of these Dragon Pearls. In fact, I love the look of pearls in general, but these are really gorgeous. The sea green interwoven with the blue-green. So gorgeous. And the smell coming off of them! It’s that floral-fruity smell that’s so jasmine. And I just realized it today, sort of reminds me of Juicy Fruit gum! I could smell these little buggers all day.
One of the other great things about a jasmine pearl tea is the steeping. Watching them unfurl, little bubble trails streaking up the sides of the clear pot, it’s almost like the caterpillar emerging from the cocoon. Entrancing, almost. Anyway, the leaves in this particular one are nice and whole, and there’s a fair amount of buds as well. I don’t know what the ratio is (although there probably is a method to the madness), but I soon had a little green aquarium of tea leaves.
The liquid on this one smells very soft and inviting. Very jasmine, but there’s almost a hint of cocoa in the smell. And it’s actually my favorite color for tea, that dark beige, pale yellow color that I think just looks like rich for its pale color.
It’s the flavor of this one that really knocked my socks off, though. Wow. Just.. wow. There’s a buttery taste, that melts into a soft, juicy jasmine flavor. It’s really not overbearing. It doesn’t try to beat you over the head with its jasmine notes. It just blends seamlessly into the body of the tea. I’m addicted to that butter-like component. I finished this cup very, very fast. It’s just a testament to the quality of the green tea in this one. It’s full of flavor. Seriously.
The jasmine has a wonderful sweet aftertaste that lingers on the tongue, but is pleasant. Some aftertastes just never seem to end. This just quietly fades away.
Really top-notch stuff. Seriously. It’s like a sigh. The flutter of butterfly wings. Okay, I’m getting a little stupidly poetic, but this one is so fuzzy-wonderful that I want to just let it wash over me.
I tried a second steep of it, and while the jasmine flavor was still there, it was a bit more muted, and there was a vegetal note creeping in that wasn’t to my liking. So out the leaves went!
I can’t wait to compare this to Samovar’s!
I love this tea! The 2nd steep is the best, IMO.
Now I want some! Second order of harneys will be fun when I finally make it.