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“Yay! My first second steeping of a tea! If I decide to resteep other teas, I’ll probably tack the findings on to the end of the first steep results. But since my last review of Gunpowder was so...” Read full tasting note
“Backlogging from last night.. Bad, I know. I wasn’t sure whether to log this under Honeybush Mango or Gunpowder, since I went half and half with the two teas. This is now my new favorite blend. I...” Read full tasting note
“I got a sample tin of this tea from Ricky in a trade (thanks man!). Now I’ll start off by saying that the first and only experience I’ve had with gunpowder green tea was rather…regretable. It had...” Read full tasting note
“Trying to get rid of this one so I have an empty tin… loved it when I bought it, now I don’t care for it. It’s not bad, I’ve just found other teas I like more.” Read full tasting note
Gunpowder is a classic green tea from Zhejiang province, China. As the name implies, Gunpowder tea is made up of leaves hand-rolled into tiny pellets. These resemble gunpowder, and give this tea its distinct name. Full-bodied cup with a hint of smokiness and a smooth mouthfeel. Blend Gunpowder tea with spearmint to create the famous ‘Moroccan Mint’ tea.
Gunpowder is the world’s oldest known chemical explosive. Made from sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter, it is one of the Four Great Inventions of China, alongside the compass, paper-making, and printing. Though it’s famous for its use in weaponry like guns and cannons—spawning countless movie scenes of exploding barrels or chases to snuff out sparking black lines, it was also used for more constructive purposes like mining and even medicine. Though Gunpowder tea doesn’t carry quite the same explosive punch as its namesake, it is famous for its smokiness and shape, both of which lend themselves to its unique name.
Green Tea | Moderate caffeine | Steep at 180° for 2-3 minutes.
Adagio Teas has become one of the most popular destinations for tea online. Its products are available online at www.adagio.com and in many gourmet and health food stores.
This is by far my favorite tea. I would not feel comfortable purchasing Gunpowder green tea any where else but Adagio. They’ve never failed me when it comes to my selection in Gunpowder. I drink at least two cups almost every morning.
Backlogging from last night.
I received two bags of this and upon cracking this baby open I initially thought that I didn’t like it, so I decided to take the unopened bag and give it as a housewarming present to my friend’s new apartment.
She didn’t have any pots or kettles unpacked, so I haphazardly microwaved a glass of water and plopped in a handful of leaves, waiting a few minutes and drank it straight-up, leaves and everything. I don’t know what I did wrong before this, but this was just delicious, even when it’s been steeping for several minutes.
Sweet, refreshing, and a tad buttery. One of the best Adagio greens I’ve tried in my limited experience with them, much better than the awful, spinachy taste I got beforehand.
This tea is gorgeous! I watched it steep and as the leaves unfurled, they took over a large amount of the teapot and looked like a crazy overgrown forest.
The second thing I noticed about this tea is the smell. The first thing that struck me was the smoky scent that reminded me of a campfire. I can understand the name of the tea now. I made enough of this tea to make two cups. One for the hubby and one for me.
It has a really light flavor, as one reviewer said, like spinach. I kind of like it. I think that I will try another cup before I decide whether to like it or not.
New to gunpowder. The unfurling leaves are super fun to watch.
The smokey flavor is pleasant, but it’s more grassy than I normally like. If this is normal for gunpowder, that explains my intense dislike of the Moroccan mint I tried recently. Smokey grass does not belong near peppermint in my book.
Going to give it a fair shake and finish the cup, then resteep to see if the grassiness mellows out.
ETA 4/22/13 – I think I was bad at taking the water’s temperature, and scalded the leaves. I’ve tried again—with more careful temp-taking—and not gotten bitter grassy flavor.
I have a love hate relationship with Gunpowder. Mostly I hate it, not the most delicate tea, tends to be overyly strong and has a almost salty smokey quality that can be overpowering.
The love part is that its cheap, easy to brew and consistant.
I will probably continue to buy gunpowder although i’m going to put an order into Tea Trekker soon opposed to ordering from Adagio
Brandice gave me this tea to try because she is a fan of Gunpowder. I had not purchased any of this tea because quite frankly the name scared me. When I hear someone mention the name all I can think of is my grandpa in his gunroom with his gunpowder and that is not something I would ever want to drink. That being said, I also saw that so many people have said it smells of cows or tobacco and tastes smokey. From my new tea experiences, I am finding that if I don’t like the smell of a tea I tend not to like the taste so that also scared me and I’ve been warned of teas tasting like campfires or “smokey” as some called it which also is something I don’t like.
Now on to what I thought about the tea. When I opened the bag of tea, I thought it smelled like a good quality tea, not cow dung. When I brewed the tea, I still thought it smelled fresh and inviting. When I drank the tea I was pleasantly surprised with the way the tea tasted in my mouth and slid down my throat. I’m still new to this tea thing, but I can say in my opinion it doesn’t smell like pooh and it doesn’t taste like a campfire.
I really enjoyed this tea and look forward to having another glass. This is the first green tea I have tried.
