Dragonwell

I am going to be weird and say I love this tea with milk and sugar. Okay, I know I’ve been banned from the steepster world, but before I am let me have this one last tasting note :) I didn’t like it straight, or with just some sugar it just tasted burnt to me. (I swear I didn’t oversteep the tea, I only steep for 3 minutes at most even though the directions say more) And adding milk I don’t know it just went down so nice ahhhhhh….this will definitely be a miss since this is my last cup. But I will rebuy this sometime this month.

I have tried several longjing’s and I believe I’ve developed a good palate for determining what is and is not authentic west lake longjing. This one would fall into the latter category for me, the flavour was very mild, the scent equally faint, the infusion very light. This is not a bad introduction to longjing as it captures some of the characteristics of the real thing, but please to anyone don’t be dissuaded by this experience to foresake longjing in the future from other suppliers. What really disappoints is the pricetag on this, $10 for 50 grams here.. David’s tea might be a bargain to your average starbucks consumer, where $10 buying you several cups worth of tea is better than $10 for one cup of fancy coffee, but this is still very expensive, especially for an inauthentic longjing. There are many reputable suppliers online for this wonderful tea and you don’t need to spend a fortune either, unless you are wealthy or a connoisseur a 3rd Grade longjing should only cost about $30 – 45 for a lb! Compare to David’s tea $90/lb. This 3rd grade dragonwell will also be authentic and you will know it’s authentic because the scent and flavour will be far more pronounced and lingering, not this tepid concoction David’s tea is passing off.

Green Tea sipdown!

With the comparing of the Jasmine teas and now this, this is definitely more caffeine than I need today, but I’m having a nice, leisurely lunch and have been enjoying re-rating green teas that I haven’t had for a long time. I’m a lot better in picking up subtleties in green tea than I was a couple years back and I’m curious to see how my opinion has changed now that I have a better trained palate :).

I remember initially purchasing this tea simply because the leaves were so gorgeous. They are whole, pressed flat and oblong and I could tell care was taken in harvesting this tea.

The smell of the leaves is grassy, and the brewed liquid is a light yellow and quite nice. The flavour is smooth and a little grassy and buttery (although not as buttery as say, gyokuro). Regardless this tea is very nice. My original rating 2 years ago was an 85 and it stands. This is a great mid-range priced straight tea (actually, if you go on DAVID’s website, select “straight green tea” and price low to high it’s exactly in the middle). Gyokuro is better than dragonwell but it’s double the price (this tea is a little under $10/50grams, gyokuro is nearly $20/50grams) and the thing about gyokuro for me is that I believe with a tea that good you should sit down and enjoy it, not mindlessly guzzle at work. With Dragonwell I wouldn’t feel bad bringing it to work and “mindlessly guzzling it” but it’s also nice enough to sit and enjoy leisurely. It’s the best of both worlds.

This tea may become a staple for me. I would really like to compare it to Japanese sencha since that tea is a mid-range priced tea as well, but I have over 40(!) teas in my collection so it will be a while till I do so :)

It’s decent. Not a bad green tea but not one that I’d restock on either.

I find I like Chinese greens better than Japanese and this one didn’t disappoint. Surprisingly little “green tea” flavour and with an interesting finish. I’d almost call it a little bit of a spiciness as it’s swallowed. First cup I steeped for 3:30 and it was ok, second I steeped for 5 minutes. 5 minutes still had the spicy flavour and added more of the “green tea” flavour without adding much bitterness.

I love this tea. I’m not a very regular green tea drinker, but I do make this one fairly often. It’s wonderfully earthy and vegetal with a buttery finish. I’ve managed to get my steeping time and temps just right a few times and it is absolutely fantastic!

may 16/17
my first dragonwell. didnt think i liked green teas a whole lot, but this might have converted me. 2 steeps, 2 mins on first one, 3 on the second. i definitely got the grassy, nutty, butteriness, but also some honey oats. i could see myself throwing this into the rotation a couple times a week. glad i got another dragonwell from a different spot too to compare.

may 26/17
there is a definite meatiness to the smell of the wet leaves that i cant quite put my finger on.

I typically gravitate towards jasmine green teas, but I always keep a little bit of Dragonwell on hand for when I want something a little grassier and nuttier. I’m not surprised that I like this one due to it being a Chinese tea. DAVIDsTEA’s Dragonwell is extraordinarily easy to drink and less delicate in steeping times and temperatures than other green teas I’ve tried, making it an easy favourite.

I taste a crisp but mellow green tea flavour that’s fairly smooth for a green tea. There’s a significant nuttiness to the tea, accompanied by a little woodiness. This tea has a beautiful depth of flavour that I would not expect from a straight green tea. A staple in my tea cupboard.

Currently my second pairing for my green tea – pu’erh blend. When I first smelled/tasted Dragonwell I definitely got strong hints of fish and nutty. I think it is an acquired taste, but I did ask for the most organic tea available at the time, something not mixed with fruits, nuts, etc. I find this tea helps with my digestion and I’ve gotten used to the taste. Giving it a 75 for now. I steep my blend for 10 minutes.

#ProjectTeaWall

Normally I’m not a fan of Dragonwell – but I drank this one hot the other day while waiting to start my shift for the night and it was actually really pleasant/enjoyable. My new favourite thing is drinking green teas with Tzatziki fries. They generally pair REALLY well with the dill, cucumber, and lemon in the sauce and it typically brings out the underlying fruity elements of the green tea to the forefront.

This was no exception; while the tea still had crisp vegetal notes to it such as fresh Spring Peas the main flavour was smooth, medium bodied overripe peaches. Interestingly, it also had peaches & cream corn/sweet corn undertones.

Yummy! And surprising.

Friendly reminder that I’m not currently numerically rating DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently seasonally employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts regarding the teas, and not the company’s.