Yunnan Green Jade Supreme Organic (ZG69)
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From Upton Tea
This green tea has pale, wiry leaves that take up a lot of space relative to their weight, like some white teas.
The tea is pungent and very different from other green teas I've tried. The aroma is rather like that of a very hoppy beer, and the tea has a hop-like bitterness to it, reminiscent of some of the stronger India Pale Ales. Its aroma strikes me as much more like a black tea than a green. There is some astringency to the flavor but not intolerably much--just enough to give this tea an edge. I don't really agree with Upton's description of this tea at all...they describe a "delicate aroma of apricot" and a flavor that is "mellow and sweet, with a light fruity finish". What? This is a bold, dark, kinda wicked-tasting tea. It is not mellow or delicate by any stretch of the imagination.
You need to use a lot of volume of leaves, as instructed, because this tea takes up a lot of space. I found the brewing instructions (3-4 min.) to be right-on. I was not able to brew two cups with the same set of leaves: I attempted to do this, but the second cup had a much weaker aroma. Upon steeping it second cup longer, it became very bitter and astringent, but still had a weak aroma. I think this tea is only good for a single brewing. Because the sample only yielded two drinkable cups, I haven't been able to experiment much with brewing temperature.
Bottom line, I like it. But it is expensive, especially given that you need to use a substantial volume of leaves and that you really can only get one usable cup out of them, so I'm not sure if it offers the best value.
http://www.uptontea.com/shopcart/item.asp?itemID=ZG69&from=cazort.net