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February 17, 2005
Yin-Hao Special Grade Jasmine
Name: Yin-Hao Special Grade Jasmine
Kathy's Rating: 7.0/10.0
Company: Tealuxe
Origin of tea: China
Price: $10/50g (~1.8oz)
Tea form: Loose jasmine scented green tea.
What they say: The choicest of the standard grades of Jasmine tea. Delicate flavor with a natural sweetness that is enhanced by the subtle aroma of the finest Jasmine flowers.
Preparation method: Pour slightly below boiling water onto tea and steep for 3 minutes.
Review: There are so many jasmine teas out there that I should try and clarify for tea newbies. First of all, most Chinese jasmine teas are green tea based. There are some black tea based jasmine teas, but the greens are the most well-known. Among green jasmine teas, there are the rolled gunpowder (or pearl) forms, and there are the loose-leaf forms. The loose-leaf form can vary from higher quality whole or near-whole leaves to lower-quality broken pieces of leaves.
This jasmine green tea falls in the loose-leaf form category. If you order jasmine green tea in a Chinese restaurant, you'll likely get this type of tea, assuming you get loose tea and not teabags. To me, there's a comforting sense about this tea, because it evokes memories of dimsum feasts. How does this tea rank? Pretty well, although definitely not up to the quality of pearl jasmine green teas. The jasmine scent isn't quite as intense or multi-dimensional as I'd like, but it's fairly decent, which is why I gave it a 7.0/10.0. If you're interested in pearl jasmine green teas, check out my TenRen review or Tealuxe review on them. They're both equally good, if not equally priced.
Posted by Kathy at February 17, 2005 07:51 PM