Jasmine Tea in its splendor

Lately I've had a thing for jasmine tea, especially jasmine pearls. I've tried the Trader Joe's version (pretty good, actually), as well as Peet's Yin Hao Jasmine (loose) which has a lovely, grassy flavor but is short on jasmine. I've also tried specialty tea retailers, including Adagio Teas: http://www.adagio.com/green/dragon_pearl.html Their pearls have very good jasmin flavor, and while it may seem like a lot to pay for tea, it works out to less than $.50 a cup. However, my new love is TeaSpring.com. They ship from Hong Kong, so it takes two weeks to arrive, but their jasmine pearls are absolutely fantastic: http://www.teaspring.com/Te-Ji-Pearl-Jasmine.asp I can't say enough about the intensity and delicacy of the flavor, and the green tea is not drowned out by the jasmine.

Not to mention, the tea is beautiful:


I love using a clear teapot and watching the pearls unfold.

Both the online vendors I listed above have $4 or less flat rate shipping and sample sizes with enough tea for ten cups or so. For me it was worth a flier to try out some new varieties. If you're not sure you will like the floral, gewurztraminer-like aroma, try the Trader Joe's bagged tea, as it's cheap and readily available.

Walt

[Robin Garr]

Walter, that really looks interesting and delicious.

I can't help but be curious about the issues that must be involved in passing green leafy vegetable matter from Hong Kong into California. Is there much paperwork, and does delivery take an inordinately long time?

Walter, that really looks interesting and delicious.

I can't help but be curious about the issues that must be involved in passing green leafy vegetable matter from Hong Kong into California. Is there much paperwork, and does delivery take an inordinately long time?

Dear Robin,
After what you went through clearing some wine shipped to yourself through customs, I would be skittish too! However, it's painless on the consumer end, except for the wait. It took two weeks and two days to arrive, though for some reason the package was routed through Jamaica, New York. Therefore it might arrive slightly more quickly to the East Coast.

I don't pretend to understand the agricultural issues, but tea has been thoroughly dried, so maybe it's OK. Plus, there is no native tea industry to protect in the U.S., unlike the citrus canker "Xac.," which threatens to destroy our whole citrus industry.

[Jenise]

I love, just love, a great jasmine tea and just two weeks ago "stocked up" on Dragon Pearls from a local loose tea seller. I had to put that in quotes because I bought either one or two ounces, can't recall which, for about $25. So it's like my dress-up tea--I only get to drink it on special occasions. But a good jasmine *does* taste that special. I'll have to take a look at your supplier, thanks for the recco.

My first really good jasmine pearl tea was a gift to me from my friend, Fumiko, in Japan. I have never had any as good since. Thanks for the recco!

Lets talk technique, then, since we have some fellow jasmine lovers here. My Peet's container says to wait two minutes after the water boils to add the tea. Definitely pouring freshly boiling water, Ã la black tea, drives off some of the delicate aroma. How do you brew yours?

Lets talk technique, then, since we have some fellow jasmine lovers here. My Peet's container says to wait two minutes after the water boils to add the tea. Definitely pouring freshly boiling water, Ã la black tea, drives off some of the delicate aroma. How do you brew yours?

Walt,
Green teas in general need much less time/temp for extraction. When we brew Japanese sencha (either Peet's or that from Ippodo in Kyoto) we use water that's cooled from the boiling point for 1-2 minutes and allow the leaves to steep for no more than a minute. The tea that one gets is highly colored and free of any bitterness with a clean, grassy aroma.

Mark Lipton

Not too different from others, but this is the method we use: Steep for 2-3 minutes in 170-180° F (77-82° C) water.

My first really good jasmine pearl tea was a gift to me from my friend, Fumiko, in Japan. I have never had any as good since. Thanks for the recco!

We have a Fumiko from Japan in our family too . She married our nephew. She is a facial yoga instructor in Japan and just recently returned after fulfilling several contracts. Are we talking about the same Fumiko?

[Jenise]

I brew a cup at a time thanks for my insta-hot tap--just drop a pinch in the bottom of the cup first and I never remove the leaves, just let them sink to the bottom. Probably not optimum but dead-easy.

We have a Fumiko from Japan in our family too . She married our nephew. She is a facial yoga instructor in Japan and just recently returned after fulfilling several contracts. Are we talking about the same Fumiko?

I don't think so.Our Fumiko is a home economics professor in Kyoto -- married to a Japanese man.

It's a common name. I have a Fumio (the male version) as a colleague down the hall.

Anyway, after reading all this I had to order some. I want to point out that TeaSpring, the Hong Kong firm, also sells Da Hong Pao (Big Red Robe) which is one of my very favorite teas and a little hard to find. I do love a good Oolong.

Generally I order my teas from Upton...

My favorite for a while has been the China Royal Jasmine Curls from TeaGschwendner. But when my current stock runs out I'll have to give some of the above suggestions a try.

Lately I've had a thing for jasmine tea, especially jasmine pearls.

(SNIP)

I love using a clear teapot and watching the pearls unfold.

I was totally sold on this concept and ordered some pearls from Teaspring. They took FOREVER to arrive, and we were both (me and Daniel Ong from Teaspring) thinking that they had gotten lost but finally they showed up -- I ordered the Jasmine pearls and Da Hong Pao. Ordered Feb 12, arrived March 8.

So last night I got the opportunity (we had company, they liked jasmine tea) to use something glass and watch the pearls open up -- I took a heat proof glass cup and sprinkled in tea to cover the bottom and added hot water. Guess what happened next? Each little pearl unfolded into a large tea leaf, and the cup looked like an overgrown lake with a jungle growing up and filling the cup! Evidently I had used a teapot worth of pearls in one cup. It did taste and smell delicious.

So -- I will need to experiment, but for people who use this tea, how many pearls would you use to make a single cup? How much for a teapot? This is one beautiful tea, thank you for the suggestion, I am really happy to have it.

Frank

I was totally sold on this concept and ordered some pearls from Teaspring. They took FOREVER to arrive, and we were both (me and Daniel Ong from Teaspring) thinking that they had gotten lost but finally they showed up -- I ordered the Jasmine pearls and Da Hong Pao. Ordered Feb 12, arrived March 8.

So last night I got the opportunity (we had company, they liked jasmine tea) to use something glass and watch the pearls open up -- I took a heat proof glass cup and sprinkled in tea to cover the bottom and added hot water. Guess what happened next? Each little pearl unfolded into a large tea leaf, and the cup looked like an overgrown lake with a jungle growing up and filling the cup! Evidently I had used a teapot worth of pearls in one cup. It did taste and smell delicious.

So -- I will need to experiment, but for people who use this tea, how many pearls would you use to make a single cup? How much for a teapot? This is one beautiful tea, thank you for the suggestion, I am really happy to have it.

Dear Frank,
Wow, that is a long time to wait for cup of tea! Sorry to hear that.

If you have a scale capable of measuring out 2 grams (.07 oz) that's the most accurate way to measure a small (150mL or 5 oz.) cup's worth of tea. I typically use 10-12 pearls for 250mL / 8 oz. of water.