Tea Adventure: “Jasmine Ancient Beauty” from Persimmon Tree Tea

Here is the latest “Tea Gang” adventure with:


“Jasmine Ancient Beauty” from Persimmon Tree Tea.[More company info]This is a Flavored Tea [About straight teas vs flavored teas.]

Yes, another flavored tea. Jasmines, though, are a really special category and have been around a long, long time. Most we’ve tried in this household have been green teas, but this is an oolong. I supervised the steeping while my cohort Little One Cupper steeped the tea.

Prepare your noses, humans, for a floral burst when you pop the lid off the tea tin. But it won’t overwhelm you. The processors of this tea have managed to tone down the jasmine aroma enough so that it is very evident but doesn’t knock you over. It might be the tea used here, a lovely oolong of indeterminate origin. Oolongs are teas that are not fully oxidized (the process that turns the leaves from green to black) and range from lightly oxidized to heavily oxidized. This one is about in the middle:

The vendor recommends water heated to 195 F and a 3-5 minute steeping. Little One Cupper stayed with 3 minutes per steep. This being an oolong, multiple steeps were very doable. The liquid was a lovely honey color but also had a honey-like quality under that jasmine floral top coat. It was smooth tasting, too, and one of the more enjoyable jasmines my humans have tried (some have been too strongly floral). It really is a bit sad, though, to watch my humans quibbling over who will get the last cupful. Sigh!

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, any opinions concerning this tea and the company are always strictly objective.

© 2012 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved. No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder.