adagio's White Monkey - a green or white tea??

Made from leaves that have not been oxidized.


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Feb 5th, '07, 12:49
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adagio's White Monkey - a green or white tea??

by expatCanuck » Feb 5th, '07, 12:49

Folks -

Whaddaya think -- adagio's White Monkey --
a green or white tea (& why)?

I ask, in part, because I seem to like white, oolong & black teas, but have found unpleasant most every (other?) green tea I've tried.

And many reviewers seem to think of it as a white tea.

Thoughts?

- Richard

www.oldWithoutMoney.com

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Feb 5th, '07, 13:09
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by TeaFanatic » Feb 5th, '07, 13:09

White Monkey is a green tea, don't be fooled by the name. You can tell by the color of the brew, which is more on the green side, and the leaves are also green.

What greens have you tried?
"Make tea not war"

Favorites: Sencha, Dragonwell, White Monkey, Silver Needle, Gyokuro, Kukicha, Darjeeling

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Feb 5th, '07, 13:12
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by expatCanuck » Feb 5th, '07, 13:12

TeaFanatic wrote:What greens have you tried?
I've tried adagio's gyokuro & dragonwell -- the scent of both literally make me gag.

I really enjoy white monkey, & have ordered a small container.

Don't mind hojicha, tho' I'm not inclined to go beyond the sample.

- Richard

www.oldWithoutMoney.com

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Feb 5th, '07, 13:45
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by TeaFanatic » Feb 5th, '07, 13:45

Hmmm.... most of the problems that people have with green stem from not brewing properly. Gyokuro is one of the toughest teas to brew properly because it is very delicate. I know adagio says to use 180 degree water, but I've found that it is much much better at 150 degrees steeped for no longer than a minute.

Dragonwell is one of my favorites, and I steep in at 170 degrees for about 2-2.5 minutes. Recently, I've started using a gaiwan which makes dragonwell taste even better.

How are you steeping your green? If you like white monkey then you would probably also like pi lo chun and green pekoe. It sounds like you don't like the vegetal taste of some green teas.

I would say check your steeping temps and time and if you still don't like the taste and aroma, then you probably aren't going to like the tea. If you don't like gyokuro, I'd stay away from most japanese greens and go more for the chinese greens.
"Make tea not war"

Favorites: Sencha, Dragonwell, White Monkey, Silver Needle, Gyokuro, Kukicha, Darjeeling

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Feb 5th, '07, 20:17
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by expatCanuck » Feb 5th, '07, 20:17

TeaFanatic wrote:...How are you steeping your green? ...
In a 400 ml Yixing clay pot, for the recommended time.
I'll try it shorter and, when my (hopefully accurate) kitchen thermometer arrives, try varied temps.

- Richard
www.oldWithoutMoney.com

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Feb 5th, '07, 20:56
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by TeaFanatic » Feb 5th, '07, 20:56

Are you using your yixing for different teas? Yeah try different temperatures and times, experiment a little bit and see how that works out.
"Make tea not war"

Favorites: Sencha, Dragonwell, White Monkey, Silver Needle, Gyokuro, Kukicha, Darjeeling

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Feb 7th, '07, 02:37
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Re: adagio's White Monkey - a green or white tea??

by cherryking » Feb 7th, '07, 02:37

[quote="expatCanuck"]Folks -

Whaddaya think -- adagio's White Monkey --
a green or white tea (& why)?

I ask, in part, because I seem to like white, oolong & black teas, but have found unpleasant most every (other?) green tea I've tried.

And many reviewers seem to think of it as a white tea.

Thoughts?

- Richard

White Monkey is green tea, is very special green tea, just grows in Fu jian province, China.

Because the soft white hiars cover all over the teas, we call it White monkey.

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Feb 7th, '07, 10:16
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by expatCanuck » Feb 7th, '07, 10:16

TeaFanatic wrote:Are you using your yixing for different teas?
Yep. I'm aware of the received wisdom stating that one should only use a Yixing pot for a specific kind of tea. But I like a variety of tea, and have a limited number of pots. Ah well ... .

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Feb 7th, '07, 12:46
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by rhpot1991 » Feb 7th, '07, 12:46

TeaFanatic wrote:If you don't like gyokuro, I'd stay away from most japanese greens and go more for the chinese greens.
That is my recommendation also. I prefer Chinese greens over Japanese greens, unless they are flavored.

-John

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by Chip » Feb 7th, '07, 13:03

expatCanuck wrote:
TeaFanatic wrote:Are you using your yixing for different teas?
Yep. I'm aware of the received wisdom stating that one should only use a Yixing pot for a specific kind of tea. But I like a variety of tea, and have a limited number of pots. Ah well ... .
If you are going to share brewing vessels for different teas, I would recommend a glazed or even a glass brewing vessel. The yixing will impart flavors from various teas into your brew.
I too like a lot of variety...but I dedicate yixing to one tea only.

Quality Japanese sencha that is properly stored, packaged, and fresh truly rocks...extremely flavorful!!! But I know it is not everyone's cuppa. Proper preparation is very critical with Japanese green tea...it is very unforgiving.
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!

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