Has anyone tried the Gold Medal winning Shui Xian currently shown on the front page of the Jing Tea site? It is a Wuyi yancha, not a dancong. It won some competition in the Shui Xian category.
http://www.jingteashop.com/pd-jing-tea- ... uixian.cfm
Aug 17th, '09, 21:26
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Re: Jing Tea Shop - Gold Medal winning Shui Xian (Wuyi)
I haven't tasted it. There's a lot of competitions, so that doesn't mean too much to me, but Jing generally gives good value for money and that does mean something to me.
Re: Jing Tea Shop - Gold Medal winning Shui Xian (Wuyi)
Better late than never...
I have tried it twice recently. I thought the clarity was a little off for at least the first several brews, maybe longer; not something that would normally bother me too much, but I think it's something that would matter for a "gold medal" winning tea. It's pretty good, but to me, the processing is a little wishy-washy and I didn't find that characteristic Shui Xian taste quite strong enough. The durability seemed decent, but not amazing. Not at all a bad tea - in fact, I quite enjoyed it. But I have had teas that are (to me) as good or better at a lower price. I liked it better the second time I brewed it (used a small yixing pot instead of a gaiwan and used slightly less leaf by volume).
Maybe this has more to do with my personal preferences than anything else, but I think their LCSX (which, as a bonus, is slightly cheaper) is slightly better. Little bit heavier roast.
Just my $0.02 based on 2 tastings each. These all refer to the Spring '09 teas.
I tried their [current] Shui Jin Gui offering twice, and the first time, compared it quite favorably to the other 3 or 4 examples of this tea that I've tried. However, the second time (different brewing parameters) I found it more so-so.
I have tried it twice recently. I thought the clarity was a little off for at least the first several brews, maybe longer; not something that would normally bother me too much, but I think it's something that would matter for a "gold medal" winning tea. It's pretty good, but to me, the processing is a little wishy-washy and I didn't find that characteristic Shui Xian taste quite strong enough. The durability seemed decent, but not amazing. Not at all a bad tea - in fact, I quite enjoyed it. But I have had teas that are (to me) as good or better at a lower price. I liked it better the second time I brewed it (used a small yixing pot instead of a gaiwan and used slightly less leaf by volume).
Maybe this has more to do with my personal preferences than anything else, but I think their LCSX (which, as a bonus, is slightly cheaper) is slightly better. Little bit heavier roast.
Just my $0.02 based on 2 tastings each. These all refer to the Spring '09 teas.
I tried their [current] Shui Jin Gui offering twice, and the first time, compared it quite favorably to the other 3 or 4 examples of this tea that I've tried. However, the second time (different brewing parameters) I found it more so-so.