Seven Cups Shi Feng Long Jin Notes

[joelbct]

Here is the Seven Cups Shi Feng Long Jing that arrived today. Brewed first infusion for 2.5 minutes, at 165 degrees, second for 3 minutes at 175 degrees.

It is tasty- subtle, fresh, vibrant, vegetabl-ey, slight hint of smoke and saltiness. 2nd infusion tastes better than the first. Resonant aftertaste...

It is definitely a very high quality tea, however, I'm not convinced it is worth $36.45 for 25 grams. I suspect their Da Fo Long Jing might be a better buy, at $25.60 for 50 grams.

***EDIT: Upon several additional tastings, and tweaking the amt. of tea and temperature, I got better results with the Shi Feng Long Jing. I am starting to see why it is expensive- Very subtle and refined, as expensive Chinese Greens tend to be***

I think I actually preferred the Dragon Well I picked up from Ito En last Spring, which was considerably less expensive- Interesting, considering they specialize in Japanese tea. Could be because it was closer to harvest time.

I will let you know how the Dragon Tea House Long Jing compares when it arrives (I ordered the superfine grade). $18.70 for 100 grams sounds much more reasonable, and even his highest grade Long Jing is just $43.00 for 100 grams. I guess it pays to order direct from China...

Overall, though, I would order from Seven Cups again. And I have yet to sample or review the Keemun Spring Dawn, or the Taishan Fo Mei (Buddha's Eyebrow), which also arrived today with the Shi Feng.

Hope this is helpful!

[TheSteamyPot]

Thanks for the info. I can't wait for your thoughts on the Long Jing purchaced from Dragon Tea House. I hope it is just as good so I can save some money, that way I can buy more teas!

[joelbct]

So I am currently drinking the Seven Cups Keemun Spring Dawn 2007

This one, I would recommend, even at the price of $17.75 for 25 grams, if you are a fan of Keemun. It is one of the best Keemuns I have tasted. Has a bit of the traditional Keemun flavor, but more subtle, complex, delicate. Brewed for 3.5 minutes w/ water that had been brought to a boil.

Not exactly identical to the slightly pricier Keemun Spring Dawn I had last Spring ($40/ounce from Ito En in store), which was also complex and subtle tasting, but the dry leaf had a more uniform, small/twisted, black appearance. So I am still looking for that previous Keemun Spring Dawn, hopefully Ito En will be able to procure some this season as well.

But anyway, this Seven Cups Keemun SD is wonderful just the same, and I would recommend. After brewing, the wet leaf had the most distinctive aroma... Delicious!

I am such a tea freak... lol...

[joelbct]

And thirdly, my verdict on the Seven Cups Taishan Fo Mei (Buddha's Eyebrow) Green Tea (Organic) 2007 is that this is a delicious and inexpensive ($50/lb) Chinese Green, that is also Organic.

I agree with the Seven Cups description that this would make a suitable "every-day" Chinese Green- I would probably buy it again.

[Chip]

It is interesting that the pricier Long Jings tend to be so much subtler than less expensive ones...must be the way the Chinese like their LJ. I have had I think every LJ that TeaSpring has rolled out in the last few years and this was the case.

I almost like their least expensive one as much as any LJ I have ever tried, has that nuttier character I seem to prefer. Their more expensive ones are stunning to look at and subtly devine, much more vegetal. But for most Americans who drink green, it is a tough sell, especially considering the lofty prices they go for.

Thanx for sharing with us Joel.

[Salsero]

I agree with Chip that you pay a premium for Long Jing just because it's the big name green tea in China. It is my impression that Chinese people will pay almost any price for Long Jing, just because it's got such a huge reputation. It seems to me that there are lots of teas just as good as the LJs available to us, and that the really pricey LJs are completely inaccessible to anyone except the rich and famous living in China. I like to look for the best of a great tea (like Hou Kui or Zhu Ye Qing to name a couple) rather than the second best of a big name.

On a separate but related issue, I think those nutty flavors (like in the cheaper LJs) come from the oils used in pan firing the teas and have very little to do with the taste of the leaf itself, an idea I always find at least a little disenchanting. That's one thing I appreciate about the Japanese greens: whatever you taste is probably leaf and not processing ingredients.

[Ed]

I couldn't agree more, Salsero.

[Chip]

Really Salsero...jeez, I did not know they used oils in the pan firing of LJ...do you have a link for that by any chance. That is mind blowing. I am going to ask Daniel from TeaSpring about that...he seems to be a straight shooter and I think he would tell me if any of their selections had oil used in processing.

Jeez, what oil would they use? I have not noticed any oil floating in my LJ.

[Salsero]

I'm sure Daniel would be a great source of information on the details and I for one would like to hear what he has to say.

My understanding is that they use very, very little and that it's not supposed to be a secret at all. It's just a way to keep the leaves moving easily around the wok. I suspect that most Chinese greens are processed in this way as part of the kill green procedure, instead of the steaming method used in Japan. In fact, the movie All In This Tea has a short sequence where you see a tea master firing green tea in a wok and you can see the sheen on the wok.

The only link I have is to a question I posted on RFDT last March. The replies are hardly definitive. I would love to hear what Daniel or his partner have to say, as I am sure they know the nitty gritty that I was looking for in March.

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.food ... 51ca502bc7

[Wesli]

The oils they use are actual tea oils. This means that there is some external flavor, but at least it's from the same plant as the leaf. The gents who pan-fire the leaf, keep a stick of the tea oil around for when they need it. The oil solidifies at a low temperature, similar to butter. They use it to keep the leaf from sticking to the pan and to ensure the leaf makes good contact with the pan. As a result of this, you can sometimes see reflective, multi-color oil floating on top of a cup of pan-fired tea.

[Chip]

The oil is solid...jeez, if they are using partially hydrogenated TEA oil, I will die from clogged arteries for certain.

I will seek clarification still from my Chinese friends. I will ask Dan, but I also have a Chinese friend in China who is also in the tea trade.

[joelbct]

The oil is solid...jeez, if they are using partially hydrogenated TEA oil, I will die from clogged arteries for certain.

I don't think vascular or heart disease is a major problem in the far east, at least until the recent trend towards adoption of Western Diets, w/ Fast Food, Dairy, Meat, Trans-Fats, etc...

So I don't think tea drinkers have too much to worry about from that... It is interesting to look into though, I hadn't heard much about the oils used in pan-firing... My guess is that it is a miniscule amount of oil that would make its way into the final tea liquor

Also, an update, the Seven Cups Taishan Fo Mei (Buddha's Eyebrow) Green Tea (Organic) 2007 tastes even better on the second infusion, will def buy this again as a daily Chinese Green...