Chinese green tea new harvest vs shincha

[Oni]

When we near the end of march everybody starts to talk about shincha, the whole green tea section is full of it, I love japanese green tea, but I was wondering that why doesn`t chinese green teas have such a fan club, there are chinese green teas fresh picked that appeared on the market, even very famous ones. And all in all I haven`t read many posts here about chinese green tea, please somebody clarify this situation for me, I only had japanese greens for the last two years, I haven`t tried chinese green teas.

[ErikaM]

I love Chinese greens, but the differences between them don't seem as pronounced as with the Japanese greens. I have a few that I would be hard pressed to tell apart in a blind taste test. You have to have an appreciation for nuance to get the most out of them.

Also, my experience has been that as the quality goes up, the taste actually becomes even *more* subtle... so it's not really worth it to me to chase after the ultra-premium grades. I'm just as happy with a mid-grade that has a bit bolder flavor and lower price.

[olivierco]

Buying a good japanese tea is easier than buying a good chinese tea, especially when it comes to high quality ones. That might be part of the reason.

[bcos]

All thanks to Kevin and O-Cha

[Space Samurai]

Is it a cultural thing? Perhaps shincha, the first batches of the first harvest is more anxiously awaited than in China?

Or perhaps on this forum there are more fans of Japanese tea.

[iannon]

Is it a cultural thing? Perhaps shincha, the first batches of the first harvest is more anxiously awaited than in China?

Or perhaps on this forum there are more fans of Japanese tea.

I think I remember seeing a poll a while back that was about fav types of teas and japanese greens won out over chinese greens pretty big if i recall correctly. Although i do like both and switch around a lot personally. I know I had been waiting for the new crop of long jings myself

[Chip]

There are Japanese shincha *propagandists* on TeaChat.

There was a topic for Chinese new harvest 2008, the shincha topic simply blew it away. I was pretty suprised by this actually.

I have always also loved Chinese greens, but I just don't get psyched for them like for Japanese greens.

[Oni]

I feel the need to try chinese green teas, but my taste is shaped after japanese greens, so they would seem weak. And Olivierco is right, the japanese tea market is more transparent, if you pay at a well known teashop 60$ for their top gyokuro, you get something special.
I hope after having tried chinese green teas I will be enlightened.

[gingkoseto]

The difficulties I see in Chinese green for many drinkers include:
1. Tea production in Japan is a lot smaller than that in China, and generally most raw tea in Japan is used to make high quality tea. Some Chinese producers do fool around with fake/poor products, and unfortunately some foreign merchants choose to import the cheapest, sometimes even illegal products from China, in order to maximize the profits.

2. Many tea drinkers are misled by some Chinese green tea sellers in using 160F-180F brewing temperature, which doesn't work for most Chinese green. Many Chinese green sellers don't seem to realize that their careless instructions would cause their customers to think their tea is tasteless. Or they do it for a particular reason that I am not aware of?

3. To foreigners, it's much easier to buy directly from Japan than buying directly from China, in terms of using paypal/credit card, shipping cost, shipping time... I sometimes have difficulty talking some local Chinese tea sellers into shipping to US. I am not sure if they will be more willing to deal with large merchants or they simply refuse to think of selling to abroad.

4. I believe one's tea taste is largely related to her diet preference. So just go for whatever tea you like

[Salsero]

Many tea drinkers are misled by some Chinese green tea sellers in using 160F-180F brewing temperature, which doesn't work for most Chinese green.

What temperature range do you suggest? While we're at it, what general brewing parameters do you tend to use for Chinese greens?

[Chip]

Many tea drinkers are misled by some Chinese green tea sellers in using 160F-180F brewing temperature, which doesn't work for most Chinese green.

What temperature range do you suggest? While we're at it, what general brewing parameters do you tend to use for Chinese greens?

I was wondering the same thing. I think I brew all Chinese greens in this range (except later steeps), but maybe my palate likes more mildness?

[Beidao]

I LOVE Long Jing and I'm counting the days until I can buy the 2009 harvest, but I guess I just don't have the need to talk about it that much, and as I will buy it from a Swedish seller that few people here have even heard of, it's simply no idea to go on and on about it But I doooooo look forward to the end of April when I can buy it! I will buy both the next-to-best grade and the best grade. I was watching my money to much last year to buy the best, but I really am looking forward to comparing them. Both are real Xihu (or at least claim to be).

[iannon]

i was pondering my order right now!..between dragon house and teasprings long jings..they are all listed as 2009's now

[gingkoseto]

Many tea drinkers are misled by some Chinese green tea sellers in using 160F-180F brewing temperature, which doesn't work for most Chinese green.

What temperature range do you suggest? While we're at it, what general brewing parameters do you tend to use for Chinese greens?

I was wondering the same thing. I think I brew all Chinese greens in this range (except later steeps), but maybe my palate likes more mildness?

When lower temperature works well then sure it's fine. But I've seen some people using temperature recommended by sellers and finding the tea rather tasteless. I would use (estimated) 85C/182F for high quality tea, and 90C/194F or above (close to boiling) for medium quality tea. The only exception is very young bi luo chun, which I use the lowest temperature (estimated 80C/176F). The commonly recommended temperature for the best long jing is 80C/176F, but few people could afford the best anyway. Some high mountain green (such as huang shan mao feng) and most kinds of medium quality green will need certain water temperature to "open" them. To first time drinker of those teas, I would rather recommend using boiling water immediately and a topless vessel (such as a mug). Then if they wish they can experiment down the temperature a bit. For those teas, higher than necessary temperature will not cause much nasty effect, but lower than necessary temperature may fail to bring out the flavor.

It also has to do with season (environment temperature), how young the buds are and how the tea is thrown in the vessel. But when I am not sure of my guesstimation, I would rather go for higher temperature

[ErikaM]

A friend of mine (the person responsible for getting me into tea) told me most Chinese teas benefit from a rinse. She swears that in tea houses in China, or at least where she is from (Harbin, very north), the protocol is to pour on the hot water and immediately pour it off and discard it. Then the next infusion is one you drink. The initial rinse is supposed to open the leaves. I've never seen this mentioned elsewhere, so I don't know if it's a regional thing or what. I've tried it and like the results but I'm too lazy to mess with it most of the time. It makes more difference with some teas than others. For example, I'm normally not wild about the first infusion of Yang Yan Gou Qing, and like it much better after a rinse.