River Tea, Dragon Pearls

River Tea Description:
For those moments when you need some inspiration, this Jasmine Dragon Pearls will bring your imagination to life. Dragon Pearls green tea is a rare specialty from China. Only the youngest and most tender leaves are repeatedly blended with fresh, very fragrant jasmine flowers, a process that is repeated at least 8 times, at the end of which the flower petals are removed and the tea leaves are carefully hand rolled into small, tight pearls. The jasmine aroma is closed in and unfolds fully when infused giving the tea an exquisitely fragrant perfume and taste. Its colour is so intense and palpable that the tea almost appears like a syrup. A pleasure for the eyes, nose and palate, a fragrance that will inspire your days!

My Review:
This is another sample won in the River Teas promotional contest stating what you would do for the last 100g on earth of your favorite tea. You can read my winning entry here.

The entire package is carefully and delightfully wrapped. You get the sense that care went into every detail. The sample itself is a green resealable pouch. Yeah for resealable! The pearls inside are on the small side with only a light scent of jasmine suggesting what might lie ahead. Honestly, the scent of the dry pearls suggested I would not care for this offering. It seemed a bit fake or something.

I used about a tablespoon of pearls. They suggest 1 tsp for 8oz. I am using 12oz and would rather overdo the leaf. The recommended temperature is around 156 F. I set my kettle on the lowest setting (175 F) and shut it off as it reached the recommended temp. I steeped for 3 minutes.

The result is a lovely golden yellow with a nice jasmine fragrance. The pearls are far from relaxed and reveal a nice looking leaf.

Sipping proved my earlier fears were unfounded. This is a lovely and sweet natural tasting jasmine tea. It is not overly perfumey. There is some dryness associated with the sip. There is also a lingering jasmine aftertaste with the green tea separating in the taste.

I am glad I was wrong about this one. I rather like it.

Visit the River Tea website.