Ming Qian Long Jing 明前龙井
Last year we introduced a Long Jing (Dragon Well) green tea that was extremely well received for its pungent toasted aroma and deep tropical fruit taste with hints of white floral. This tea set a very high bar for us in regards to quality and taste so when we found out that the same producer could not harvest this year, we were very disappointed but accepted the challenge to find something superior.
This year's Ming Qian Long Jing was picked on March 28 (pre-Qing Ming festival) and completely hand-made by the 3rd generation Wang family on their tea farm that is almost 100 years old. The tea is traditionally processed on a heated iron pan by hand pressing in multiple steps until it is completely dried. This laborious task is accomplished only by experienced tea makers who can shape and fire the very delicate leaves within 60 seconds without burning, breaking, but retaining all the natural essence. This purely handmade Long Jing is less aromatic than last year but much stronger in flavor with leaves that are strong and can stand up to numerous multiple steepings.
This year's tea is less smokey but stronger fruit-forward in taste. Here are three brewing techniques that you can use to skillfully make this tea depending on the time of year that you are buying it.
Origin:
Wumi mountain, Huamei Village, Shangyu District, Shaoxing city, Zhejiang, China
Cultivar:
Qun Ti
Flavor Profile:
Delicate smokiness, tropical fruit, green bamboo
Servings:
6 x 4g
Net weight:
25g
