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Kyoto Sencha Syunsai, organic Japanese green tea, 60 g
Cold Energy, Fuller Bodies, Green teas, Japan, Lighter Aromas, Organic teas, TeaUS$25.8春霽 おくゆたか 有機京都一番摘
A well delivered kick with the “just right” amount of strength is the joy of sencha for many tea drinkers. The key, though, is in whether the tea delivers the layers and intricacies like any fine tea should. A not so commonly employed tea cultivar, Okuyutaka, which can yield a finer aroma and more complex taste than other popular tea plants, is used for this top notch organic sencha of our pick. In addition to harvest quality, the mastery and care in processing is critical. Our producer in Kyoto spends more than double the time compared to the modern method so the rolling and heating of the leaves can be gradual and slow in order to render the truly traditional, and more complex taste profile of a respectable sencha. Presenting Tea Hong’s Kyoto Sencha Syunsai, a most enjoyable old style Japanese green tea by the multiple award winning tea master Kikuoka sensei and his diligent team. Net weight: 60g (2.1oz) in Kraft-alu pillow
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Bamboo Leaf, traditional green tea, 50 g
Cool Energy, Fuller Bodies, Green teas, Lighter Aromas, Tea, ZhejiangUS$32.7明前極品 竹葉青頂
Zhuye Qingding — a rare shoot leaf green tea
Some people like their green tea soft and sweet, others may prefer a good umami. Yet this leaf shoot tea is neither. Its brisk, lively full body is accentuated with a refreshing aroma and a distinct note of bitterness. After Longjing, of all the other green teas from the Zhejiang region, my personal strongest preference goes to this traditional green tea form of Bamboo Leaf produced in Kaihua. To me it is an alternative to a shot of single malt in the evening, or an afternoon kick of espresso. Maybe more pleasant and invigorating. This style form is produced in a few other tea regions in China. The taste profile does vary from region to region, and even from farm to farm, tea master to tea master. In Emei Shan in Szechuan, the traditional form style name, Zhu Ye Qing, which transliterates as Bamboo Leaf Green, is registered as a brand name by a powerful local tea company. Other farmers and tea companies who have been producing in this same style form are then required by law to sell their products in different names. One of them is Mingshan Shihua. Tea Hong's Bamboo Leaf is a rare quality representing not only the broader taste profile of this style form, but also the intriguing intricacy that gives true quality tea its elevating magic.
Net weight: 50 g (1.8 oz) in Kraft-alu pillow
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Mo Gan Yellow Snails, yellow tea, 50 g
Fuller Bodies, Green teas, Lighter Aromas, Neutral-Cool Energy, Tea, Yellow teas, ZhejiangUS$29.9明前熟香 莫干黃芽螺
Revitalising an old yellow tea
Tea Hong’s Mo Gan Yellow Snails is a break away from the old Mo Gan Yellow Tip. We have greatly modified traditional yellowing to give the tea a distinctive yellow look and a taste that is different from both green tea and old style yellow tea. A neo-yellow. Unlike other tea categories, old style yellow tea has not prospered in all these decades since tea’s revival after the destructive Mao era. Its taste needs a lot more to create followers. Similarly from the mountain of Mo Gan in the region of Zhejiang, Tea Hong’s Mo Gan Yellow Snails has departed from the dull colours of the old to maintain a brisk freshness in the look and taste, while achieving a characteristic “cooked” warmth and sweetness that is the real spirit of yellow tea. Now that is a good individualistic character to have a place in any tea repertoire.
Net weight: 50 g (1.8 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
Biluochun Supreme, traditional green tea, 40 g
Cool Energy, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Green teas, Other tea regions, TeaUS$35.9明前上品 碧螺春
The Aromatic Green Snail
These fresh smelling little leaves are so fluffy that one may want to make a down pillow out of them for sweet dreams every night. However, they are certainly not the softest tasting green tea. A fine Biluochun like Tea Hong’s does have a smooth body but enough character for optimal stimulation. Yet gentle enough to be one’s company throughout the day, even when you are searching deep inside for that piece of critical article you have to write, as those royals or literati did in old Qing China.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pillow -
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White Tea of Anji, traditional green tea, 40 g
Cool Energy, Green teas, Lighter Aromas, Milder Tastes, Tea, ZhejiangUS$24.4明前 安吉白片
The Green Tea that is called White
If a green tea is judged only by how umami it is, a lower grade than Tea Hong’s Anji Baipian* may already top the chart. The grace of this top quality of one of the most sought after name in green teas is not measured only by its savouriness, but its silky smooth and soft body and elegance in its taste character. Perhaps that is why the small county of Anji is never producing enough to satisfy the demand from the growing affluent class in China. That said, it is good to see a small counter trend against the taste of expensive vulgarity in that vast population.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in wide kraft-alu pack -
Serene Water Pearl Tea, traditional green tea, 60 g
Cool Energy, Green teas, Lighter Aromas, Milder Tastes, Tea, ZhejiangUS$21.0明前、平水珠茶
Ping Shui Zhu Cha:
Back-track three centuries to when Qing China was still grand and tea was a respectable drink, zhu cha ( pearl tea ) from Ping Shui — the town of Serene Water — approached the price of gold when auctioned in London. As popularity grew, compromised products took over the market and resulted in those greyish bad taste that is known as “gunpowder” today. Tea Hong revives the original sweet tasting jewel of green teas in the same revered and enjoyable quality in the cups of the gentiles in both the East and the West in the good old days, but at a far more democratically accessible price.
Net weight: 60 g (2.1 oz) in Kraft-alu pillow -
Imperial Topaz, matured Nepal hand-rolled black tea, 50 g
Black teas, Floral Aromas, Milder Tastes, Nepal, the Himalayas, Neutral Energy, Organic teas, TeaUS$25.8टपबोग रातो
Hand-rolled Himalayan Tips:
Although tea from this part of the world has not been best known for smoothness, there can be exceptions provided that there is the proper knowledge and experience. Together with the work of Nature. Imperial Topaz is such a tea. Hand-rolled and masterfully processed for a soft and round profile yet rich with the distinctive mineral accents representative of the region, the bright orange infusion delivers what is best from the Himalayas coupled with the modesty and gentleness of a Chinese black. Imperial Topaz is not only a gem of Nepali tea, but also an example of what can be achieved when we tea people share and work together across boundaries.
Net weight: 50 g (1.8 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
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Lapsang Souchong Pristine, traditional black tea, 60 g
Black teas, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Neutral-Warm Energy, Tea, Wuyi-shanUS$22.2武夷桐木關、正山小種
Tongmuguan* Original and Unsmoked:
Presenting the original, authentic and prime quality Lapsang Souchong. Small, tightly rolled whole leaves with a black sheen. Non-smoked. 100% hand-plucked first flush. For a pure, fruity sweet and warmly aromatic cup of untainted black tea. Just like how they used to have it in the captain’s cabin in an East Indian Trading clipper two centuries ago, when they had just loaded the ship with the year’s fresh tea to race home for the eagerly awaiting tea merchants all over Europe. Read more:
Net weight: 60 g (2.1 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
Himalayan Finest Flowery, orthodox black tea, 80 g
Black teas, Nepal, the Himalayas, Neutral Energy, Organic teas, Stronger Tastes, TeaUS$29.8नेपाली प्रीमियम अर्थोहोडक्स चिया
Nepali Finest Orthodox
If black teas from China are too soft for your taste, and those from Taiwan too complex to your palate, perhaps this is a good option. While having same level of pleasant flowery character, Himalayan Finest Flowery has a lot more sharpness and strength. Just like your good old Darjeeling when they were still delivering quality. Our garden, 1800m above the Dhankuta region, lends a pristine growth environment for the tea. The extreme difference between day and night, winter and spring, the dry air and unique minerals in the soil give a distinctive taste profile to this light colour black tea. EU and USDA certified organic.
Net weight: 80 g (2.8oz) in Kraft-alu pack
