One of China's most prized green teas, this Dragonwell uses higher-grade leaves and was picked Pre-Quingming, resulting in a complex, exquisite taste.

Tea Type or Tisane | Flavors: green | sweet, creamy, mellow, hints of fruit, chestnut

Tea Tips: The sweet complexity of this tea is enhanced when using Eastern brewing directions, allowing for multiple steeps. A tea to sip and savor without milk and sugar.

Ingredients: China, Xihu, Zhejiang Province green tea: 100%

How to Steep: Eastern: 1 gram per 30 ml, 170-175 F; no rinse, 30 second steep; increase time with each steep. Western: 2 grams per 6-8 ounces, 170-175 F, 2-3 minutes

Fun Fact #1: Pre-Quingming ("After the rains") is the first and most-prized plucking of the year, in late March or early April, yielding the greatest complexity of flavors. This special Dragonwell comes from the Xihu (West Lake) area and is made with the original cultivar, unlike many others. The special plucking and leaves (bud and 1-2 leaves) result in a rare taste which is highly sought after.

Fun Fact #2: In Chinese mythology, a dragon lived near this spring (West Lake or Xihu) because of the water's purity. The pure spring water enhances flavor to this distinctively delicious tea.

Fun Fact #3: Most Chinese green tea is cooked in a hot wok using a processing step known as "kill green" (Sha Qing), by which recently picked and withered fresh leaves are heated to inactivate the enzymes within the leaf, preserving it as green tea and preventing oxidation. For artisan teas, this is done by a skillful hand, and many techniques of lifting, pressing, sifting, and mixing are done in a matter of several minutes. To make Dragonwell, the leaves are pressed in the wok to flatten them, accentuating the chestnut notes of this finished tea!

Similar Teas: Dragonwell #3, Huangya Sweet Cream, Imperial Yellow, Golden Mountain, Spring Buds