meizitang

According to the book of Zhao Ruli, the producing technics of the dragon and phoenix tie guan yin tea bulks had six steps: steaming, pressing, pestling, shaping, filtering yellow and baking. Dig the newly picked tie guan yin leaves in water; pick the shapely buds and leaves and steam them; wash them with cold water; press to remove water and tie guan yin juice; put some water to pestle them; then mold and bake.
In the making process of dragon and phoenix tie guan yin tea, washing with cold water may keep the green color of the leaves, which improve the leaves quality. The method of dipping and pressing remove the true taste, which makes a big lose of tie guan yin and the whole process costs time, which spurred appearance of steamed tie guan yin tea.
4. From bulks to loose tie guan yin tea
In the producing of steaming tie guan yin tea, to improve the shortcoming that hard to remove bitter taste and hybrid scent, people gradually took the methods without kneading and pressing but baking straightly. They turned the steam bulk tie guan yin tea into steam the loose leaves, which kept the aroma of tie guan yin. Meanwhile, there came up the appreciating method and quality requirement of the loose tie guan yin tea. This revolution came up in the Song Dynasty.
From the Song to Yuan Dynasty, the bulk tie guan yin, the dragon and phoenix bulk and loose tie guan yin tea exist together. To the Ming Dynasty, the Tai Tsu Chu Yuan-chang issued an imperial edict that depose dragon bulks and encourage loose tie guan yin tea, which made the loose tie guan yin tea prevailedTwo Flavors

Beginners think of Dragon Well tea’s chestnutty roasted flavor. A more experienced green tea drinker will understand she has two distinct flavors: artificial and natural.

Roasted and Toasty

The roasted flavor is overwhelming in the first month, then gradually disappears towards the end of the season. It is more apparent in the lower grades (A or B), where the leaves are roasted longer with heavier hand pressure.

The taste is an extrovert toasted aroma that is the strongest in the first infusion, then fades away quickly.

Natural Sweetness

The higher grade (such as King, Jipin, AAA) leaves undergo minimal processing to preserve their goodness.

They are roasted for a shorter time using lighter hand pressure. This natural inner essence is exquisite, floral and dragon well tea lasting, peaking only in the second and third infusion.

How to Store

The higher the tea quality, the more easily it loses its flavor. Put some effort and it should keep fresh for a year.

If the tea is sealed, keep in a freezer. Cover with a box to insulate from temperature change.  Warm the room temperature before opening. This prevents condensation.

Once the package has been opened, store away from light, moisture, smell and heat in an airtight container.

How to Brew

Brewing quality Chinese green tea is the opposite of brewing a Japanese green tea.You should infuse a small amount of leaves in high temperature water for as long as it takes.

A good starting point is to use 2 grams of tea leaves with 8 ounces (225 millimeters) of water.

(For Dragon Well tea, 1 gram correspond to roughly 60 tea buds.)

Pour hot water of 195 Fahrenheit (90 degree Celsius). Steep until most of the tea buds has sink to the bottom of the glass and the tea liquor turns yellow. This will take 5 to 10 minutes for the first infusion.

Decant and leave one-third to use as the seed for the next infusion.

Infuse for another 2 to 4 times with progressively shorter steeping time.

(For Dragon Well tea, I also like to steep with the tiniest concentration at 1 gram per 8 ounce water.)