green teas
Organic Lincang Maofeng Green Tea
The Lincang tea gardens are situated in southwestern Yunnan province between Myanmar and the Mekong River. Yunnan is home to the largest collection of tea plants in the world – 199 varietals. To make Lincang Maofeng a large leaf varietal is used for its beautiful leaf shape and strong, smooth flavor and aroma. After harvesting, the leaves are withered to reduce their moisture level and then gently pan-fired using a large wok. The leaves are rolled and then re-fired in a process that is repeated several times until arriving at the correct shape, aroma and residual moisture level.
The tea has a rich, nutty, vegetal flavor and slightly smoky aroma reflecting the pan firing. In many ways Lincang Maofeng is a more complex version of a Dragon Well green tea that is also pan fired, or similar to a very green oolong. The Yunnan tea leaf allows for multiple infusions that stay smooth, even with long steepings.
HOW TO PREPARE THE TEA: Heat water (filtered if possible) to 160˚F and add one rounded teaspoon loose leaf tea per cup (apprx. 8 ounces). Water temperture is critical for this type of green tea, subtle flavors will be lost if boiling water right from the kettle is used. Allow the water to cool or add a little cool water to your cup and then add the heated water to balance out the temperature. Infuse the tea leaves for 2–3 minutes depending on taste preference. May be infused a second time.
WANT TO TRY YOUR TEA THE CHINESE WAY?
Add a few leaves to the bottom of a cup or glass, add hot water, and cover. After a couple minutes the leaf will unfurl and sink to the bottom of the cup letting you to drink from the top. When the water gets down to just over the leaves at the bottom, its time to add more water. This casual tea house drinking style allows for many infusions using a single serving of loose leaf tea.
INGREDIENTS: Organic green tea. Origin: Lincang growing region of Yunnan, China.
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