Welcome to Twinings Tea Taster classes – for this month’s edition we are exploring China Fujian Jasmine Green Tea.
Jasmine Green Tea was first made over 1000 years ago.
The use of jasmine with green tea goes back to the Song Dynasty period in China, around 960-1270 AED.
Welcome to this month's edition of Tea Tasters, we have got a fantastic Jasmine Green Tea from China for you to try. The jasmine plant, (there are about 200 sub-varieties) grow in mainly tropical regions of the world and China is an absolutely ideal location for jasmine to grow and it matches fabulously with green tea which also originates from China.
The type of cultivar jasmine flower used in this green tea is typically found in the upper mountainous regions of the Fujian area.
Jasmine Green Tea is often found. throughout China and South East Asia, and is used as an aperitif or as an accompaniment with local cuisine.
Assam tea is characteristic of the area in which it’s grown. These tea bushes love to grow at sea level, where temperatures range from about 35 to 38 degrees in the summer, and regulated by monsoon rains which keeps everything nice and cool. What most people don’t realise about this region of India, is that in the winter months, temperatures drop way down into single digits.
The blossom is picked early in the morning, just as it is about to bloom. The small petals at this stage are tightly closed and are then cooled during the day until nightfall. During the evening the jasmine flowers open and release their wonderful fragrance and at this time they are ready to be mixed with either this Chinese green tea or other fabulous tea leaves.
There are two main methods used to create Jasmine Green Tea. One way is placing the tea and flowers in alternative layers and manually mixing them. The other process is blending the tea and jasmine flowers together and storing them over night.
It takes over four hours for the tea to absorb the fragrance and flavour of the jasmine blossoms. The scenting process may be repeated as many as six or seven times. The tea absorbs moisture from the fresh Jasmine flowers so it must be dried again to prevent spoilage.
Jasmine Green Tea was first made over 1000 years ago. The use of jasmine with green tea goes back to the Song Dynasty period in China, around 960-1270 AED. During this period of time there were lots of innovative uses of tea and different plant materials. This is one that has managed to succeed and make its way to our teapots today.
Assam tea is characteristic of the area in which it’s grown. These tea bushes love to grow at sea level, where temperatures range from about 35 to 38 degrees in the summer, and regulated by monsoon rains which keeps everything nice and cool. What most people don’t realise about this region of India, is that in the winter months, temperatures drop way down into single digits.
When you look at this tea in a bit more detail, you will notice the beautiful quality of this young spring tea and some of those really delicate jasmine flowers that have been left behind during the scenting process.
As this is a very good quality Jasmine Green Tea, you need to use slightly less than we might normally recommend. This tea imparts deep and powerful flavours and creates a fantastic experience so you only need a small portion. If you are making one cup then you only need to add one level teaspoon and if you are making a pot of tea then you need to add four level teaspoons.
Bring your hot water to the boil, then just give it about two minutes to settle, at which point it is going to be absolutely the right temperature to be using with this green tea. Once the water is poured onto the Jasmine Green Tea let it stand for just over three minutes to infuse.
It is best to use white crockery with this tea because in a white cup you will be able to see a powerful, pale, green golden colour. It is really clear; the light absolutely bounces off it. It is a beautiful tea, and of course those heady floral aromas wafting up from the tea.
Assam tea is characteristic of the area in which it’s grown. These tea bushes love to grow at sea level, where temperatures range from about 35 to 38 degrees in the summer, and regulated by monsoon rains which keeps everything nice and cool. What most people don’t realise about this region of India, is that in the winter months, temperatures drop way down into single digits.
It is a very high quality and it has got a very powerful mouth, a very strong taste. Less is more definitely with this particular tea. It is a completely classic green Chinese base. It is beautiful, light, and delicate. It dances on the tongue. And of course it carries that really heady jasmine floral flavour and aroma really well. It captivates the sense and livens up the mouth. It really is a tea that has stood the test of time and you can see why when you drink it.
The great thing about this particular Jasmine Green Tea on Tea Tasters this month is that you could re-use the leaves a couple of times until the flavour is naturally exhausted.
This particular Jasmine Green Tea is going to go well with any lightly spiced dishes; it is going to work really well with rice, with chicken, with fish. It really is an all-round tea.
So until next time, happy tea times.
