Mao Jian Fur Tips Loose Leaf Green Top 10 Tea Traditional Special Chinese

The lovely English name Fur Tips refers to the small hairs found on the new shoots; Pekoe is another word to describe this occurrence. The hair or fur only occur on new shoots and soon disappear. This Mao Jian comes from the Dabie Mountains in Henan Province. This tea was ‘created’ in 1913 after studying how Long Jian Dragon Well tea was produced. In 1958 Mao Jian was included in the ‘Top Ten Teas of China’. This specific tea was harvested in the middle of April, between April 5th and 20th and is referred to as ‘Yu Qian’ tea, this is immediately before the Grain Rain Festival. Apparently, it takes 50,000 tips to make 500g of finished tea, that’s a lot of time and effort, especially given only 15 days to pluck it. Using methods borrowed from the making of Dragon Well, the leaves are rolled and then pan-fried. The aroma when brewed is wonderfully fresh, fruity, and grassy. When tasted it is delicate, gentle, complex, and exceedingly satisfying. Refreshing on the palate it really does embody the umami ‘flavour’. I am not at all surprised it’s in the top ten, it definitely is in mine. Brew for 2-3 minutes at 80^o Centigrade.