Palace Needle Green Tea, known for its delicate flavor profile and vibrant green hue, is a premium variety of green tea that originates from the Province of Hubei of China. This tea is celebrated for its finely picked leaves, which are a mix of tender buds and young leaves, ensuring a rich and aromatic infusion.
Harvesting and Production Process
The harvesting of Palace Needle Tea is very specific, commencing with the right harvesting season in the middle of April. Where the leaves and buds are at their freshest and most tasty. Suitable tea pickers are then employed, who only pluck the topmost leaves. This is the quality controlling steps used for every batch.
After the initial harvest, the delicate processing of the picked leaves involves a gentle steaming. This is essential, because it prevents further browning that softens the tea, but retains the desirable green colour of the tea and nutrients.
After the steaming, instead of high heat, moderate temperatures are employed in the drying of leaves. Which in itself, makes this Green Tea different from any other conventional drying methods which employ high heat.
Such prudent temperature management is necessary to maintain the tea’s subtle taste and also make sure it has the best possible fragrance.
Then, the dried leaves are sieved, passed through a second sort, in order to keep only the best and most beautiful leaves for packaging. This quality management at every stage of the process is described in detail to provide a high quality tea that satisfies the tea lover with its smooth taste and beautifully trimmed flavor.
How to Make Palace Needle Green Tea
A cup is well designed only if equal attention is paid to the water temperature and steeping time, to obtain intense flavor and aroma.
- Water Temperature: Water should be heated and boiled at approximately eighty degrees Celsius or one hundred seventy-six degrees Fahrenheit. The temperature at which water is generally at a boiling point should be avoided. This is likely to scorch the delicate leaves and spoil the light character of the tea.
- Tea Measures: About 3 – 5 grams of it is Palace Needle Green Tea leaves for every 200 ml of about 7 ounces of water. This proportion will help determine the correct strength and fullness of the flavor.
- Steeping Period: Once prepared, tea leaves are to be placed in the teapot or in a tea infuser and hot water poured over them. Allow the leaves to soak in water for about two to three minutes. This timing is very important, as steeping for too long may lead to over-brewing. Resulting in bitterness while short steeping will for sure lead to a tasteless watery flavor.
- Serving: Once the steeping time has elapsed, the tea is strained and transferred into a tea cup. This can be appreciated on its own or accompanied with light meals in the form of curt and scorn tasty objects. This tea should preferably be consumed when hot, but can be ice with many summer drinks.
Full Tasting Notes: Providing a sophisticated yet attractive grassy tea with mild chestnut notes. It has a pleasant green liquor. When drunk, you feel and a crisp, clean finish, making it perfect to be sipped on for any reason or even just to be sipped on for pure pleasure.
Caffeine Content: This gives a dose of about 20-30 mg of caffeine per cup.
Storage Advice: If the aim is to keep the quality of the tea and its flavor, one must keep it in sealed containers, not in direct sunlight. Use within 1 – 2 years is advised for best results after purchase.
Exceptional in spite of the increased attention, this tea excels in the production process, as well as the taste delicacy. Every cup slowly warms and delights with its sophisticated feel. A splendid and undoubtedly the best tea which all tea admirers should try. Palace Needle Green Tea, will surely satisfy the most fastidious of the gourmets.