Tag: Naked Teas Galore

Organic Mao-feng by Naked Teas Galore
Green Tea / Straight
$7.70 for 50g

First Impressions

Organic Mao-feng comes in a sealed matte black pouch that is resealable (so great for proper tea storage!). It honestly feels like there’s a lot more than 50g in the pouch because of the fact that this is just such an airy tea and takes up so much space – which isn’t a bad thing because then I know that the leaves aren’t being crushed in a tiny space.

The leaves of this Chinese green tea are wiry – mostly brown with some hints of a dark olive green. The aroma of the dry leaf is primarily dry apricots and some grassy notes. It’s quite appealing and doesn’t smell too vegetal, which is a nice quality of this green tea. The tea is from the Zhejiang Province of China.

Preparation

Naked Teas Galore recommends steeping Organic Mao-feng in 70-80°C (158-176°F) water for 1 to 3 minutes. I used my Breville IQ Kettle to heat the water to 79°C (175°F) water and then allowed it to cool for a few minutes prior to steeping the tea leaves for 2 minutes.

First Taste

Organic Mao-feng steeps to a bright yellow, it’s really sunshine-y and inviting – which I like! There’s light sweetness to the tea, which reminds of apricots again. It’s not overwhelmingly fruity, which is nice considering I’m drinking a straight tea. For the amount of time that I steeped it for, I found that the tea was smooth with no bitterness or astringency.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Organic Mao-feng a total of five times, opting to add an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. I found that the tea steeped a little bit darker each time, and tasted consistently the same as my initial steep of Organic Mao-feng, but did get weaker in flavour after the second resteep.

My Overall Impression

I loved Naked Teas Galore’s Organic Mao-feng. I really appreciated the aroma of the dry leaf and the flavour of the tea. I found it to be pleasant, with a nice amount of sweetness to compliment the natural flavours that remind me of apricots. I think this would be a nice tea option for either cold steeping or for an iced green tea to have over the summer because it does have those light floral and fruity flavors in it.

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Organic Dragon Well (Lungching) by Naked Teas Galore
Green Tea / Straight
$9.45 for 50g

First Impressions

Naked Teas Galore has a cute storefront in Langley, BC. I wandered in one day and had a lovely time shopping. Each tea had a little sample jar for you to see and sniff the teas, as it all came prepackaged. Organic Dragon Well was one of the first teas that I wound up picking out because I love a good, classic Chinese green tea and this certainly fit the bill.

Organic Dragon Well came prepackaged in a sealed matte black pouch that is resealable. There’s coloured labels on the front and back that describe the tea and provide steeping instructions. Organic Dragon Well is described as being a certified organic green tea that is “imperial grade” from Zhejiang Province, China. The leaves themselves are long, flat, with a green colour to it. There’s light grassy notes, with a hint of roasted cashews.

Preparation

Naked Teas Galore recommends steeping Organic Dragon Well in 70-80°C (158-176°F) water for 1 to 3 minutes. My initial steep was in 79°C (175°F) water for 1 minute.

First Taste

Organic Dragon Well steeps to a light yellow. It has a sweet grassy fragrance to it. The tea itself is sweet, has a slight grassy flavour to it that serves to highlight the nutty flavours in the tea that are more towards the tail end of each sip. I found it to be quite pleasant with zero astringency or bitterness when steeped for 1 minute.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Organic Dragon Well four times (five steeps total), adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. I found that the tea became more golden yellow in colour with each steep. The flavour profile stayed consistent, getting strong with each steep.

This may be a good tea candidate for the gongfu method of steeping since it would benefit from short steeps.

My Overall Impression

I loved Naked Teas Galore’s Organic Dragon Well. I appreciated the easy to understand labeling on the packaging, and the packaging itself. The tea was pleasant to drink and had a well-balanced flavour profile that stayed consistent throughout, which made for a nice drink. I would definitely recommend resteeping this one as the leaves do beautifully in being resteeped.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.