Jasmine Pearls from Dragonwater

Scent in package: sweetly floral…as expected.
Brewed in: Glass teapot/infuser
Steeped: 3 min.@ 180 degrees
Cup: Porcelain teacup

I have a special “relationship” with jasmine scented tea. Mainly because it was the first loose tea I ever tried – it’s what started my fascination with the world of tea outside of grocery store teabags. The jasmine tea I started with was simply loose leaves, not these lovely little pearls, but the basic tenant is the same – green tea leaves scented over and over with jasmine flowers. This isn’t flavored tea…it’s tea that has absorbed the scent from actual flowers that are then removed. And it’s in a class all its own.

All that being said, I was a little disappointed with this particular tea. And I don’t say that often or lightly about scented teas in general, and jasmine pearls in particular. It smelled phenomenal out of the package, as one would expect. The fragrance of jasmine was very strong, and the pearls were small and neatly rolled. I used about three-quarters of a teaspoon, since I was only making one cup, and the recommendation was for half a teaspoon (I like stronger scented brews).
The leaves unfurled very nicely, as you can see, and there was plenty of leaf for the brew. The scent of the tea itself was lovely, as expected – rich and fragrant, with a few bubbles presumably from the flower oils. Once it got to a golden yellow, I poured it, waiting an extra minute from the instructions for it to reach that optimal color I prefer.

Everything about it was perfect – until I tasted it. And the taste of the jasmine was incredibly light, almost non-existent, but so was the taste of the tea! I’ve never encountered Jasmine pearls that were so subtle in taste after all the buildup of that glorious fragrance wafting around. They are quite expensive, normally, and for that, one expects to at least taste the Jasmine, if not the underlying tea.

In any case, I’ve had better. And with a tea that is going to be expensive no matter where you buy it, I’d suggest you pass on this one from Dragonwater. There are plenty of other vendors selling more strongly flavored pearls, and unless you really like water that just smells like jasmine, I’d go with one of those alternates. I think I’ll probably brew the rest of this sample at double or triple strength (way more pearls) just to see if any flavor will come out, but I’ll stick to Adagio’s version for “on hand” company stock.