Aug 25
Review: Canton Tea Co. Yin Zhen (Silver Needle) 2009
Canton Tea Co., Organic Tea, White Tea Add commentsDan’s Teaview Snapshot
 | "A great, delicate and sweet Silver Needle that - like most - offers a variety of flavors and experiences with each cup."
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Canton Tea has a great looking pedigree in terms of their sources. The company's buying partners in Guangzhou (formerly Canton, hence the company moniker) are mentored by a fifth generation Cantonese Tea Master whose family has been in the tea trade since the Qing Dynasty. An additional supplier in the mountains of Taiwan has won awards for the tea they grow. Of the companies select few offerings, they seem to specialize in Puerh and Oolongs, as they have the most on offer from those varieties. All other categories combined (black, white, yellow, green and jasmine) have only 12 teas total to choose from. One of those teas is this delectable Silver Needle.The dried mix of this Yin Zhen (translated literally as "Silver Needle") is very aromatic. Pleasantly sweet and earthy, and more pungent than any other Silver Needle that comes to mind. I suspect this tea is quite fresh as well -- the 2009 crop of Yin Zhen is harvested in March-April. An amusing anecdote: upon first glance -- and sniff -- of this tea, I was drawn to grab a leaf and nibble on it. I typically do not do this with most teas (hardly ever, actually), but it seemed to be the right thing to do here. Upon subsequently visiting the company's website, the buyer's notes invite you to do just that! Surely this tea has some subconscious powers to it. The kicker here is that the taste is quite lovely - mildly sweet and gentle, whereas most lower grades are more bitter and woody. I'll have to take their word for it, as I don't know that I've munched another silver needle before. Overall, the leaves are beautiful and of very high quality - fuzzily coated as they should be, leaves all whole and unbroken, and uniform color and quality in general. This tea is all picked and handled by-hand. The leaves are harvested at dawn and sun-dried.
On to the brew: as expected, the purveyor recommends low-temperature water -- in this case, under 170-degrees. I believe I was somewhere in that range, without the accuracy of a thermometer. The recommended brew time is 2-3 minutes, and infused "at least 3 times". I dare take up that challenge to see how far we can go.
The first cup is kept at a 2 minute brew. Liquor is extremely pale golden and ultra-bright. The taste results are subtle at first, and then getting more and more delightful as the cup cools. Subtle on initial impact, with full flavor washing in on the tip and front sides of the tongue. On to infusion #2 - reportedly the best one. Another infusion of 2 minutes, and I find this much less satisfactory than cup #1. The flavors are markedly different, but I prefer those in the first cup. Perhaps this is too weak, and for infusion #3 I move to a 3.5 minute brew. Again this is less satisfying than the first, but better than the 2nd cup I brewed. Toward the end of the cup, and after significant cooling, a slight spiciness comes through. Cup #4 should be interesting. A 3.5 minute brew with slightly cooler water than I have been using. Flavor is still surprisingly bold for the 4th steep, though not as desirable as any of the previous. The taste is definitely soft and delicate, but not as flavorful. On a separate day, I steeped all cups for 3 minutes. The results were very good once again -- this time revealing a sweet toasted almond type of flavor.
One odd note: on Canton Tea's site, it states that "This tea comes from Fuding, Fujian province. The farmer won the gold medal for Yin Zhen at this year’s international tea competition in Las Vegas.” -- the gold medal winner of the 2009 World Tea Championship was Rishi Tea's Silver Needle, which also comes from Fuding, Fujian province. Hmm... so I can only assume this must be the British isles' offering of the same exact tea that Rishi offers here in the US. I may be wrong on that, but you can draw your own conclusions as well. Either way, an absolutely fine tea.
Overall, this is a great, delicate and sweet Silver Needle that - like most - offers a variety of flavors and experiences with each cup.
— To purchase Canton Tea Co. Yin Zhen (Silver Needle) 2009, or for more specific information on ingredients or the story behind this particular blend, click here to go directly to the manufacturer's web site.
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August 28th, 2009 at 10:08 am
[...] Canton Tea’s Silver Needle. Compare to my review. [...]