Review: The Exotic Teapot Mountain Jasmine Pearl Tea

Dec 13

Review: The Exotic Teapot Mountain Jasmine Pearl Tea

Dan’s Teaview Snapshot

"This is a nice Jasmine Pearl tea that meets expectations -- yet falls a little short on the second infusion."

Dan’s Teaview:	6.8/10
Other Teaviews:	Katie gave it 7.1/10
Your Reviews:	Add your review »

The Exotic Teapot is a UK-based company with a love for Chinese teas that prides themselves on their unique flowering teas and accompanying accessories - "display teas", if you will. However, they offer a small but select variety of loose leaf teas in just about every basic tea category, including three offerings in the Jasmine category alone - this being one of them, of course.

These Jasmine Pearls are not unlike most other pearl tea in size and shape. Resembling tightly-knit miniature Barbie-sized balls of yarn, each pearl is crafted from two baby green tea leaves, which are hand-rolled and then "hand-scented" multiple times with jasmine blossoms. I'm not entirely sure how the "hand scenting" process goes, but I envision a tea factory worker coming home after a hard day's labor to their spouse, and just smelling incredible. The aroma in the bag is unmistakably jasmine, and has an intriguing savory spiciness behind it.

I retained a 3 minute brew on average for most of my infusions. My experience with other Jasmine Pearl teas, as well as this one, proves that a variety of temperatures and steeping times work with this tea, and you really can do no wrong with it. As the tea brews up in the pot (I prefer Adagio's clear ingenuiTEA mug for all my tea brewing, but especially for the Pearl teas and Oolong teas, as it's so fun to watch the leaves unfurl!), the Pearls unwind to present a full leaf shape. It's rather shocking to see how large the leaves are that become so compressed in their tiny ball-like form. A first infusion does the majority of the unfurling, but a second steep allows the leaves to unwind even further, ultimately filling the pot with much more density. The second cup retains a decent amount of jasmine flavor, but not quite as much as the first. As such, a second cup is more heavy on the green tea side, and a bit astringent and flat - particularly when at the upper end of the temperature spectrum. I recommend a shorter infusion with slightly cooler water on the second cup as a result. As the cup cools, it becomes more honey-like in flavor and mouthfeel.

This is a nice Jasmine Pearl tea that meets expectations -- yet falls a little short on the second infusion.

— To purchase The Exotic Teapot Mountain Jasmine Pearl Tea, 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.