In this clip we're preparing some green tea.
Now in the beginning tea was consumed as green
tea only. So all tea, there was no black tea,
no oxidized tea, and we have different green
teas right here in front of us. We have two
green teas from China and one green tea from
Japan. The reason why I have all three on
display here is because the production method
is distinctly different in both countries
and produces a completely different cup of
tea. In China, green teas are pan fired. What
that means is after the leaves are picked
and the surface moisture is dried off the
leaves, they actually are pan fired in a wok.
So just imagine you're stir frying your vegetables.
The same thing happens to the tea leaves.
They're pan fired and then finally dried.
This is the only processing that takes place
during green tea processing overall. Now,
in Japan on the other hand, the process is
different in that the leaves are not pan fired,
but steamed and this produces a very green
color. Now I will go ahead and actually prepare
this green tea from China which is a Dragon
Well, a very famous tea and you can see the
leaves are very flat, almost pine needle like,
which are very distinct for this particular
tea, produces a very nice vegetal cup of tea,
and we'll just pour it all in this cup and
infuse it, just like with the white tea, with
water that is below the boiling point at about
one seventy five. Typically, teas from Japan
you want, you want to brew with a little bit
cooler water, one sixty five to one seventy
five will do, and we steep it for about three
minutes, and I leave the leaves here in this
pot. And while this is steeping, I'll tell
you a little bit more about the green tea
variation between both countries. China, for
example, has only manual processes that are
employed in the production of green tea whereas
Japan uses automation. They actually have
these shears that kind of cut the tea leaves
off the bushes and therefore you'll always
be able to recognize a green tea from Japan
because it looks like freshly mowed grass,
whereas in China, China prides itself on it's
variety of leaf styles, and you have leaf
styles like we just saw here with the Dragon
Well. Flat, pine needle like, and you also
have something that looks almost like little
pellets of gunpowder which is actually the
name of this tea. It's on Bret's manly tea
list and produces a nice green vegetal cup
of tea with a hint of smoke at the finish.
Now the tea is ready and we can pour it through
our strainer. I do want to point out, look
at the needles how they stand up straight
which is really unique for the Dragon Wells
type of a tea. The Chinese call this actually
the agony of the leaf. You can watch the tea
leaves dance in the cup while they unfold
and release essential oils that we get to
enjoy with this cup of tea. Dragon Well has
a vegetal load, strong vegetal load reminiscent
of spinach, or some people will say asparagus,
but it's a beautiful refreshing tea.
