Jing Mai Green Tea (?!)

[silvertip beard]

Exhibit 1:
http://www.arborteas.com/jing-mai-green-tea.html

Exhibit 2:
http://andaotea.com/news/ajingmai.htm

~~~

I had some Jing Mai green tea today, a few grams gonfu style. It is a very good green tea.

I'm looking around for more info about it on the interwebs and realize two things: that not many vendors have it, and that the green tea leaves look just like "broad leaf variety" tea leaves (that make puerh).

Is Jing Mai another "made up" green tea-type, like gunpowder? (Most internet search results for "Jing Mai" yield puerh teas.)

In fact, when the leaves were spent, they looked strikingly like a less oxidized version of the medium-large leaves of good puerh.

Of course, the backstory on this Jing Mai is that it is from old trees in Yunnan...hmm.

Anyone know the ReaL story here? Are these Jing Mai leaves plucked from the same type of broad leaf tea tree (C. sinensis assamica) as produces the broad leaves that are used to produce puerh teas in Yunnan?

Anyone else ever have this green tea?

Are there other green teas that are made from "large leaf" tea leaves?

Hey, what do I know? Its all new to me!

Cheers!

[netsurfr]

So, I am not sure what kind of tea you had. Jing Mai is a mountain area in the Yunnan Province where tea is harvested and it may be processed in various ways but much of it is probably turned into pu-erh.
I do have a few of the 2003 vintage pu-erh cakes left in my inventory that are not advertised: 2003 Jing Mai Round Cake - Tai Lian Tea Factory - 357g

This cake released by the Kunming Tai Lian Tea Factory in 2003 is a classic example of high quality wild arbor tea and tea from younger (natural growth, not plantation) trees blended together to making for an exquisite drinking experience. This cake has been dry-stored in Kunming since its production. The nutty Jing Mai mountain taste is present, bitter with a sweet after-taste.

PM me if you have any interest.

[Hobbesoxon]

This looks like Daye (big leaf), which is just pu'er - their "green tea" is maocha, by the look of it. They claim it's from 1200 year old trees, which is pu'er - and it looks like daye in the Andao photos.

Wulong from maocha... isn't that just Xizihao? (ho ho ho)


Toodlepip,

Hobbes

[tea goober]

This looks like Daye (big leaf), which is just pu'er - their "green tea" is maocha, by the look of it. They claim it's from 1200 year old trees, which is pu'er - and it looks like daye in the Andao photos.

Wulong from maocha... isn't that just Xizihao? (ho ho ho)


Toodlepip,

Hobbes

Ditto! Presentation is everything, well, that and packaging. These teas are nothing more than maocha. Some green and some "wulong,d" the very same wulong,d teas we are so leary about when compressed into a cake. Thats not to say they are not delicious, just dont fall for the hype.

[silvertip beard]

Thank you all for the informed replies.

I purchased this tea as part of my first plunge into Green Tea a few months ago. At the time, I knew nothing other than I liked the appearance and smell of this tea.

The nutty flavors I do pick up (which I think I was mistaking for something else).

Anyway, its good tea and hell, I paid for it. Tuition tea, but I like it.

And at $50/pound, it's a relative bargain for green teas! LOL!