Long Jing

Since this is my first post, I decided to dedicate it to my all-time favorite--Long Jing. This batch was purchased in Beijing last November, and after this post I'm down to the last 4 gms of tea. I'm planning to do a side-by-side tasting of last year's crop and the new batch. The new batch has already arrived, so at the next opportunity I'll put two gaiwans to use.

Source: Huang Zhou, spring 2008
Leaves: shiny, long-ish for a LJ (this particular one isn't premium grade)
Aroma: dry leaves are toasty and buttery, spent leaves smell fainty of boiled egg
Liquor: smooth, light, refreshing, toasty. The body is light, but very umami...
Brewing parameters: gaiwan, 3g of leaves per 100ml. Water at 170. Long Jing is known to be finicky to brew, especially higher grades. I found that getting the right water temperature is key: too high and the leaves are cooked (which results in a pretty disgusting brew), too low and the taste is not pronounced. Overall a great tea, as long as it's not rushed.

Dry leaves. Notice vibrant green color with gold/straw undertones

Spent leaves are gorgeous! A lot of unbroken two-leaves-and-a-bud systems

Liquor: nice golden green color. Very smooth, but only lasts 2 infusions.