WHAT IS GUNPOWDER GREEN TEA? Tasting Jade Fire.
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- Опубліковано 6 лют 2025
- Many shops stock Gunpowder Green Tea and the vast majority is low grade smoky tea which is mass-produced in Zhejiang province. This Yongxi Huo Qing (Jade Fire) is a totally different tea despite its similarities in appearance to Gunpowder.
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![A Deep Dive into Gongfu Tea: Red, White, and Green Tea [Teaism Ep. 2]](/img/n.gif)
Gunpowder is my everyday tea. I can't afford to drink really high-quality teas all the time and sometimes I also don't have the time that is necessary to prepare and also appreciate those teas. Thus Gunpowder has definitely a place in my heart.
Tea doesn't cost anything what you on about
Doesn't cost anything? You're on mei lef UA-cam page.. Have you ever checked their tea? Fine tea can be very expensive! 20 pound for 20 gram of tea is pretty expensive for example
I'm not even sure what he's on about. Granted, it's cool to learn that "gunpowder" is a misheard loanword, but the false folk etymology I'd always heard was that the name came from the texture of the rolled leaves resembling black powder. I've literally never heard anyone say it's supposed to taste smokey, nor that it does at all.
Then again, I've noticed tea UA-camrs tend to be a bit snobbish (even the ones who try really hard not to be, like Jesse) believing certain teas are inherently inferior rather than just likely to be bad due to the realities of mass production and/or being badly suited to the gongfu cha tradition. (Yes, I am talking about bags, which can be great for English, Indian, and Russian tea traditions (and similar traditions, like Kenyan or Ethiopian) if filled with good tea.) Hear someone who doesn't even drink tea say something that gives you an excuse to put down a mass-produced, cheap tea you also personally dislike? Don't even think for the second it would take to realize it's ridiculous, instead rationalize why it could be true and go into detail because that makes everyone (including yourself) more likely to believe the lie.
Of course, if you've been watching Mei Leaf videos, you'll know there are lots of parts of the process that can result in low-quality tea - selecting the farm land, planting the trees, selecting the trees to harvest, picking the leaves, withering, cooking, rolling, drying, selecting (basic QC), storing, etc. - all of which can affect the flavor, and all of which probably _will_ affect the flavor in cheap tea destined for export to markets that don't have the same depth of tea culture. The actual flavor profile of cheap gunpowder tea is just kinda flat and bitter compared to more expensive teas, as you'd expect if most of those steps break down (which is what you should expect for cheap products), and if someone wants to look down on it for that reason, hey, they're not necessarily wrong, even if it's the best people like OP (davidbreier84) and (until very recently) me can get a hold of. But this thing about smokiness is just stupid.
Also makes me wonder if he looks down on genmaicha. It's well-suited to Japanese brewing, which isn't too far off from Chinese techniques, but not only does it have a toasty flavor, that flavor comes from *le gasp* being _blended_ ! And, horror of horrors, it's not even blended with another tea, but with toasted brown rice! I mostly kid, I know Mei Leaf has videos and products for all kinds of Japanese tea. My point is, tea snobbery is inherently hypocritical, and I'm sure there are not only high-quality gunpowder teas out there, but ones both you and the snobs would enjoy. I'm just not sure how easy they are to get outside of China, or whether that will ever change given the huge market for cheap gunpowder tea for us folks who want a guaranteed-whole-leaf green tea in a conveniently cheap, huge box at the supermarket.
Oh no - that'll be another Green (or actually three more) teas to my collection - what have you done to me Don! Seriously?!? Loving the tea, stay safe.
that tea looks remarkable, the color transformation was astonishing
In defence of the humble Gunpowder tea, it makes a good cold-brewed ice tea.
Robert Lee Badgett and a very good maroccan style tea
i just make green tea latte with it ;D
You’re an outstanding speaker - loved the video and creative descriptions.
When I first had gunpowder green I thought it was like a cigarette was dropped in my tea. I learned that if I brew it at a lower temp and for a shorter period it actually has a good flavor as far as cheap teas go. I think you are being too critical. Not everybody has a large selection of boutique teas lol. I mean if I paid a premium for it I'd be pissed but it is literally the cheapest tea you can buy and lasts for a long time. I like it way better than some of the stemmy crap I've bought for higher dollar. Good cheap tea can be hard to come by, I recommend the Asian market.
For a long time I have wanted to know if a high quality gunpowder tea would exist. This is not that tea, but kind of answers my question. Need to try it!
I always liked tea (and disliked teabags), but since I started watching your videos, I learned so much about tea and your passion really reignited my love for tea. Now I drink tea everyday and I try to convert some friends, so we can save on the cost for shipment. I'm still on the beginning of my journey and I have to train my tasting buds, but I'm eager to try so many different teas (I still haven't tasted puerh, yellow and oolong tea). Sadly, as a student in college, I can't afford to buy every tea I want in one order :)
I'm a very similar situation. If only I had someone to share shipping with
When I was in college I basically only drink very strong British legacy black teas and the occasional gunpowder green tea. ;) Now I'm in my forties and I'm finally drinking more variety and much better tea, and still learning a lot. I also order together with some friends to save on shipping if I can!
So @Lars don't worry, take it easy, you have plenty of time to keep on exploring and learning.
Mint with gunpowder and honey makes morrocan mint tea and i love that soooo much
Don is more of a tea purist, he'd probably rip his hair out if he saw how I prefer to make my teas at times, masala inspired, so spices, fruits as well some other times, balmers coctails which are a simple mix of tea + citrus juice, essential oils for earl grey, citrus peels, blending black tea with pu'erh or blacks with blacks, greens with greens, greens with blacks, whites and blacks is what I've been having a lot of fun doing recently, exotic spices really do bring out some of the most insane notes from teas imo, but, either way, tea purists are indeed missing out on a whole-nother world of tea brewing and spice mixing, and of course, nut milk is nice for tea and i am willing to make some myself, I hope it'll go well with my green teas and so on.
@@JoRosieQueen68 tea purists just remind me of snobs like the so called coffee drinking connoisseur
Already looking forward to a video on elegance. 😁🍃💚🍃
Wow. Roman must really love it.
watching, listening and learning, while sipping on my gunpoweder :D
thx to don and his excellent lessons on Camellia Sinensis, i can enjoy almost any tea, even the worst and the cheapest 'lemons can get squeezed' by re-roasting old and boring teas (a 2010 assam and green tea, stored poorly, were revived according to your video), using gong fu style and keeping some of the things you're saying in mind.
thx for the hard work and regards from tea bag bavaria
In defence of the humble Gunpowder tea, I have a "temple of heaven" Gunpowder (and it's not even from Zhejiang but from Hubei fwiw) that happens to be very very nice. It is certainly not a very fine/sophisticated/exquisite/complex kind of green tea, but it is FAR away from being anything like smokey or bitter! It tastes quite round and full, lacking any bitterness, slightly sweet, fruity and honeyey, very little astringency and leaves a rather smooth/slick mouthfeel. It is certainly not a diamond, but it's nice. If yours is smokey or even bitter, then... well then it is different than mine :)
lol, these videos always make me feel like I'm missing out. I wish I could afford these high-end teas.
Tea is usually quite affordable! If you buy the leaves and brew them yourself, each cup could be less than a cup of cafe-bought coffee.
You can find plenty of great tea for under $.20 a gram, I personally only buy $.40/g or more on very specific stuff and pretty rarely.
try the chinese based (Kunming) online stores. Mei Leaf is on the top side of the pricing chart, but he is hands down the best youtuber. I have ordered some tea from him and will sample it soon to see if his pricing is justified. If so, I am happy to support his business.
You probably taste test an insane amount of tea from china and japan, do you try some tea out of china, japan ? for example: Sandakphu village in Nepal or Darjeeling ?
i admire the palate of these experts. To give so much detail on the flavors and aromas is amazing. I can do that with beer but something so fine as tea is amazing.
I'm a wine sommelier, it's all poetry, if I had to name the chemical term responsible for that scent or flavor instead of flowers and fruit, the customer would run away. I don't think tea is any different. Poetry.
Don, you are rude on those dry leaves, they are so beautiful !!
Why can't we find your t-shirt on your website ? Only the female version available..
I love matcha tea from Starbucks what’s close to it that I can buy?
From the point of view of someone like me, who does not value the profit and commercial margin of each variety of tea, Gunpowder is one of my favorite cups of tea. In any case, I understand your position.
This just made by birthday finding out hou Kui is in stock had to pause the video to make an order might have also treated myself to shimmer bliss for my birthday treat 🍵
@MeiLeaf Hey Don, would you please do a video about why you should/shouldn't sweeten teas? There seems to be two schools of thought, those who think that sweetening a tea is sacrilege and others swear that the lightly sweetening the tea brings out the natural flavors. I have looked and seen very little on the subject and would love to hear your thoughts on tea sweetening.
Picked on my dads birthday!!!!!
Wow How do I get this " jade " from California ? Thanks
So when you’re trying multiple teas, is there anything that you consume between tastings to cleanse the palate?
Thanks for a wonderful review. On a slightly different note: where to buy "normal" gunpowder tea?) not as bad as in dangerous for your health, but still normal, grandfathers choice...
I buy organic gunpowder green from www.thesteepingroom.com/ in Austin tx. It's great in a pinch but I mostly use it to make kombucha 😁
I buy Tattle Pinhead Gunpowder from Amazon in US.
Ok now I know why it's called gunpowder tea.... I thought it was because it's so strong and bitter that it would feel like lit gunpowder in the mouth 😐 I'm stupid😅
Anyways another tea that I want to taste now🤣🤷♀️ thank you for the video!
What are those things holding the teas? Do you call them "tea trays" or something?
Benjamin Dralle under the video des
Benjamin Dralle under the vidéo description, it has name and link to get each item use on the video
is gunpowder tea safe to consume?
Hy, i wanna ask, did you ever taste indonesian tea? Is indonesian tea good?
六安瓜片 没有芽头和茶梗，叶片的含糖量更高，带来清甜的口感。芽头氨基酸含量更高，带来鲜、爽的口感。
Hera Panda Fishing is that so?
I love Temple of Heaven Gunpowder - Great tea. 🍵
I don't like lower grade gunpowders.
what an insance sequence of descriptions
Trebam prevod
For so many years , I've finally realized I've been brewing and drinking the wrong tea. Wow .
I love gun powder. It's like an old pitbull with a big heart and large bite. F.... Your Pomeranian tea!