Jasmine Wild White Tea Bud (茉莉野生白芽茶), is the original tea of HOJO. We started to produce this new tea since 2019. I believe this is the only tea in the world. It was always very popular and every year the stock finished quickly in a short period of time.
We made the new tea in the world
In our line-up, we have one type of white tea called Wild White Tea Bud. It is made from the buds collected from wild tea trees. It gives very distinctive characteristic. The flavor of Wild White Tea Bud reminiscent of fresh cloves, with full body and long-lasting aftertaste. While I was sourcing this tea in spring, I came up with the idea that this tea could perform well if we process it into jasmine tea. We conducted some experiments and confirmed that this tea matches well with jasmine flavor. So, we sent some of the Wild White Tea Bud to the jasmine scenting factory in Guangxi province, and wait for the jasmine blooming season to conduct scenting process using the fresh jasmine flowers. Only the right quality of flowers freshly collected from the field will be selected for the scenting.
Camellia Assamica Dehongensis
The wild white tea bud belongs to the Camellia Assamica Dehongensis which is the related species of Camellia sinensis. This is found at the altitude of 2000-2400m high mountain in South-West Yunnan, especially in the shrub zone. Although it is called “wild”, a number of wild white tea bud is from the garden. The authentic wild tea gives very long-lasting aftertaste with multi-layers of complex flavor.
Synergy between the flavor of tea and jasmine flower
In making standard jasmine tea, the important protocol is to choose the base tea that flavor profile is not too strong or distinctive. Because if the base tea has too strong flavor, it may compete with the flavor of jasmine. Most importantly, we need the base tea to stay low profile and well absorb the flavor from jasmine flower. Nevertheless, the wild white tea bud is not of gentle characteristic in its flavor. For this tea, we are rather wishing to make a synergy effect between the flavor of tea and jasmine flower. Thanks to the scenting process with jasmine flowers, the distinctive pungent note of the wild white tea bud becomes milder and more subtle, and it becomes the new flavor that is different from jasmine or wild white tea bud alone. The flavor is very complex and indescribable. It reminds me of wild herbs or flowers. Thanks to the rich minerals in wild white tea bud, the flavor is thick and complex, and as a jasmine tea, the aftertaste is exceptionally long-lasting.
Needless to say, this tea performs well with cold water brewing. We can enjoy both its unique flavor and long-lasting aftertaste. To prepare a proper cold water brewed tea, please use the water that is boiled once and cooled down in order to get a better flavor and taste. For 1 to 1.5 liters of water, please use 5g of tea leaf (approximately one tablespoon). You can pour the tea leaf into the water and keep it in a refrigerator for a few hours, and it can lasts for a few days in the refrigerator.