龍井茶

I was expecting the usual broken green tea bits, so the long uniform leaves in this one caught me off guard. Steeping it at about 80 degrees gives a clean vegetal cup with barely any bitterness. Second pour was even sweeter than the first.

The flat, broad leaves are what got me — you can tell they were pressed and dried by hand, not machine-rolled. Steeped at 175°F it comes out clean and slightly sweet, no bitterness at all. Third refill of the day and still going.

The laborious drying really pays off—each sip has this clean, almost buttery finish that I haven't found in other greens. I keep going back for another cup just to watch those distinctive flat leaves settle at the bottom.