#todaystea – Spring, 2019; var. #43; Shifeng, West Lake, Hangzhou; 1leaf &1bud, green tea process; 200-300 meters; Shifeng Longjing grows in white sand soil.
Infusion: 3g in 150ml for 10sec@85deg. C
Dry leaf aroma: sweet, malty, candy/caramel, boiled lollies Wet leaf: canned green peas, cooked green leaf veg; Liquor: Pale yellow with almost no noticeable aroma; Mouthfeel: thin, creamy, buttery; Taste: slightly herbal/grassy, nutty, a soft peppery or mint-like bite in the finish, & a gently sweet, lingering aftertaste.
#todaystea – 2020, Spring Equinox; var. Sichuan Xiao Ye Zhong, small leaf; Ya’an Mountain area, Mendingshan, Sichuan; single bud, hand roasted by Tea Master Lìu Wànchèng, yellow paper wrapped, yellow tea process; 1000m.
Dry leaf aroma: herbal, nutty, and hints of unscented white rice; Wet leaf aroma: sweet, herbal; Liquor: pale yellow with almost no scent; Mouthfeel: viscous, syrupy, with a malty or honey-like, lingering sweet finish; Taste: like the aroma, elusive, malty, with elusive nutty, rice notes, and retronasal touches of honeysuckle and lemon.
#TodaysTea; 2017, Autumn; var. Dabai; #Fuding, Fujian; bud & 2-3 leaves, white tea processed, aged, loose leaf;
Dry leaf aroma: floral, fruity, fragrant, apricots, and orange blossom; Wet leaf aroma: mild, earthy, damp forest floor, pleasant; Liquor: Golden Amber colour with a cooked vegetable aroma with hints of malt/honey; Mouthfeel: creamy, vicious, tingling on the tongue, no throat sensations, all top of the tongue; Taste: sweet, lingering, fresh and peppery like mint or menthol.
#TodaysTea – 2018, Spring; var. Fúdǐng Dàháo; Fuding, Guanyang, Fujian; 1 leaf & bud, white tea process;
Dry leaf aroma: earthy, biscuit like; Wet leaf aroma: mildly acrid; Liquor: very pale yellow to white pear color, with no noticeable aroma; Mouthfeel: creamy, milky texture, slightly thin, hints of pepper, with a noticeable dry throat sensation; Taste is earthy with hints of the dry leaf aroma.
#TodaysTea. 2018 Autumn(???); var. Dabai; Pingqiao Village, Chengbei, Shuangcheng, Zherong, Ningde, Fujian; bud only, white tea process.
Dry leaf aroma is pleasant, fragrant, peach, pear, lychee, and melon. Wet leaf aroma is noticeably acrid. Liquor is pale pear in colour and has a slight but pleasant scent. Smooth creamy mouthfeel with a peppery bite and drying astringent finish in the throat. Mild taste with very faint hint of lychee, nashi pear and late, subtle hints of wood ash. __________ I’ve reorganised my tea collection and I plan to work through all the teas on my shelf. I will proceed through White, Yellow, Green, Oolong, Smoked, Black/Red, and Cake Teas. After this, I might review the herbals/florals that I also have, but of which I’m not particularly a fan. Please enjoy.
#TodaysTea: #Guihua Wulong Cha – Osmanthus Oolong Tea. Spring, 2019; Made with Anxi Gaoshan (#Tieguanyin) YanXian OolongTea and Osmanthus flowers in Anxi, Fujian; Beijing Wu Yutai Tea Industry ltd, Beijing; stem and 2-3 leaves, light oxidation, scented with flower petals; high mountain source.
Taste: Creamy, sweet, syrupy, soft, spicy, with a mild, “prickly ash” bite on the top of the tongue, fragrant, floral, osmanthus, honey; Wet leaf: apricot and peach, vegetal; Retronasal: hints of floral, vegetal and peach pit notes.
#TodaysTea: #Eternitea#Masala Chai. Sep 2018; var. Assamica; Hittakkal Post, Kotagiri, #TheNilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India; CTC (cut, twist, curl/crush) black tea blended with cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, vanilla, and other spices; 1500-1800m.
Tasting Notes: Dry leaf: dusty, cardamon, clove, faintly honey like Wet leaf: clove, cinnamon, fading spicy hints. Tea liquor: at first light, hints of cinnamon, cardamom, vanilla, followed by clove, ginger, the bite of black pepper? Finish: a mild bite and astringency on the side of the tongue and up into the cheeks. Ad the tea cools the spices and vanilla become much more pronounced. Retronasal: lingers like Christmas cake and biscuits.
About the Pot: It is an aluminum, #Swan Brand #Teapot, Made in England, and is “The Carlton” model. The hand scratched inscription seems to read, “ From S. Bott 1968” I was born in 1966. As long as I can remember, my #grandmother used this teapot to make herself a cup of tea each day. It ended up in my Mum’s b&b and I eventually took it over (the teapot) some 20 years or so ago. In some way, this is the first ever teapot I noticed, or deliberately took into my collection. I still use it to this day.
#TodaysTea: At my son’s tennis tournament – Dragon Ball Pu’er from Yunnan. Steamed aged cake, hand pressed by myself, into a ball in Shanghai in 2019.
Dry leaf aroma, dank, forest floor, dry, woody Wet leaf aroma, hints of honey and sour candied fruit.
Tea aroma is fragrant, hints of honey, longan, and cantaloupe.
The taste of the first wash to wake up the leaves is intensely bitter with a touch of liquorice and longan, the mouthfeel is thin to moderately textured, with a light astringent, mouthwatering finish and a hint of sweetness. With the first and second steepings, the bitterness is less pronounced.
With Covid-19 Rampaging all over the world its reassuring to see scientists looking into what natural products and medicines might be able to help with protecting against infection. The following article, in Chinese, details current research and outcomes that are considering. A translation of the full article appears below. Whilst a tad sketchy, is does give the gist of this research.
Chinese and American scientists are carrying out joint research: reasonable consumption of orange peel may prevent new coronavirus
The new crown virus has swept the world, and medical researchers all over the world are shouldering the mission of prevention and treatment of new crown pneumonia. This is a work that requires all researchers to work together to overcome all difficulties. It is necessary to share the research results in a timely manner. Provide mutual help as much as possible, discuss and exchange opinions in a timely manner.
At present, discussions about the use of orange peels for the prevention and treatment of new coronavirus are underway between Chinese and American scientists.
Medicinal and food sources, authentic herbs-Xinhui orange peel
Previously, Professor Li Hua of Tongji Pharmaceutical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology and Professor Chen Lixia of School of Infinite Innovation of Shenyang Pharmaceutical University published an article in the English version of “Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences” “Analysis of therapeutic targets for SARS-CoV-2 and discovery of potential drugs bycomputational methods” “The computer virtual screening method found that hesperidin may bind to the new coronavirus S protein receptor binding domain (RBD) to disrupt the interaction between RBD and ACE2 (new coronavirus human receptor). This is the researcher’s drug in ZINC. The only compound screened from the database and data of traditional Chinese medicines and natural products can be targeted at the binding interface of S protein and ACE. In addition, hesperidin and virus 3C-like protease also have very good binding affinity [1].
Low-energy binding conformation of hesperidin to the new crown virus S protein RBD [1]
Citrus peel is rich in hesperidin, including traditional Chinese medicine orange peel and Guang Chen peel (ie Xinhui orange peel), Chinese medicines rich in hesperidin also have orange red and orange. Chenpi and Huatanghong are one of the main medicinal materials in the traditional Chinese medicine compound recommended by the Chinese Medicine section of the “New Coronavirus Pneumonia Diagnosis and Treatment Program (Trial Version 7)” [2].
Dr. Jeff Gruneich of the University of Pennsylvania is very interested in the research on hesperidin by Professor Li Hua, etc. Therefore, the research on the potential targets of hesperidin for coronavirus targeting, effectiveness, safety, bioavailability, dosage, etc. A large amount of literature research has been conducted, and the results of the research have been shared by e-mail with scientists from various countries including Professor Li Hua, hoping to conduct in-depth discussions and get some suggestions.
Dr. Jeff Gruneich said that hesperetin is the main metabolite of flavanone hesperidin. Hesperetin can inhibit the cleavage activity of SARS coronavirus 3C-like protease in a dose-dependent manner (IC50 is 8.3 μM) [3]. Two other molecular docking studies have also shown that hesperidin has very high binding affinity with 3C-like protease [4,5], S protein RBD and ACE2 [4].
Through research literature, Dr. Jeff Gruneich found that some peels of citrus fruits contain 1-2g hesperidin [6]. Suppose an adult male weighs about 100kg or less, and water accounts for about 60% of the body weight, so it is 60L water. To achieve a hesperetin concentration of 8.3uM in 60L, 498 uM is required. Assuming that the conversion rate of hesperidin to hesperidin in the intestine is 100%, 304 mg hesperidin is required. Taking oranges in citrus fruits as an example, the peel of each orange contains about 1.4g of hesperidin, which is enough to bring the concentration to 8.3uM. Grinding one or two oranges (with peels) into a juice every day with a blender will provide enough hesperetin to suppress COVID-19 and also help to suppress other downstream pathological changes caused by immune reactions and other reasons. This is very easy for ordinary people to do, fast and cheap without any adverse reactions, can be widely used immediately and observe the effect in time.
Professor Li Hua believes that Dr. Jeff Gruneich’s idea is logical. Orange peel is basically non-toxic, and orange peel is actually a very common food and Chinese medicine in China. The orange peel soaked with sugar is very delicious and has a good effect on COVID-19. It has potential good effects and is worth trying. In addition, eating kumquat with peel as the main edible part is also a good choice.
At the same time, Professor Ma Zhaocheng of Huazhong Agricultural University also stated that orange peel is involved in the prescription guidelines for traditional Chinese medicine used in the treatment of COVID-19, which has a clinical role in relieving cough.
Dr. JeffGruneich believes that vegetables such as broccoli and onions also contain flavonoid compounds similar to hesperetin, such as quercetin, and they can also suppress viruses. These inexpensive vegetables are easy to supply to the number of possible infections in the next few weeks Millions of people eat. Dr. Jeff Gruneich also said that he will further promote the clinical research of hesperidin against the new coronavirus.
This discussion between Chinese and American scientists is very meaningful. Traditional Chinese medicine has played a very important role in the fight against the new crown epidemic. As a representative of Chinese medicine, tangerine peel has attracted the attention of American scientific researchers and will be promoted to more people. This has played a positive role in spreading traditional Chinese medicine to the whole world.
