Dragon Pearls Green Tea

Also known as Long Zhu Tea, this artisan-handcrafted Chinese green tea transforms from tightly rolled pearls into complete spring tea shoots, revealing fresh vegetal notes, delicate florals, gentle sweetness, and a naturally creamy finish.

The Experience

Dragon Pearls Green Tea, also known as Long Zhu Tea, is as captivating to watch as it is to drink. From Fujian Province, China, this tea is handcrafted from the first tender growth of spring, using the unopened bud and two youngest leaves of each tea shoot. The delicate spring leaves are carefully hand-rolled into elegant pearls that slowly unfurl during brewing, revealing the complete young tea shoot from which each pearl was crafted.

Harvested during the first weeks of the season, these tender leaves produce a remarkably smooth cup with fresh vegetal character, delicate floral aromas, gentle natural sweetness, and a creamy finish. Although the liquor may appear pale and delicate, the tea has a satisfying medium body and considerable depth. There are no flowers, cream flavors, or other ingredients creating those notes. The ingredient is simply green tea.

Tasting Notes

Top: Delicate florals • Spring greens
Mid: Fresh vegetation • Gentle sweetness
Finish: Smooth • Naturally creamy • Clean
Body: Medium

Why You’ll Love It

• Artisan-handcrafted in Fujian Province, China
• Also known as Long Zhu Tea
• Made from the tender unopened bud and two youngest leaves
• Crafted from the first weeks of the spring harvest
• Carefully hand-rolled into individual pearls
• Pearls dramatically unfurl into complete tea shoots
• Naturally floral, sweet, and creamy with no added flavoring
• Excellent for multiple infusions
• A beautiful introduction to the craftsmanship of Chinese whole-leaf tea

Tea, Origin & Ingredients

Tea Type: Green Tea
Style: Dragon Pearl / Long Zhu Tea
Grade: Artisan Handcrafted
Origin: Fujian Province, China
Elevation: Approximately 1,000–1,500 m (~3,300–5,000 ft)
Processing: Non-fermented, traditionally processed, small-batch crafted and hand-formed
Ingredients: Green tea
Added Flavoring: None
Caffeine: Caffeinated
Body: Medium
Classification: Purist

How to Brew

Use 1 heaping teaspoon with The Perfect Measure Spoon per 8 oz / 237 ml of water at 185°F / 85°C.

Mild: 1–2 minutes
Medium: 2–3 minutes
Strong: 3–5 minutes

For your first infusion, we recommend approximately 2 minutes. Gentler water helps preserve the tea's floral sweetness and smooth texture without drawing excessive bitterness from the leaf.

Don't discard the leaves after your first cup. The pearls continue to open as they steep and can be particularly rewarding over multiple infusions. For the full experience, brew Dragon Pearls in a glass teapot or clear cup so you can watch the leaves unfold.

Perfect For

Dragon Pearls are particularly suited to purist tea drinkers, Chinese-tea explorers, special tea tastings, thoughtful gifts, and anyone curious about the craftsmanship behind artisan loose-leaf tea. Pair with steamed fish, dumplings, delicate seafood, rice dishes, lightly seasoned vegetables, fresh fruit, almond cookies, or subtly sweet pastries.

One Pearl, One Spring Shoot

What makes Dragon Pearls particularly fascinating is the relationship between the finished shape and the leaf hidden inside. Each pearl begins with the unopened bud and two tender young leaves of a spring tea shoot. These delicate leaves are carefully rolled together into the compact pearl you see in the dry tea.

Add hot water and the process begins to reverse. The pearl absorbs water, loosens, and gradually opens until you can see the tea shoot from which it was made. This is why we especially recommend brewing Dragon Pearls in glass: you can actually watch the craftsmanship reveal itself.

Look closely at the unopened buds after they have unfurled. You may notice fine silvery hairs, sometimes called down or trichomes. These naturally occur on tender young tea buds and, in this tea, are a visible sign of the young leaf material and careful handling used in its production.

Dragon Pearls are therefore not prized only for flavor. They offer an unusually tangible way to understand how harvest, leaf selection, and craftsmanship shape a finished tea.

Where Does the Creaminess Come From?

There is no cream, milk, vanilla, or added flavoring in Dragon Pearls. The naturally creamy finish is a tasting note, not an ingredient.

Tea can naturally produce sensory impressions that remind us of flowers, fruit, honey, nuts, vegetables, butter, or cream even when none of those ingredients have been added. In Dragon Pearls, “creamy” describes the tea's smooth, rounded mouthfeel and gentle finish.

This is one of the pleasures of exploring purist tea: with only Camellia sinensis in the cup, careful cultivation and processing can create a surprisingly complex range of aromas, flavors, and textures.

Why Spring Harvest Matters

Dragon Pearls are produced within the first weeks of the spring tea season, around late March and early April depending on weather. At this stage, the tea plant is producing tender new shoots after the slower winter growing period. Dragon Pearls specifically select the young bud and two leaves from this early growth.

That combination of spring timing, tender leaf selection, and hand-forming helps explain why this tea can simultaneously taste fresh and vegetal while offering floral aroma, natural sweetness, and a smooth texture.

It also makes Dragon Pearls an excellent tea for learning an important lesson: tea quality isn't determined simply by whether a tea is green, black, or oolong. When it was harvested, which leaves were selected, and how those leaves were handled can dramatically change the cup.

Packaging: Our loose teas are sold by the ounce and packaged in food-grade resealable bags.

Explore the Artistry of Chinese Green Tea

If Dragon Pearls sparks your curiosity, continue exploring Chinese green tea through teas made with very different leaf shapes and flavor profiles. Compare it with Bi Luo Chun for curled leaves and silky marine character, Dragonwell for a flatter leaf and smooth chestnut-like profile, or Zhen Mei for a brisker everyday expression.

Tasting these teas side by side is one of the best ways to discover how dramatically leaf selection, origin, harvest, and craftsmanship can transform the same tea plant into completely different experiences.

Dragon Pearls Green Tea (This Tea)
Floral • Sweet • Creamy
→ Best for: experiencing artisan hand-forming, tender spring leaf, and the dramatic unfurling of complete tea shoots

Bi Luo Chun Green Tea
Silky • Marine • Grape
→ Try next if: you'd like another distinctive curled Chinese heritage green tea with a very different flavor profile

Dragonwell Green Tea
Chestnut • Vegetal • Smooth
→ Try next if: you want to explore another classic expression of Chinese green-tea craftsmanship

Zhen Mei Green Tea
Vegetal • Brisk • Classic
→ Try next if: you'd like a more straightforward everyday Chinese green tea for comparison