This Foojoy Shoumei has similar color to their Bai Mudan. The aroma is milder in the Shoumei, and has a hint of fruit. The taste of the Shoumei is also milder than that of their Bai Mudan, but very smooth and with a hint of sweetness. Overall, though, these teas are very similar. This is perhaps the milder and slightly sweeter version. It also seems to be a bit smoother than the Bai Mudan.

In terms of the actual tea leaves and the way the tea is made, from what I understand, Bai Mudan and Shoumei only really differ in the relative age of their leaves. Shoumei is picked at a later time in the year, when the leaves are larger and darker.

In the Foojoy tea bag versions of these white teas, neither seems to be clearly better or worse. I suspect that most people who are interested in white tea might prefer the Shoumei, since it is milder and has a slight sweetness. These preferences would probably differ based on the culture and individual, though. It is perhaps notable that in the West, many people seem to be interested in white tea for its mild and smooth qualities.

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Comments:

Alex Zorach wrote: on October 10th, 2011

I have not yet tried this tea, but, in general, I've found shou mei tends to be more full-bodied, stronger, and darker than than bai mudan, although it can sometimes be sweeter and have less bitterness. There's a huge range though. I've had some shoumei that is very light, and some bai mudan that is very dark, and the level of bitterness also varies considerably, so that there's much overlap.

I think both shou mei and bai mu dan are teas that do not retain their character well in tea bags. To me, all tea bag white teas, with finely broken leaf, seem to taste more or less similar to me--some better than others--but I usually am not able to tell the distinction between the different styles in the same way I can with loose leaf.

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