Snow Buds Green Tea - Organic

Picture of Snow Buds Green Tea
Brand:Arbor Teas
Style:Snow Buds
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Region:Fujian, China
Loose/teabag:Loose
Product page:Snow Buds Green Tea

This tea's info last updated: May. 12, 2014

Commercial Description

This beautifully light and crisp organic green tea...is more akin to a white tea in flavor profile. After brewed, you'll find a plethora of filaments from the downy buds of the tea plant floating on the surface of the clear and bright yellow-green liquor. The finely twisted silver and green buds are combined with small leaf to create a lightly buttery and clean cup..that offers a faint hint of sugar snap peas...

Ratings & Reviews

Page 1 of 1 page with 2 reviews

Link Link to This Review
Reviewer pic73 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 3/5
(334 reviews) on

Tastes to me like a fresh, light green tea, though I do feel like the white tea undertones gives it a fuller flavor. Very smooth, no bitterness, a nice cup of pure tea. Slightly floral in aroma. I think I may have used too little leaf for the first cup because my only complaint is that I'd like a slightly stronger cup.

Update: I've once again tried this tea and really enjoyed it. The flavor is just so smooth and calming, especially right after brewing. I have a tea kettle with a warming feature and so noticed that the flavor did change after warming for an hour or so (when I went for my second cup) and the tea was a much darker color. Not bad, but the first cup was definitely better. So it may be best to brew this one with immediate servings in mind.

I also tried it with milk and thought it blended unexpectedly well. So if you like creaminess, it's worth trying that way.
2 Comments


Link Link to This Review
Reviewer pic77 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
(1453 reviews) on

A delightful, light tea that tastes to me more like a delicate green tea than a white tea. I've tried two other snow buds or Xue Ya teas, and I think this is a prime example of this style.

Dry leaf is coarse and hairy, silvery.

Brews fairly slowly, as I'd expect for an intact, whole-leafed tea. I steeped for three minutes and the cup was very pleasant. Aroma grassy, slightly buttery, hinting at the floral and melony quality of some green teas but with none of the caramel or autumn leaf fragrance that many white teas have.

If you up the temperature, more briskness comes out, which I like, but if it's too hot I find the cup tastes metallic. Arbor Teas' recommendation of 180F is about where I like it best. Try lower for a sweeter, mellower cup.

I've now tried three snow buds or Xue ya teas, and this one was on par with my favorite to-date, Rishi's snow buds, which doesn't seem available on their website. The leaf looks a bit thicker than I remember that tea as, but it tasted similar and I couldn't say I preferred one to the other.

I was able to brew a second cup, with a five minute steeping, and it was similar to the first, but after this, the leaves were spent.

I recommend this tea to people who want a tea a little like silver needle but with the briskness and a bit of the grassy qualities of a green tea. The four ounce size is very reasonably priced for an organic tea of this quality.
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