Remember, good things don't have to taste bad...

You've survived the first few days back at work, and it's time to remind you that things that are good for you don't have to taste bad...

Our Longjing Dragonwell Green Tea is one of the best examples of this. Longjing is grown in the unbelievably beautiful Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province, China. The entire area feels verdant and alive and this ancient, rare tea is picked in the early spring before the first rains.

Henrietta considers Longjing to be the Chinese taste of spring, the first green tips of the year.

There are many myths about Longjing and why it has its name it translates into English as "Dragon Well". Our favourite is that there was a deep well on the South shores of the Western lake with dense sweet water. When the spring rain fell into the well the lighter, aerated water mixed with the well water and swirled in patterns resembling a dragon.

In the Qing dynasty Longjing was venerated as a rare tea and was awarded the title of "Imperial" tea (Gong Cha).

There are also many stories about how the tea came to be so beloved and esteemed above all other green China teas. The best is about an Emperor hiding the leaves up his sleeves.

He was watching the pickers moving beautifully through the bushes and had been so entranced that he followed their movements and picked his own tea. At this moment a messenger brought him the news that his mother was gravely ill and he slipped the fresh leaves up his silken sleeve and returning to his mother he found the leaves pressed flat like a feather. He infused them for his ailing parent, of course, she immediately returned to full health so the tea was suitably venerated.

The tea has stunning flavours of fresh grass and asparagus with a smooth, nutty finish of hazelnut. Combined with a soft and round mouthfeel and a long, honeyed sweetness it truly is a sublime rare tea.

It is equally good hot or cold infused and is perfect after a workout.

Long Jing (and high-quality green tea in general) come with a myriad of health benefits too - and this isn't pseudo-science either. Research collated in 2017 from the Royal Society of Chemistry looks in great detail at Green Tea.

All the best,

	Henrietta Lovell
	Rare Tea Lady
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Since 2000 Henrietta has been travelling the world, working directly with independent tea gardens, from the Shire Highlands of Malawi to the foothills of the Himalayas. Lovell is at the forefront of the tea revolution. She founded Rare Tea Company in 2004 to champion responsible and ethical relationships direct with farmers. In 2016 she founded Rare Charity pledging a direct percentage of Rare Tea revenue to their partner farms, supporting tertiary education scholarships. In 2019 Faber & Faber published her first book – "Infused - Adventures in Tea", named the New York Times book of the year and was awarded the prestigious Fortnum & Mason award. She is currently working on a documentary series.