Shifting Senses started Ciao, a Jasmine tea brand that they made for their mom. Her name is Qiao 巧 (pronounced like Ciao). Playing on the phrase hello/goodbye, they wanted this brand to focus on how tea brings people together. The collection has four jasmine teas: Spring Arrives, Summer Arrives, Autumn Equinox, and Winter Solstice. Today, I am diving into their Autumn Equinox. Here are my thoughts:

Autumn Equinox – Jasmine Tea

I made this tea grandpa-style each time, being one of my favorite brewing methods with white tea. The aroma was a nice jasmine scent and was actually pretty strong all around. My brother and mom came in to help me with this review as well (I think they were just hunting down some tea to drink at the time), and my brother stated that it reminded him of rose petals, perfume, and spice. He went further into detail by saying that the aroma reminded him of the women’s section of the department store (don’t ask me how you exactly determine that). The color was a pale, pale yellow color. As it sat a bit more, it did get a little bit darker overall. The leaves were small and thin whole leaf buds. I did notice a small bit of crushing but the tin actually kept the tea very protected. As the tea steeped, I noticed the tea leaves were a pale green color.

Now the tasting notes are where this review gets a bit unhinged. My brother (jokingly) described the tea as a “hint of levity from the very sip of life. Looks flavorless like water but is definitely tasty.” All jokes aside, he then said the tea was floral and sweet, and quite similar to the aroma. My mom agreed that it was floral-like jasmine and reminded her of honey. She liked how forward the jasmine was, it really was the star of the show instead of a supporting member. My opinion was that it was a light-bodied tea, but also quite strong in jasmine notes and slightly perfumey. The second steeping was a lot lighter in jasmine, but the white tea floral notes showed through way more. I enjoyed sipping on this tea with my family, but also while looking out at my backyard and the dreamy snow that covers it.

Price: The tea is $27 for a tin of tea with 10 pouches of loose leaf tea.

Packaging: The four jasmine teas in this series is in the form of loose-leaf or bio-degradable tea bags. The tea is individually wrapped which will be helpful in bringing teas to-go, and all the individually wrapped loose-leaf is also in a steel tin that fits all 10 pouches.

Sourcing: Ciao Tea sources this particular tea from Hengxian,  Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China.

What do you normally look for in jasmine tea? This was my first jasmine tea that was white tea-based instead of green tea-based. Let me know what you prefer in the comments – Happy Brewing!

-Danielle