Zhu Ye Qing (竹葉青)
archetype: Bamboo rain
A light bamboo shower in the grove: leaves straight as arrows, smelling only of bamboo's freshness.
History
Zhu Ye Qing — 'green bamboo leaf' — is a relatively young variety (1964), created at the Wannian monastery on Mount Emei (Sichuan). Its name was given by Premier Zhou Enlai when he saw the straightened leaf shoots in his cup. The bushes grow among bamboo groves, and the leaf gathers the scent of its neighbour. Made only in spring; the leaf is dried over low heat into a strictly straight form.
Terroir
The best leaf is the 'imperial Zhu Ye Qing' from a bush growing directly within the bamboo forest.
Leaf
young bamboo, damp grass, a light chestnut thin, long, a cool trail of the grove
Properties
high theanine, light structure; gentle stimulation, good for the nervous system light, rising, cool; felt as a 'straightening of the spine' moderate (25–40 mg)
Brewing ritual
a glass of 200 ml; 80 °C; 4 g / 200 ml. 35s — the first rain: bamboo, grass; 55s — the peak: damp greenery, a light chestnut; 85s — the finale — a cool trail of the grove.
When to drink
day and early evening. spring and early autumn. after a long conversation, when you want bamboo silence