ORGANIC KOREAN GREEN TEA ‘WOOJEON’
ORGANIC KOREAN WOOJEON GREEN TEA
“Woojeon” literally means ‘before the rains’. It is the earliest hand-picked, organic green tea, harvested before April 20th which is an agricultural point on the Korean Calendar known as ‘Gokujeol’ or ‘Gogu’. These calendar terms reflect the agricultural seasons.
This tea is renowned as being one of the top Korean Green Teas. The type of tea, harvested early on in the season, is collectively known as ’Sparrow’s tongue’ for its rarity and appearance. Woojeon, however, is the first flush.
We source this tea from South West Korea, in South Gyeongsang Province. It is grown on an Organically certified tea farm. It has US and EU Organic status. The tea farm is devoted to organic tea husbandry and classical methods of Korean tea farming and production. This is Organic Green Tea at its finest.
Only small quantities are produced each year, it is very labour intensive.
This tea may be enjoyed on many different levels. We would recommend up to three steepings.
These rare tiny leaves are the paragon of quality with an unsurpassed vibrant, yet mellow delicacy.
Suggested steeping instructions:
Leaf Quantity: 2-3 g/cup
Water Temp: 70° C
Steep Time: 3 min.
Posted in: ORGANIC GREEN TEA · ORGANIC TEA
Hello, My name is bowon chung, Korean tea lover. I found this writing by searching “korean tea” in google due to my curiosity for western connoisseur’s review of korean tea. And I’m very glad that found yours.
However, I’d like to add little bit more on your description of Woojeon’s harvest as possible as I can. The meaning of 곡우 – 穀雨 ( Gogu ) is correct. It is from Lunar calendar, means “Spring rains come for growing cereals” 곡우전(穀雨前) means before the spring rain. In this lunar season, yet sun shine is not strong, wind is cold but ice and snow is melt already: It is between winter and spring. This is almost same term of Chinese agricultural term of “pre-chingming淸明,” but it is later than chingming. Since the latitude of korea is geographically higher than china or japan, korean spring arrives late and it’s winter is harsh than china or japan.
“세작 Sparrow’s tongue’ is a kind of second flush. But it is more likely to ordinary green tea than woojoen. Because the level of fermentation in woojeon is mostly between white tea and green tea as well. You could compare this leaf with Gyokuro of japanese tea, though woojeon is traditionally not steamed, but slightly baked on the iron pan as Chinese does for their tea.
Your mention about the korean region, which is very precise thing than I ever red before in western tea shop. Korean wild tea trees are growing around Jiri mountain range. In south of Gyongsang region of south east korea, lots of wild shrub or its clones exist. Most of tea production in this area is from this trees. In south of Jeunra region, indigenized japanese breed type also exist. This trees are implanted during imperial japanese period for building tea plantation. It is same type of tea tree shrub in Shizuoka. This tree is also planted in Jeju area and currently this type is popular in western tea shop as “korean tea”
If you need more of information, please leave your message below. Or send email to me.: bowon78 at hotmail.com.