Silver Needle white tea is among the most revered of Chinese teas. Gathered only for a few days in early spring, a dedication to perfection is evident in the pale, ivory-colored liquor. Delicately honeysuckle floral, with a warmed sugar sweetness.
Customers use these reviews to describe their experience with Silver Needle, including flavor, aroma, preparation preferences, strength, and how the tea fits into daily routines. Browse the full review history page by page to compare tasting notes, steeping tips, and favorite ways to enjoy this tea.
This a delicate, sweet and light brew. I open my comminiTEA package to a wonderful aroma of fresh tea leaves. Once brew you can appreciate a its nutty flavor, slightly woody and its most defined honeysuckle sweetness. It is not astringent at all!
I brew as follow: I awoke the leaves with a 15 second hot rinse, then brew for 3 mins @ 180°F.
Pleasant tea. Has a nice, subtle flavor, but unremarkable. It fails to stand out.
This was a beautiful tasting tea with a delicate floral tone to it. I came across a slight mineral like taste which I am assuming is comparable to the green grape taste. I enjoyed several steeps with this tea.
This is the first time I've tried silver needle without jasmine. The leaves were mostly broken in my packet. 3 min @ 160 produced a very light liquor that was clean and pleasant tasting. Second steep 3 min @ 180 had darker color and stronger flavor. No bitterness, grassiness, or astringency to me. I enjoyed the silver needle, however I missed my jasmine aroma and flavor.
8 oz, 3 mins @ 180* F, with sweetener
This tea was neither good nor bad, it was just…ordinary. The leaves were beautiful, the liquor was a lovely color, but it lacked flavor to me. Perhaps I'm just not a white tea drinker.
Light, a bit fruity, and slightly vegetal. Nice and relaxing. I added a bit of sugar.
This tea was bland to my taste. It would not be my choice.
Nice tasting tea today. Not grassy. Very mild. I could drink more. 3 min @ 175⁰.
I'm a big fan of silver needle teas. Soft and delicate, clean and fresh, with a hint of sweetness.
A light earthy aroma on opening packet. I did not Initially smell or taste the honey suckle . I tried hot without sweetener after steeping as recommended. I found it very mild. When I added a little honey …the honeysuckle came through for me. Lovely light tea to end the day.
Hubby and I really enjoyed this delightful white tea, which is unusual for us. The delicate nutty, slightly floral flavor was perfect for a relaxing afternoon tea. I brewed at 180 for three minutes. No bitterness or grassiness was evident. A lovely, gentle tea.
Nice, light honeysuckle flavor. I enjoyed with a little honey. I’m going back for another steep.
never thought id see the day where i found a white tea i super enjoyed! wow!
UPDATE 10/20/2023: I’m so glad I had another opportunity to try this tea! I had it the first time a year and a half ago when I didn’t have much experience with teas. This time, since we also had the jasmine silver needle in this month’s box, I decided to do a side by side comparison. I was surprised to find that I prefer the silver needle over the jasmine one. I plan to add this to my tea cupboard after I drink down some of my stash.
This is a nice, smooth tea, although I’m not noticing the other flavors. It’s smooth, and there are no grassy or tart flavors. I wish it had had some additional noticeable flavors, but I know that’s not for everyone.
A very light tea with the barest hint of a fruity, if somewhat bordering on grassy, aftertaste.
Really enjoyed this tea! Delicate and lovely with a slight grassy flavor. Was able to get a second steep and tea maintained flavor. As usual for me, I enjoyed even more once cooled off some
UPDATED from 3/20/22: Elegant white tea- simple and purely divine! Can handle two brews.
There is such a fresh green grass aroma coming from the CommuniTEA packet. It steeps into a beautiful golden color. It has the slight white tea astringency, but is such a clean and fresh tasting tea- it brings joy and peace while drinking it. Adding ¼ teaspoon of sweetener makes it a sweeter delight. (3 mins @180F + sweetener).
Excellent, lightly floral white tea. Little bit of honey sweetness. White teas do not always pack in the flavor but this is full of it.
Mild, subtle, naturally sweet notes. Big fluffy leaves. I don’t have a lot of experience with white teas but this was very pleasant and light.
A Zen sip, a cup... which is a peaceful transportation, in mind and spirit, to otherworldly realms of serenity. Silver needle is a must have for a tea stash where delicate and floral teas are greatly enjoyed. Jasmine Silver Needle is a top favorite as well.
A soft, light white tea that is pleasant enough; but nothing I want first thing in the morning. This is one of those slow sippin', book readin', late afternoon teas. I love the honeysuckle scent that is prevalent once it is steeped.
Such a light and lovely cup! One of my all-time favorite white teas. Steeped 3 mins @ 185°
Update... still not for me, and almost strangely sweet. Silver needle is unique, in that the smell when I open the bag takes me back to my grandparent's farm, so that's sort of a good thing... I tried to enjoy it several different ways but couldn't get over the fact that the taste and smell subtlety reminds me of hay.
Brewed it a couple times in different ways but I never seemed to get the taste I wanted out of it. I liked the flavor I could get out of it, but for me it's just too mellow.
Glorious! Good for multiple steeps too. I love the Jasmine Silver Needle so I tried this for a more versatile flavor (I love jasmine but sometimes don’t want that lovely floral taste) and it did not disappoint! The needles themselves are so delicate and beautiful.
Silver Needle is a fantastic white tea. It’s light, mild and delicate. A perfect tea to unwind with.
A basic white tea but still very good! Great for late evening for a low-caffeine option. Would buy again.
Not quite what I was expecting but a delightful flavour none the less. It's very light, and I adore how fuzzy the leaves are, but it makes a very pleasant drink.
This is very mellow and beautiful.. I love this tea at night before bed time..
This is a nice and smooth tea. I enjoy sipping on it and I am happy I tried it out but it is not my go to tea.
A very nice tasting tea that really helps when you need it. It's a cup of calmness that I'd gladly recommend.
This one is very faint. For me, it didn’t seem to have much flavor.
I enjoyed the sample I got -- not my favorite white tea from Adagio, but does make a lovely hot cup.
Excellent tea! when ever I want to pamper myself this tea is part of that process. One of the best Silver Needle on he market.
Not my favorite silver needle. No matter what I do, this one seems to brew up with a flat flavor, just not as complex as I would expect. Okay, but not great.
So delicious! Big soft, fuzzy silvery buds. The golden taste of hay and honey. This one is perfection...
This is the first white tea I’ve tried and it was certainly worth a try. It has a lovely sweet aroma and subtle warm flavors, but perhaps at a somewhat steep price
My husband's favorite tea. We actually get 3 steeps from it. So delicate and delightful. On the first steep we do 180 for 3 minutes, then we increase the steep time after that to 4 minutes.
I bought the silver needle to combine with the Ceylon Sonata. It was great. This needle is quality!
This is a very subtle flavored tea that is a joy to drink in the evenings while relaxing. It’s rapidly becoming my go to in the evening.
Bought the 8 oz. Leaves are complete, pale, and fragrant with the perfect level of dryness. Tea is smooth, somewhat floral with a hint of earthiness and a lingering sweet after taste. Worth every penny. Used 5 minutes at 180 for the second cup. Will try a third soon...
Smooth and light flavor and very medicinal! Go Ravens !
I really looked forward to trying silver needle, a nice white, slow cup of tea with a unique flavor. When I opened the bag the smell reminded me of a hay field. Perhaps I am not seasoned enough in white teas but found this a bit plain and too light for me. A second steep in 6oz for 4 minutes seemed a bit better.
This tea is subtle, smooth, and mellow. A really great tea for those lazy weekend mornings when you want to wake up slowly.
I was looking for a basic white tea to make my favorite wintertime 'tea cocktail' based on a drink I used to get at Argo Tea when they were still in my home city, and Silver Needle is a beautifully delicate blend that's amazing on its own or in my drink (about half a tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon loose peppermint tea in a filter bag, tie it shut, brew in a really big mug then top with white chocolate mocha creamer.)
A delicate tea that is perfect for those slow, easy mornings or a relaxing afternoon. Has more flavor the longer you steep!
Silver needle, to me, is perfect! It's very relaxing and clean-tasting. This is the tea to drink if you really want to enjoy a cup!
I really enjoyed the first steep, but I slept on the fact that you're supposed to steep it 4 times! I'll get on that right now.
Naturally sweet and you can use the same tea multiple times. Very light but still flavorful.
First time customer and I couldn’t be more pleased with the silver needle white tea. I ordered a few white teas and this one is so good.