Teance Free Leaf Tea

This is something new from Teance, FreeLeafTM Teas. We got them in about a week ago, and I haven't made up my mind about them yet, but I do think they're neat. It seems the idea is to offer the convenience of a tea bag by attaching a string to a bouquet of hand tied leaves--I assume they are hand tied. A simple and effective idea; I'm surprised no one hasn't tried it before. There are four varieties available, White Peony, Jasmine White, Green Carnation and Green Rosebud. There are eight bouquets to a box, each individually wrapped in foil.

I sampled the Peony, and I was surprised by the quality. The bouquet uses lots of buds, and you can see the fine white hairs. The flavor is very pleasant, and it reminds me of the xian tao, only "whiter." It is also fruitier than most white teas I've had. The single bouquet easily yielded a few solid infusions. I would happily drink this tea again. But I wouldn't want to pay for it. I didn't care for the $10 price tag at my store, and I am less fond of the $13 price on their website. Even taking into consideration the labor intensive bouquets, $1.63 a bouquet seems a little steep. The overall quality of the leaves is quite decent, but I fear this may be just another expensive gimmick.

Edit: I feel I should clarify that my comments about the price are based solely on my opinion and limited observations. I know nothing of the costs involved with producing this kind of tea, and for all I know, it is a fair price. Just not one I'm going to pay.