Magicleaf, the "whiteness" of the pearls mainly depends on the time of harvest and quality of the tea that is used. For the most part, lower quality Dragon Pearls are turned into Jasmine Pearls. Also, the tea for Dragon Pearls usually stems from the first harvest in spring while the tea for (lower quality) Jasmine Pearls is sometimes harvested during the summer. I had similar experiences as you with the quality of Jasmine Pearls. Most of them are very average with very few notable exceptions where high quality tea AND freshly picked Jasmine Flowers are used. BTW, I just read your post "First Flush Organic Tea" and I'd love to see some of your photos!
Jim, I've got a question for you: are you saying that Phoenix Eyes is a larger pearl but essentially the same as Dragon Pearls? Are bigger leaves used or maybe 2 leaves and a bud instead of 1 leaf? I agree that most vendors mislabel their Jasmine Pearls as Dragon Pearls (or, the best I've seen - Dragon Phoenix Jasmine Pearls), generating a lot of confusion amongst their clients. I've read somewhere that while the non Jasmine version of this tea is called Dragon Pearls, the Jasmine infused version is referred to as Phoenix pearls (unfortunately, I don't remember where I've seen this information).
Jo