Oolong Gone

Oolong and herbal blend
Amoda Tea

All organic ingredients: Oolong, hibiscus, lemon peel, ashwagandha root, strawberry leaf, rose buds, licorice root, sweet orange extract.



Oolong Gone serves as my second review of Amoda Tea's November monthly tasting box.



The colors in Oolong Gone are so rich, I could simply put it on display. It looks like a wedding tea. The oolong leaves are a beautiful burgundy. Again, I'm impressed with Amoda Tea's (combined with BlendBee.com) choice of ingredients.

Specifically, the hibiscus. Hibiscus is tart and has a lot of personality, so I'm curious to see if it dwarfs or enhances the oolong, which is usually delicate in flavor. There's also the ashwagandha root, which looks like ginger. Ashwagandha will be a first for me. I notice citrus and hibiscus in a first smell of the tea, so I'm expecting that to lead the flavor.



I would normally never make an herbal tea in my gaiwan, but I'll make an exception for the oolong base. It calls for 4-8 minutes, which seems like a wide range to me, so I'll pick 8 minutes for the full effect. I expect a longer steep to enhance the hibiscus, though.



I'm surprised! I smell the oolong first, in a dusty sweet tone. That sweetness could be enhanced by the rose buds, but it's definitely still oolong. It's a ruby-red color that hints at pink.



The taste is strong with the red hibiscus, but it's much more sweet than tart. The directions suggest a cold brew, and I agree that would be the best way to serve this tea. It's not the straightforward oolong flavor you would expect from your gaiwan, but a fun treat I'd love to have at a garden party.

This tea was provided by Amoda Tea.

Cucumber Cantaloupe Oolong

Oolong blend
52Teas

Ingredients: Organic oolong tea, freeze-dried cucumber pieces, all-natural organic flavors.



Cucumber-cantaloupe dominates the scent of the dry tea. It has beautiful, long pieces of tea. In the vibrant yellow-green liquor, an attractive earthy oolong scent emerges alongside the melon.



The oolong and melon together taste like something I could eat! The liquor is barely astringent and very fresh, similar in experience to an oolong with natural floral notes, but with cantaloupe instead of flowers. It recommends a 3-4 minute steep time, but I prefer it for longer than 4 minutes for more depth from the oolong .

Does it steep twice? I wasn't sure if the natural flavors would come out in a second infusion, but I gave it a try and ended up with an oolong cup with a bare hint of melon. It worked!

Dragon Claw Oolong (#61)

Oolong tea
Nepali Tea Traders

I was initially drawn to this tea because of its stunning appearance. The dry tea has a variety of colors and little hairs on the lighter ones. Smelling the dry tea didn't really give me a sense of what it would taste like, so I was excited to try it.



The first smell from the gaiwan lid is toasted but with apricot fast on its heels. The liquor is a beautiful warm yellow, seconding the thought of apricot. The first sip has a lot of personality, almost with a spice.

For a darker-looking oolong, it's lighter than I thought, but with a nice strong body to it. Smooth finish with a nice aroma from the cup, too.

I used two 2-minute infusions. The third steep at 3 minutes brought the apricot to the forefront. Beautiful!

 

The website recommends two infusions at 2-3 minutes and I'd say that's accurate; I may have gotten a third infusion out of it because my first infusions were 2 minutes instead of 3.

The instructions call for a heaping teaspoon for 8 oz, and since my gaiwan is small, I played it safe and used just shy of a teaspoon. It didn't take many leaves to get a great flavor. 

I tried it again, using the heaping teaspoon recommended and finishing off the sampler. This tea has character! It would be nice to make in a teapot and share with friends. 

 

This sample was provided by Nepali Tea Traders.

Next I will review Nepali Tea Traders' silver needle.

Quangzhou Milk Oolong (#58)

Oolong
Margaret's Fine Imports

The milk aroma is strong through the bag! It's the milkiest oolong I've tried so far. It's part of the Level 2 self-brew tasting at Margaret's, and one of the teas in the free tea sampler.

I'm enjoying making this in my new gaiwan. The aroma of the first infusion, at 2 minutes, is a strong butter smell. The liquor is bright and light yellow. The milk in the taste isn't as strong as the aroma, but it's still very nice. It's very creamy.

A second infusion at 3 minutes still smells of butter but it is smoothing into a bit of floral taste. It is deeper in color. The milk taste is also smoother, but I might not use a full 3 minutes on a second infusion again, since some unwanted astringency came through. It does leave a creamy aftertaste--and feel--on the tongue.

For the third infusion, the aroma is mostly of a creamy orchid. The mouthfeel is fuller.

I think the fourth steep is the best--everything is just right. After steeping, the leaves come out crinkly with red tips to the edges. A calming, delicious tea!

Next I'll review one from Mighty Leaf Tea with the Chinese longan fruit.

Dong Ding Oolong (#50)

Intro to Oolong 3 Pack Flight, Tea #3
Eco-Cha

A special tea for my 50th review. I've heard so many good things about Dong Ding that I was thrilled to see it in this trio tea flight from Eco-Cha!



The sweet nuttiness is very strong in the aroma! As I smell into the bag from a distance, I notice the sweetness first. Closer up to the tea, the nutty flavor is strong. It has almost a gummy texture and sound as it tumbles from the bag. The dried fruit flavor smells like a light, dried currant to me. The color is a rich deep green with hints of fall, like evergreens with dried needles strewn around them.



I need to see the red soil of the Dong Ding Mountain area for myself.



The smell of dry fruit is strong from the first pour. The liquor is a cheerful, light orange. The first sip gave me a lot to think about! The cashew comes in right away. I taste a complexity to the flavor that I haven't experienced before. It has a somewhat buttery mouthfeel, but not taste, which really interested me.



The second pour of the first steep is a richer, beautiful color. I took the lid off the teapot and got a toasty nut smell from the leaves. It looks like I let the second half of the first steep sit too long, though, because I've gotten a burnt nut flavor now. I didn't realize how delicate this one is! Next time I'll make sure to drink this with a friend.





The second steep is similar in color, but a bit lighter; probably lighter because I overdid it last time. Now, the flavor has smoothed itself over, allowing the sweetness and nuttiness to combine. Instead of a deep currant flavor, I just barely catch the scent of fruit from the surface of the tea; it was so deliciously fragrant that I literally got my nose too close to it.



Cat interruption. She gave the tea a good sniff.

I'm on the third steep now and I'm slowly enjoying the subtle contrast of these delicious flavors.



This is Dong Ding is amazing. I'm just honored to have been given a glimpse into the fine teas of Taiwan through this oolong flight from Eco-Cha. If you haven't tried tea from them, I highly recommend them! I'm ruined; I can't have anything less now. Thank you, Eco-Cha!



This sample was provided by Eco-Cha.

My next reviews will cover two teas from In Nature Teas! The first will be a five-year aged puerh.

High Mountain Concubine Oolong (#49)

Intro to Oolong 3 Pack Flight, Tea #2
Eco-Cha

Ingredients: Oolong.

This is the lightly roasted High Mountain Concubine Oolong, the second tea in the Intro to Oolong collection from Eco-Cha in Taiwan!

 

The rolled leaves are a little denser than the unroasted Jin Xuan Oolong. They also have the smallest touch of brown and more noticeable stems.



The tasting notes indicate winter vegetables, fir forest tones, and almonds and honey flavor. I definitely smell vegetables and fir from the dry tea. As I keep smelling the dry tea, I'm noticing the soft almond and honey undertones more, which provide contrast.



The packaging even includes the season and year, like a wine!



The color of the first pour is lighter than I expected. The honey really comes out in the aroma!

I really like the taste of the first brew, but I can tell the leaves still have a lot of opening up to do. I could do a very quick rinse on this tea next time, only a few seconds. But still, it's already a very pleasant taste.



The second pour of the first brew comes in a bit darker, an effect I love from using a teapot. The taste is enhanced; I sense the tannins and fir, but again, the sweetness is emerging.

The cup has a delightful aroma, which makes me hope to try the Gong Fu steeping method with the smelling cup! Maybe in the future when I'm further along in my tea discovery journey.



The second steep, third pour: the color of the tea hasn't deepened (there is tea in this photo, it's just so light against the white teapot that it doesn't register). I adore how the flavors have settled and blended! It's a sweet vegetable taste now.



Beautiful unfurled tea.

I let the third steep sit for quite some time, maybe even as much as ten minutes. I love it! The second pour of this third steep is incredible, and a bit darker in color, but only marginally, and probably only because I let it steep so long.

As I go on to the fourth and fifth steeps, I'm just relaxing and enjoying the mellow, barely tannic taste. What a beautifully made tea!

This sample was provided by Eco-Cha.

Tomorrow's post will be on the final oolong in the 3-pack flight: the heavily roasted Dong Ding!

Jin Xuan Oolong (#48)

Intro to Oolong 3 Pack Flight, Tea #1
Eco-Cha

Ingredients: Oolong.

I was incredibly excited to receive three oolong teas from Eco-Cha in Taiwan! This gorgeous Intro to Oolong collection includes an unroasted, a lightly roasted, and a heavily roasted oolong.



This review covers the first in the series: the unroasted Jin Xuan Oolong.





I love the light, floral, lemony scent of the dry tea! It smells like a new summer day. The tasting notes on the card indicate that it is "Buttery and smooth, with notes of summer squash. Lingering creamy, fragrant finish" (see more here).





Eco-Cha includes brewing tips. They suggest using the tea loose in a mug for a single mug brew. I used the single mug brew today, since I've never tried that before.

Eco-Cha suggests leaving the leaves in the mug as you sip. This method works really well! The leaves tend to sink to the bottom of the cup, and there's no removal from the teapot to worry about. There is also a cold brew, which I need to try!



It smells amazing as it steeps: more of the fresh summer scent.

The first sip is revitalizing! It's a light but identifiable taste. The first taste is not grassy at all, which was a delightful surprise. I didn't rinse it before brewing, since the brewing instructions didn't say to. It steeps a light yellow color, continuing to make me think of lemon.



I didn't realize there were stems until it opened up!

As I drink while it continues to steep, I'm tasting more of the tea plant itself: the rich, green flavor of the leaves. I sense a bit of tannins coming out, but they're tempered by the buttery texture. The cup still releases the light summer scent, but a creaminess starts to intertwine. The last sip lingers.



The second steep is mellower on the summer squash taste, but bolder with the taste of the unroasted tea.

It's so delicious that... I'm floating.

This Jin Xuan tea has made me fall in love with oolong. Thank you, Eco-Cha!

This sample was provided by Eco-Cha.

Next I will review the second tea in the series: the lightly roasted High Mountain Concubine Oolong tea.

Tea Club January: Maharaja Chai Oolong (#43), Golden Monkey (#44), Samurai Chai Mate (#45)

The tea club welcome kit.


 
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Maharaja Chai Oolong
Flavored oolong
Teavana

Ingredients: Cinnamon, oolong tea, ginger pieces, carob pieces, chicory root, artificial flavoring, pepper, nutmeg, cloves, cardamom.

The dry tea smells strongly of chicory. Or maybe that's just the artificial flavoring, but who's counting?

Cinnamon and clove scent the steeped tea. The tea is polite and warming. It doesn't have the longevity of a real oolong (the 2nd steep wasn't worth it), but the 1st steep is nice.



So much flavor dust!




An oversized tea ball for it to open up. The yellow cup is lighter than I expected.

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Golden Monkey
Black tea
Teavana

Ingredients: Black tea.

The dry tea has a light earthy smell similar to oolong, with a hint of dried grass or straw. The pieces are thin with downy hairs.

The cup has a lovely warm smell. The liquor is an orange brown. The taste is in between a breakfast tea and a Chinese restaurant tea.

I got a 2nd steep out of it. I like it!



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Samurai Chai Mate
Flavored mate
Teavana

Ingredients: Green mate, green rooibos, cinnamon, candied pineapple pieces (pineapple, sugar), candied papaya pieces (papaya, sugar), orange peels, artificial flavoring, lemongrass, anise seed, coriander, cardamom.

The dry tea smells like a grassy lemon candy. The chai smell is evident as it steeps. It makes a yellow cup.

This was fun because I have never had green mate or green rooibos before. An uplifting taste with some sweetness.

Bonus! A sample of the Majaraja Chai Oolong and Samurai Chai Mate mixed together, with rock sugar.

Interesting to see a blend of tea blends.

Next time I'll show you a tropical black tea.

Mountain Oolong (#41)

Oolong
Gryphon's Tea

Ingredients: Chinese oolong.

The dry tea smells of mushroom and pepper. I gave the leaves a hot water rinse and then settled in for a 3 minute steep.

The cup has an amber color, and still smells strongly of mushroom. The first taste has a nice musk to it. I hardly need to use any tea because it has a lot of flavor.

The second cup, also at 3 minutes, is a bit lighter in color. I will start increasing steep times after this one. This second cup has a similar smell but less mushroom in the taste.

The third steep was 4 minutes. This steep is really good! I'm enjoying seeing how the flavors mellow out.

Huge pieces!

According to Gryphon's Tea: "The mountain oolong is just that, a chinese oolong. Organic, with a dark leaf but a sweet light color and flavor. Tastes a bit like a green tea but with a rich finish and mouth feel that lingers."

Great tea! Enjoy the view from my kitchen.

Next time I'll review a precious tea of Kyoto.