It has been a couple of months since my last cup of a quality Oolong loose leaf tea. The Oolong I’m drinking this week is made up of dark, silver-tipped tea leaves from Taiwan. This tea is absolutely delicious. I enjoy everything about this tea. It’s the kind of tea I can drink any time of the day. Unlike some strong black teas or “grassy” green teas, Oolong is well balanced. I don’t feel overwhelmed while drinking Oolong.

Now, I get a kick out of how Oolong is often called the “champagne of teas.” If Oolong had the same affects as champagne does on my wife, I’d be a lucky a man. However, the fact is you can safely drive after drinking Oolong, and your inhibitions will not be lost. So, the next wild party you’re at, don’t expect Cristal and Oolong to be flowing. The champagne reference simply relates Oolong as a fancy and exquisite tea selection. I highly recommend drinking Oolong tea. It really does deserve its own classification. You’ll enjoy the natural sweetness and relaxing characteristics.

• Adagio’s Oolong Selection

marTEA

Stash tea is now carrying Yamamotoyama tea. Yamamotoyama’s slogan is “perfecting the art of tea since 1690.” That’s quite a few years in case you’re counting. The chrysanthemum tea I’m drinking today claims to contain 100% natural ingredients. It’s basically Pu-erh oolong tea and chrysanthemum flowers in a tea bag. Chrysanthemums are perennial flowering plants. There are many of you that may have a variety of this plant in your backyard.

This particular tea is said to contain a yellow-pedal variety of chrysanthemum. The Pu-erh oolong is very interesting in this blend. The earthy tones of Pu-erh are very pronounced. The earthy flavor of Pu-erh mixed with the light fragrance of the chrysanthemum makes for a very complex pairing. As I always say, if a tea has character, I’m a fan. For example, I may drink the tea and say that Pu-erh is the dominant flavor of the mix. You may try it and enjoy the floral notes of the tea. Regardless, this tea is meant for those that are not looking for a “normal” Lipton-like tea bag experience. This is a tea that will help you appreciate the complexities of tea, or it will let you know that this is clearly not for you.

Either way, I like this tea. It has a bit of an aftertaste that I’m trying to get used to. Other than that, the aroma and taste are pleasing. Only purchase this tea if you are familiar with Pu-erh. Otherwise, I’m afraid you may have strayed too far our of your comfort zone.

Wikipedia: chrysanthemum

marTEA

It’s been a while since my last Oolong blog. Recently, I purchased a Jasmine flower-flavored Oolong. Now, I’m not much of a flowery person. Flowery scented candles, perfumes, and soaps are a few things that come to mind that I usually cannot stand. This particular tea was highly rated by Adagio tea drinkers, and because of their feedback, I thought I’d give this a go.

A quick Oolong recap: Oolong is classified by its level of oxidation. Oolong’s oxidation level is between a black tea and a green tea. For many, it is the happy medium. For me, I’ve enjoyed almost every Oolong I’ve tried. Oolong is not as grassy as green tea, but it is not as “sweet” as black tea. Oolong is known as a traditional Chinese tea. Many restaurants that serve Chinese cuisine, serve Oolong tea. Unfortunately, the Oolong served at the restaurants is not near the quality of the fresh-gourmet loose leaf Oolongs that I’m used to. That said, I was ready to try a night-blooming jasmine flower flavored Oolong. The scent of the dried tea leaves had more of a distant floral scent. I describe it as distant, meaning it doesn’t smell like you stuck your nose in the middle of a bouquet of flowers. As with most Oolong teas, a cooler water temperature of 180 degrees for 3 minutes is a good rule of thumb to allow for steeping. My first taste of the brewed tea really exceeded my expectations. The jasmine flavor was perfectly balanced with the Oolong tea. I was hooked from the first cup. It’s the perfect tea for any time of day. It’s good in the morning, afternoon, and after a meal. The tea is just perfectly balanced.

marTEA

Many Americans are familiar with Oolong tea. Not the gourmet loose teas that many of us have grown to appreciate, but the “Oolong” that is given to customers with their meals at a Chinese restaurant. Your favorite Chinese food is often served with a fortune cookie and tea bag. Since the Oolong tea served in traditional US Chinese restaurants might be the only tea known to a lot of people, I thought I would blog about the tea.

The bagged tea I’m trying today comes from the Kari Out Co. The Kari Out Co was founded in 1964. They specialized in condiments and expanded into several roles of food service including the Kari Out Co. branded Oolong I’m writing about today. The tea bags came when a group of coworkers and me ordered Chinese food from a local restaurant.

The tea inside of the bag was very dark. The bag did not contain near the amount of dust as many well-known name brands I’ve tried. Once the tea was brewed, I took my first taste. I quickly had to take a second taste because of the shock I had during the first taste. This tea tasted almost exactly like Hojicha. It didn’t taste anything like the Oolong varieties I’ve tried in the past. Hojicha is a mesquite flavored tea that is basically derived from charcoaled Bancha leaves. The subtle flavors and floral hints that make Oolong special to me were not present in this brew. The good news, I like Hojicha.

See my previous blogs on Oolong and Hojicha. I will not say anything bad about this tea because too many people including myself enjoy this tea and other “Oolong” teas as we enjoy our favorite Chinese take-out.

marTEA

Oolong is a very unique tea that many people tend to pass over because they don’t know what to expect. In order for me to appreciate Oolong, I cannot compare it to my favorite black or green teas. It’s in a class of its own.

Oolong is widely known as a traditional tea from China. My favorite Oolong tea was purchased from adagio.com and was grown in Taiwan. It is described as a Jade Oolong. I have to say that today’s cup is the best Oolong I have ever tried. The leaves are large and hand-rolled. The color of the leaves is mainly green. This particular Oolong has a very pleasing scent. The scent reminds me of a mix between a distant flower garden and a delicious traditional green tea scent. I say “distant” because I want you to know that it does not have a flowery and overpowering floral scent or flavor. The tea is entertaining as I let it steep for 5 minutes in 180 degree water. The hand-rolled leaves unwind and move around in the pot. Oolong prefers longer steeping times in cooler water temperatures. Make sure you follow your providers steeping instructions. After a couple of cups, adjust your steeping time and water temperature to your liking.

Oolong is not my favorite tea. However, the in between nature of Oolong might be just what you are looking for in a tea. I highly suggest trying an Oolong to judge for yourself.

marTEA