Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pouchong

Where to Buy:  Grace Tea Company

Product Description:

Each year we carefully select our Jasmine base tea from the finest pouchong teas available from China. These leaves have been picked at their flavor peak in the spring, traditionally before the rain and the period of fastest growth. Our selection is then held with the utmost of care until summer, when the most remarkable Jasmine flowers are available for blending. It is indeed a tea of teas’ fine, delicate and aromatic. We suggest our Flowery Jasmine Before the Rain be served in the afternoon and at special occasions, when its particular virtues can be appreciated.

Taster’s Review:

When I infused this tea, I did so thinking that this was a green tea.  The size of the leaves did not indicate to me that this was a Pouchong.  It looked like a green tea to me.  Fortunately, my green tea brewing parameters did not affect this tea.  It’s delicious.  However, a slightly longer steep time might have intensified the flavor somewhat.  As it is, though, I’m enjoying the cup of tea that sits before me.

Jasminum Sambac - photo from Wikipedia

The dry leaf is very aromatic, just as I would expect from a jasmine tea.  It has a beautiful, flowery fragrance.  The aroma of the brewed liquor is equally as enjoyable.  That is one of the things I love most about jasmine teas – the amazing fragrance.

But it is not all about the scent of the tea, of course.  The flavor is wonderful.  It has a soft, velvety mouthfeel.  It feels thicker than a typical jasmine green tea would.  The jasmine is delicate and pleasantly sweet.  It doesn’t have that artificial perfume-y taste of some jasmine teas.  It is light and floral.  There is very little astringency to this tea and no bitterness.  The aftertaste is sweet.

This is an absolute delight to sip.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pouchong

Where to Buy:  WhiteAugust Tea Company

Product Description:

Purely seductive. Pouchong oolong, lemon myrtle, marigolds and just a touch of vanilla, give rise to this smooth slightly creamy liquor.

Taster’s Review:

While brewing this tea, I couldn’t help but notice the aroma.  The vanilla scent is really quite powerful.  It smells so sweet and delicious.

But, I am glad that the vanilla doesn’t present as strong a flavor as it does a fragrance in this blend.  Don’t get me wrong, the vanilla flavor IS there, but, it doesn’t overwhelm the cup.  It is delicate enough to allow the nuances of the Pouchong to express themselves.

The vanilla tones are sweet and creamy, and they seem to unite seamlessly with the soft, velvet-y flavor of the Pouchong.  There is just a hint of citrus-y flavor from the lemon myrtle – much less than I was expecting.  That’s not to say it should be stronger … it is what it is … but, I guess when I read the description I was expecting a more prominent citrus tone.  As it is, though, I think that the subtle hints of citrus in this cup are very pleasant, providing a nice contrast to the sweetness of the vanilla and Pouchong.

Overall, I find this to be a very smooth-tasting tea.  There is very little astringency and no bitterness to it.  It is a delicate tea; it is not too heavy or overbearing.  It is a nice choice for later in the day, but it’s also sweet enough to be a dessert-type tea as well.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pouchong

Where to Buy:  Tea Chai Té

Product Description:

This lightly fermented oolong tea is instilled with young coconut nectar. One of the most joyfully intense teas we have with a strong aroma and light mellow brew.  A popular favorite.

Taster’s Review:

Yummy!  The dry leaf smells so amazing from the moment I opened the pouch, my mouth started to water!  I anxiously awaited as it brewed.  Three minutes seemed to take FOREVER.

The natural creamy flavor of the Pouchong tea melds perfectly with the coconut flavor, and produces a cup that reminds me of the coconut water you would get from a fresh coconut – but with a softer, smoother mouthfeel.

The Pouchong base seems a perfect match for the sweet coconut flavor.  It is lush and vibrant.  The greener taste of this slightly oxidized tea lends a very fresh note to the coconut.

This tea doesn’t really need sweetener, but if you are one who prefers a sweeter tea, a little bit of agave nectar or honey wouldn’t hurt.  And recently during a trip to Whole Foods, I noticed a new kind of sweetener:  Coconut Nectar!  While it says it doesn’t lend a coconut-y flavor to what it sweetens, it would still be an interesting addition, wouldn’t it?

If you like coconut, you really must try this tea.  It is one of the very best coconut teas that I’ve ever tasted!   Totally YUM!

Tea Type: Oolong Tea

Where To Buy:
White August Tea Company

Product Description:
Purely seductive. Pouchong oolong, lemon myrtle, marigolds and just a touch of vanilla, give rise to this smooth slightly creamy liquor.

Tasters Review:

Over the past few weeks I have NOT had the best luck.  It seems everything around me has been breaking.  I’m not able to get the projects I need to get finished – done – because of many of these mishaps!  It’s so frustrating!

So…I need a little Lady Luck!  Actually, I need a lot!  I thought this tea was fitting.

Lady Luck Tea from The White August Tea Company  is really incredible!  The aroma is of vanilla and lemon and almost a nutty aroma as well!

The taste is of this is a nice oolong with a wonderful tasting vanilla and lemon combo!   I really like this!  The marigold is more in the aftertaste and quite subtle!

This is very delicious!  I hope it will bring me a little luck in the following days!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pouchong

Where to Buy:  Drink T

Company Description:

Pouchong tea is a type of oolong closer to a green tea than a typical oolong. This is due to Pouchong tea being oxidized 15% or less while most Oolongs are oxidized about 30-70%. Pouchong means “the wrapped kind”, referring to the practice of wrapping the leaves in paper during the oxidation process.

Our Pouchong brews a golden green liquor with mild sweetness and delicate floral notes. It has a smooth flavor, making it a perfect everyday tea.

Taster’s Review:

There are people who would consider this to be a green tea, while others would consider it to be an Oolong.  As for me, I consider this to be neither.  I think that Pouchong teas deserve to be in a class all by themselves.

This Pouchong from Drink T is outstanding.  It possesses a beautiful floral quality that is quite strong and even a little sharp.  The flavor is also sweet and buttery, with hints of vegetation.

The mouthfeel of this tea is extraordinary.  It is smooth and silky, and because there is very little astringency to this tea, there is nothing that stands in the way of that smooth silkiness lingering upon the palate long after the sip.  It’s very enjoyable.

This is an incredibly relaxing cup.  It has a pleasant sweetness and needs no additions.  I prefer it hot, but it is quite refreshing chilled too.  A perfectly delightful cuppa!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pouchong

Where to Buy:  Sahara’s Supplies on Etsy

Company Description:

Pouchong green tea from Fuzhou, China, scented with jasmine petals.

Taster’s Review:

I adore jasmine tea!

This jasmine is a little different from a typical jasmine green tea, because the leaves are Pouchong.  Pouchong teas are sometimes classified as green tea, but, they are actually an Oolong tea, because they are lightly oxidized.  I usually classify a Pouchong as separate from both green and Oolong teas, because even though it is “technically” an Oolong tea, it isn’t a typical Oolong.

I like the differences that the Pouchong tea brings to this cup.  The flavor is smoother and richer.  There is very little vegetative flavor, instead, there is a light nutty background that offers an interesting contrast to the sweet jasmine flavor.  This has a nice floral taste, but is less sharp than what I might experience with a jasmine green.

This tea is delicious served hot or iced.  If you choose to serve it iced, I do recommend adding a small amount of sweetener to punch up the flavor a bit, but, if consumed hot, it doesn’t need sweetener, it has a beautiful flavor without it.  Of course, if you prefer a sweeter tea, I would recommend a drizzle of honey with this one.  I like the way honey compliments jasmine!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pouchong

Where to Buy:  Tavalon

Company Description:

A lightly oxidized oolong tea with a subtle, sweet aroma and complex flavor.

Taster’s Review:

This is a sample that I received with a recent order from Tavalon.  Quite smart on Tavalon’s part – luring me in to yet another tea that I love!

You might be wondering what a Pouchong tea is.  It’s actually an Oolong, but I like to make the distinction between Pouchong vs. Oolong because, even though this is an Oolong tea, it has some significant differences in taste from, say, a greener Oolong or even a dark Oolong.  I have often heard that Pouchong is somewhere between green tea and Oolong tea, and I would agree with that assessment.

I have really enjoyed the Pouchong teas that I’ve tried and this Grand Pouchong from Tavalon is no exception:  it is absolutely delightful.  It has a roasted nut flavor to it that is sweet and even lightly caramel-y.  Toasty!  There is a distant fruit-like flavor that vaguely resembles one might get if they were to cross a peach and a cantaloupe!  There are also hints of flower in the taste – honeysuckle, perhaps?

It is truly an intriguing, complex cup that keeps me sipping to see what else I might uncover in the layers of flavor.

I prefer Pouchong teas served hot, and this is generally true for most teas that I would categorize as complex, because those complexities are more distinguishable when the tea is hot.  As the tea cools, some of the complex nuances of the tea tends to become muted as a result of the chilling process.  So, when you really want to enjoy a tea for its many layers of flavor, drink it hot.  When you’re looking for cool, thirst-quenching refreshment, drink it iced!

This has a natural sweetness to it that I compared to caramel – and it does!  So, I do recommend tasting it before you sweeten it.  Sweetener, in my opinion, would really overwhelm this tea.  Enjoy it in it’s pristine perfection!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pouchong  (somewhere between a green and an Oolong)

Company Description:

Other names: Baozhong Tea, Baochong, Bao Zhong Tea

For the second year running, our exclusive Pouchong from Taiwan took a gold award at the Guild of Fine Food Great Taste Awards.

This is one of our favourite teas and completely exclusive to Canton Tea Co. Grown high on the slopes of WenShan, Taipei county, by farmer Xu and his family, this award-winning Pouchong is incredibly light and refreshing with smooth floral notes and a sweet apricot finish. The locals call it a green tea, but it is actually a very lightly oxidised oolong. The big twisted leaves produce a bright yellow/green liquor that is creamy soft and delicious.

Farmer Xu’s comments
“Every year we enter our Pouchong in the big tea competition Every year we win the top prizes!”

2009 Great Taste Awards: Two Gold Stars and 2010 Great Taste Awards: One Gold Star

Taster’s Review:

This is an extremely tasty Pouchong variety.  It has a light-to-medium body with a creamy texture (or mouthfeel) to it that is similar to the texture of whole milk.

The aroma of the tea is faintly vegetative with hints of floral notes.  The notes of vegetable and flower translate to the brewed cup – with stronger floral flavors than the vegetative notes which linger in the background.  There is even the slightest hint of a buttery flavor, not strong, but it is complementary to the vegetal note.

Particularly nice is the aftertaste – this tea imparts a delightful fruit-like taste on the tongue… the company description suggests it’s a sweet apricot flavor and I’m inclined to agree, it is quite apricot-y.

Overall the flavor of this cup is delicate, but extraordinary.  I recommend brewing it in a gaiwan to extract the most you can out of these leaves, and they’re ready for quite a few infusions – I managed seven infusions from the same measurement of leaves in my gaiwan!

This is a tea that I’d recommend to fans of green tea as well as fans of Oolong tea, because it exhibits characteristics of both of these types of tea.  It is a truly remarkable tea and worthy of a try!