Organic Oolong 17 from Driftwood Tea

by liberteas

organic_oolong_17Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Oolong

Where to Buy:  Driftwood Tea

Tea Description:

Organic Oolong 17 is considered to be Thailand’s finest tea. Oolong 17 was developed from imported Taiwanese stock and, given Mae Salong’s similar altitude and climate, is highly comparable to the quality and taste of high mountain teas grown in Taiwan.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

The dry leaf of this Organic Oolong 17 from Driftwood Tea has a strong vegetative aroma.  It’s really quite fragrant, smelling almost like a cross between steamed spinach and kelp.

I brewed this tea in my gaiwan, giving it a quick 15 second rinse and then proceeding with the infusions, starting at 45 seconds and adding 15 seconds to each subsequent infusion.  I combined the first and second infusions to create my first cup … and it is marvelous!  Sweet and buttery, but not so much “creamy” buttery, but more like the taste of butter.  It has a smooth texture, but not really a creamy texture.

It has a light vegetative taste … lighter than I expected given the scent of the dry leaf.  It is also lightly floral and just … really sweet and pleasant!

The second cup (infusions 3 and 4) is a bit sharper than the first … with more distinct floral tones and less of that buttery taste that I noticed in the first cup.  There is more of a tangy astringency in this cup than in the first cup.

My third and final cup (infusions 5 and 6) is very much like the second cup.  The floral tones have emerged very distinctly now.  This is no longer buttery, that ‘heavy’ buttery taste has lifted to allow the complexity of the cup to come through.  This cup is very refreshing:  vegetative and floral.

A very nice Oolong … and it is one I’m really glad I got to try.  This one is quite different from the “usual suspects” … in fact, if you’re an Oolong fan, I’d recommend putting this on your to try list because it’s just different enough from other Oolong teas out there – it’s one that you should definitely try!

 

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Oolong

1 thought on “Organic Oolong 17 from Driftwood Tea”

  1. Interesting, couldn’t resist a comment because I like Driftwood Tea, at least their online presence. Their brains behind it all has shared some interesting stories. Glad this tea was good.

    Reply

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