Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Nuvola Tea
Tea Description:
Da Yu Ling Oolong Tea is the most exquisite among teas. Grown at an altitude of 2,500 meters in one of the highest tea plantations in Taiwan and the world, Da Yu Ling Oolong Tea is distinguished by its delicate scent and subtle taste well-balanced with an exceptionally rich, full body and a sweet flavour. It has a unique mellowness that tempers the spirits and harmonizes the mind.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
For several years now, I have always stated firmly that my favorite Oolong is Ali Shan … but, after having tried a few Da Yu Ling Oolong, I have to say that my favorite may have changed! Oh, I still love Ali Shan, of course, but, I am so infatuated with this Da Yu Ling Oolong Tea from Nuvola Tea right now, that I find it difficult to say that it is anything less than my favorite. This is an extraordinary tea!
Da Yu Ling does have some similarities to my beloved Ali Shan, but also some notable differences. I think what stands out most to me is how delicate it tastes … delicate, and yet … so rich. It amazes me how a tea can taste delicate and yet be so full-bodied. It is so smooth and delightfully floral. The floral tones tingle on the tip of my tongue. All at once, I taste notes of flower, fruit, honey, air and vegetation, and each element is presented in such a way as it seems to float over the palate in such a deliciously delightful way.
Subsequent infusions deliver a smoother flavor, where all the notes seem to come together in a very harmonious way and become less individual, and more of a collective flavor that is absolutely sumptuous … it is luxurious and beautiful to sip.
I managed eight very flavorful infusions, brewing it in my gaiwan, and combining the results of two infusions into one cup (which means four cups of tea!) This tea is definitely a worthwhile investment. I absolutely adore it!
Taiwan Muzha Ti Kuan Yin from Nuvola Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Nuvola Tea
Tea Description:
The saffron-coloured Muzha Ti Kuan Yin Tea has a light fruity aroma and a melting creamy mouth-feel. The flavors are strong and long-lasting even after several infusions, which leaves a sweet lingering sensation in the mouth.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Taiwan Muzha Ti Kuan Yin from Nuvola Tea is a complex, multiple layered taste exploration. It captures flavors of sweet, savory, salty, roasty, creamy, and more. There is an undeniable aroma that really captures the senses and makes you sit a moment, cup close to your nose, just breathing in its notes.
Nuvola Tea has some of the finest teas I have come across in my tea discovery. This is no exception. Hints of nuttiness capture my attentions first, followed by a creamy full mouthful and flavor that is captivating as well. While sweet berry notes dance about on my tongue the roasted backdrop comes into focus, but then the berry re-emerges once again. Its like a ferris wheel of flavors here! Flavor notes go up, then down, then round and round playfully dancing and playing on my palette.
Preceding infusions are just as delicious – I am up to infusion 5 and seem to be going strong even still. The berry notes are not as profound in later infusions but still nice when they peek through.
Granted there is a distinct woodsy flavor to this tea and I adore a woodsy roasty tea, but to me, what really springs forth the most is that wonderful berry note! Its so surprising and unexpected. Okay maybe the berry note does not spring forth the most, perhaps it is just that here I have one of my all time favorite flavor profiles of a dark roasted, nutty, woody, deep, oolong, and then that berry comes and zips in with its fresh note illuminating my cup. I mean its just so hard not to notice! Normally I go for a Dong Ding Oolong as my favorite but I am seriously considering this as a replacement for my most beloved oolong! I do have it on my wish list for future tea orders regardless and I look forward to many more infusions with this leaf to come!
Taiwan Sansia Bi Luo Chun Green Tea from Nuvola Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Nuvola Tea
Tea Description:
Sansia Bi Luo Chun is a green tea known for its emerald green colour and a light body. It yields a mild and smooth flavour, and produces a fresh subtle scent and a delicate taste. The tea can help boosting the immune system as it is naturally rich in antioxidants Catechin and Vitamin C.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was kind of surprised when I first opened the pouch of this tea. I think I expected smaller leaves … but these leaves are a little bit larger than I thought they’d be, and they are very deeply green, like somewhere on the color wheel between forest green and emerald green. Very deep and vividly green!
The leaves brew a really pretty, light yellow-green liquid that offers a very “green” aroma. It smells very vegetative, like a cross between seaweed and steamed vegetables, with just a touch of freshly cut grass. It’s a very fresh, green fragrance! 
The flavor is also “green” … although it doesn’t taste quite as green as the aroma lead me to believe it would. It has a bright flavor that tastes of very lightly buttered veggies … it is a very refreshing taste. It tastes clean and pure, and I feel invigorated as I sip it. It has a delicate sweetness to it, and a certain crispness to the cup that seems to revive and stimulate the palate.
It has a slightly nutty tone to it as well, with notes that remind me of a warm, whole grain like a cross between farro and oats. Very warm and almost nourishing … although it seems strange for me to describe a tea as “nourishing!” I guess it is a healthy beverage, so it is nourishing, but I’ve never really consumed tea for it’s health benefits, but for its delicious flavor.
As I continue to explore the flavors in this tea, I notice a slight citrus-y note that I described before as a “bright taste.” It started out just tasting very bright – almost sunny! – and now the citrus notes seem to emerge slightly as I near the end of the cup. It isn’t a strong or even obvious citrus note, but, it’s a barely there kind of taste that keeps the palate interested in what its tasting.
A very rewarding cuppa … this tea offers a gentle sort of energy to it that makes it an excellent choice for afternoon, when you’re needing something to help enliven the senses. This tea seems to have brought a renewed vigor to my day!
Premium Taiwan Oolong Black Tea from Nuvola Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Nuvola Tea
Tea Description:
Taiwan Oolong Black Tea (US$7.7)
Oolong Black Tea is a special black tea created from Oolong Tea. The infusion has a rich amber colour with a luxurious fruity flavour and a smooth mouth-feel. It is not only great as a hot drink that can retain its flavour even after multiple infusions, but also is delightfully refreshing when served cold – a delicious diversion from the everyday.
(Unit Price US$7.7)
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Premium Taiwan Oolong Black from Nuvola Tea has a sinful aroma! It smells sweet, deep, intoxicating. There is a malty aroma cutting through the sweet aroma, then nutty, woodsy, so many wonderful sensations – and this is just the initial smell!
First sip … mmmmmm….always impressed with Nuvola teas! I have to admit, as an oolong lover, I was confused when I read the name of this tea. However upon investigation – which means reading their description, it makes sense. I do plan to do a little more research on this type of tea however because I am very intrigued.
There is a wonderful fruity flavor to this tea, perhaps a berry like fruit. Then we get a deep and earthy note, the mouthfeel is rather on the light side in contrast to the deeper and earthy flavors. Now to qualify, when I say earthy, what I am finding in this tea is a light mineral note, and a slight woodsy note. The deeper, earthy notes would be that of wood, nut, and hay caramel, and cocoa.
The thing is this is one of those teas you want to prepare gong fu style and enjoy multiple steeping sessions. What I am reviewing here are merely steeps one and two. This tea however has so much to offer and will certainly hold up for many more steeps to come! I will be steeping this through out the day and enjoying every wonderful cup!
Steep two for me provides a richer cup, one that is heavier than steep one. It is just lovely! More of the earthy notes come out with a darker sweetness from the cocoa note. The tea becomes more caramel flavored but I can still detect that mineral note shining through along with some slight flavors of the hay as mentioned before. The berry note does not seem as apparent on the tongue but in the after taste it comes through as a cherry flavor. Wonderful! Steep two also has an near creamy texture to it yet somehow still remains refreshing and bright, not heavy or cloying. As the tea cools even slightly the mineral notes get stronger.
I love the complexity of this tea! On one hand its sweet and makes me feel like Willy Wonka in a candy shop but as soon as I find myself relishing in the sweet goodness this fresh breeze rolls in offering a light refreshing note of rock mineral and hay as if I am strolling through the woods on a sunny day. I do a double take and have to ask myself which side of this tea I prefer more but I can’t make that call, no way, both are so wonderful! This is truly a tea for a dual sign like myself, being Gemini I want the best of both worlds and this tea absolutely provides me that! I get my earthy hay and mineral notes that even have an ever so delicate vegetal edge, right down to my need to curb my sweet tooth.
This is a rare and wonderful delight and I highly recommend trying some tea from Nuvola! I know so far I have sampled about 5 of their teas and I have yet to find one that is less than stellar!
See more reviews from the SororiTea Sisters for Nuvola Teas here.
Taiwan Oriental Beauty Oolong Tea from Nuvola Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Nuvola Tea
Tea Description:
Oriental Beauty Tea is a full-flavoured tea with an extraordinarily rich fruity aroma, and a floral and honey sweet finish. It is an awesome tea to relieve anxiety and boosts your energy level. A few drops of Brandy could add a champagne-like note to create a bright alternative out of this great tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This! This is the flavor that I tasted with my very first cup of Oolong so many years ago. This is the flavor that I first fell in love with when I tasted it. And for many years that followed, this is the tea that I thought WAS Oolong. That is to say, I didn’t realize that there was a whole world of Oolong teas out there. I thought that this was it – and I was fine with that because this was so AMAZING that I didn’t need anything else.
Since that time, of course, I have discovered that there is an immense world of Oolong teas out there. So many delicious options for many different types of tea drinkers – whether you favor a roasty-toasty flavor, or a floral flavor, or a fruity flavor to your Oolong. I personally like all three of these options, but I must say that Oriental Beauty Oolong will always hold a very special place in my heart if for no other reason than the fact that it did introduce me to the world of Oolong.
However, there are so many other reasons to love this Oriental Beauty! The sip starts out sweet – almost like a cross between brown sugar and honey! This sweetness touches the palate for just a moment before the other flavors introduce themselves. I notice next the intense peach-like flavor that matches the peach and apricot aroma of the tea. Then, there is a sharp floral tone that contrasts beautifully with the sweet peaches and indulgent honey-esque tones. This floral note leads the palate into the finish, with just a hint of the honey tones that linger into the aftertaste. The aftertaste is very delicately sweet – but very enjoyable.
This is such a lovely Oriental Beauty Oolong – one that has managed to relax and calm me after a busy day. It is a restorative tea that allows me to collect my thoughts, and just enjoy the moment.