Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Solstice Tea Traders
Tea Description:
- Loose Leaf Oolong Tea Sampler-Solstice Tea Traders loose leaf oolong tea sampler pack, a selection of awesome oolongs, including both China Oolong, and Taiwan Oolong. Includes an incredibly array of Oolongs. Sure to please.
- Loose Leaf Oolong Tea Packed in 4oz Teas-Our Oolong tea sampler is packed in 4oz metal tea tins, each filled, sealed, and labeled..
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’m a sucker for samplers. So when I had the opportunity to review a few samplers for Solstice Tea Traders, an online Amazon store, I was all over it. The first tin I grabbed out of the set was this one, the Super Fancy Oolong variety. I was pretty excited to try it.
This is really a no frills sort of sampler. In the sampler, you get 4 nice 1 oz tins full of different kinds of oolongs. None of them are exotic by any means, but this sampler is a great start. So far I’ve tried a few teas from Solstice Tea Traders and have been more than impressed by the taste, quality, and the value you get.
Super Fancy Oolong has a gorgeous look to it. I love looking at the longer dry leaf and how the white pieces really pop against the darker browns. The aroma I picked up from the dry leaf was that familiar oolong smell that I have grown to love.
I brewed this up with the help of my Breville One Touch and the oolong setting. Allowed the tea to steep for a few minutes and took my first sip. Simple, subtle, and fresh-this oolong delivers those familiar notes of a nutty underground with a sweetness from a stonefruit. I can pick up a very soft floral hint here and there- A lovely contrast to the nuttiness that greets you first.
This isn’t a new flavor by any means, but a solid tea to lean on when you want a flavor you can count on. So far, I’m impressed. I shared this tea with a few loved ones and the tea was greeted with smiles. I can see this sampler being a great one to introduce others to oolong teas.
Pretty in Pink from For Tea Sake
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: For Tea’s Sake
Tea Description:
For Tea’s Sake Pretty In Pink Loose Leaf Iced Tea Blend. Juicy and delicious strawberries are a traditional summer treat and when blended together with papaya pieces they make a pretty tasty cup of iced tea! Strawberry,3.5oz/85g Tin.
INGREDIENTS:
oolong and green tea, papaya and strawberry pieces, plum and safflower petals and natural flavors.CAFFEINE: Low
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Pretty In Pink from For Tea’s Sake is a new tea and a new tea company to me. I was enjoying lunch with my parents and hubby when we stopped into a little boutique shop afterwards. At the very front of the shop was a little display of different teas from For Tea’s Sake. I quickly squealed and picked up a few of the sample packs. With names like Pretty in Pink and Mint To Be Together, I was sold!
Pretty in Pink is a lovely blend of oolong, green tea, and fruity pieces. The dry mix had a rich and vibrant candy or cotton candy note to it. One that just made you start drooling.
Prepped this tea per the instructions they provide and I have to say the tea turned out quite brilliantly. First sip and I was hooked. This is one of those teas that a sample pack just will not do justice. Fresh bright strawberry flavors mingled with a sweetness that reminds me of a candy base or even like I said earlier cotton candy flavoring. But not overwhelming to the point of tasting fake. Add in the lovely lush oolong base, and you have yourself one fantastic treat!
This tea is one those that delivers infusion after infusion. I’ve spent a day with the same leaves and still the flavor is spot on. Sweet and spectacular. One that I could see would crave those 3pm sweet tooth cravings I have.
Pretty in Pink from For Tea’s Sake will be one that I will be picking up a larger package of. One that I will need more of soon for sure!
Nepal Pearl Oolong Tea from Wha-Cha
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Wha-Cha
Tea Description:
An incredibly rare and unusual oolong with a great taste of apricots and nectarine combined with a brilliant aroma. .
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Alright. . .for anybody that has this tea in your stash and don’t want it. . .let me know! This tea is amazing! Amazing pearls of tea loving goodness! If you can’t tell, I’m quite smitten with this tea.
This gorgeous tea is a lovely pearl of oolong tea that gives you a satisfying sense of what good tea is supposed to be like. Each pearl is gorgeous and I loved watching the tea leaves uncurl in front of my eyes in my tea steeper. I used two balls because I want this tea to last as long as possible. I steeped and prepped this up per the instructions on the package.
Once the tea was all prepped and ready to try out, I took my first sip. A gorgeous sip of smooth, sweet, and slightly astringent delicious notes. This is one of those teas that needs the contrast of the sweet and astringent notes but the notes are incredibly soft and subtle. Almost like that sweet yet spicy or sweet but somehow sour notes in other foods. The two complimented each other so well. Seriously, this tea is gorgeous from the very beginning.
The sweet notes are what made me just sigh with happiness. They resemble those of a stone fruit like an apricot. This is one of those teas that tastes exactly how it is described on a website. (And this is one of those teas you hoard for those days when you need some extra tea loving to get you thru the day. ) Those sweet notes of apricot just elevate the tea to a different level.
At one point, I had a meeting at work and came back expecting a cold bitter brew awaiting me and that wasn’t the case at all. I was greeted with a lovely cold oolong that just kept my afternoon going.
I’m now on infusion four and still the tea is giving. I just love it. From the moment I opened the package and saw the pearls to the moment when I first tried the tea, I was in love with this oolong. One of the best teas I think I’ve tried so far this year. That’s how good it is!
Highly recommend this one!
Dong Ding Oolong Tea from Eco-Cha
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong Tea
Where to Buy: Eco-Cha
Tea Description:
(2013)
This batch of tea comes from Yong Long Village, just above Dong Ding Mountain. Yong Long is known for a rich red soil which differs from other locales in Lu Gu Township. The unique flavor of the Dong Ding Oolong produced here is attributed to this soil quality, along with the fact this region is home to the most concentrated population of the most skilled oolong tea artisans in Taiwan.(2015)
Flavor: Grilled sweet corn aroma. Rich, foresty, roasted flavor. Complex, fruity finish.Garden: This batch of tea comes from Yonglong Village, just above Dong Ding Mountain. Yonglong is known for its rich soil which differs from other locales in Lu Gu Township. The unique flavor of the Dong Ding Oolong produced here is attributed to this soil quality, along with the fact this region is home to the most concentrated population of skilled oolong tea artisans in Taiwan. This farm is managed by a father and son team who inherited their family tradition as artisans of Dong Ding Oolong. Their tea has been awarded first prize in the world’s largest Oolong tea competition, and they consistently achieve top awards in their local competition of traditionally made Dong Ding Oolong.
Harvest: Hand picked in small batches. November 2015. Yonglong, Nantou. Available Winter 2016
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The Dong Ding Oolong Tea from Eco-Cha I know and LOVE is from 2013 but today I found out they have a 2015 harvest that will be available in Winter of 2016. I’m looking forward to comparing the two. The review of this Dong Ding Oolong Tea from Eco-Cha is from the 2013 harvest eventho I inserted both harvest descriptions above.
Once I infused Dong Ding Oolong Tea from Eco-Cha and it was ready to go in my cup I couldn’t help but notice the wonderful golden amber tone…it was beautiful! The aroma was roasted – that is for sure. The roasted notes followed suit when you sipped it as well. I could taste some plum notes underneath in the middle of the sip, too, but they were very subtle.
The roasty and toasty aftertaste lingered but in a good way. I’m looking forward to the new harvest of Dong Ding Oolong Tea from Eco-Cha coming in winter 2016…in the meantime I will finish what I have…and what I have is very good! Two thumbs up!
Premium Cha Khao Hom – Thai Rice Tea – From Siam Tee
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong, Jin Xuan with natural flavouring.
Where to Buy: Siam Tee
Tea Description:
Cha Khao Hom Thai Rice Tea Premium – 100% natural scented Jin Xuan oolong tea;Exclusive Thai tea specialty from Doi Mae Salong, North Thailand; harmonious combination of high-quality Thai Jin Xuan oolong tea and natural flavor dispensers “Nuo Mi Xiang Nen Ye” (= “sweet fragrance rice tender leaves”).
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Firstly; I need everyone to bare with me while I do this review. Truth be told I’m out of my comfort zone with this tea but it sounds so wonderfully unique that I have to try it. That means I need to learn as I go, which will hopefully be passed onto you wonderful people.
When it comes to Thai tea I think about Oolong and fruity tasting black/red tea. Well this is an Oolong, Jin Xuan as it states on the description but it’s flavoured with a herb to give it a rice flavour. This herb is fairly common throughout Asia and it is noted to being translated from Chinese to English as “sticky rice” herb. A quick search has shown me that the Chinese name for this herb is Nuo Dao Gen. As well as “sticky rice” it is also commonly translated as “Glutinous Rice”. The part of the plant that is most commonly used is the root and it is said to be very helpful with night sweats and hormonal issues. Another few searches later and I find that this root is very commonly used in Asian food and it is not known to have any side effects, so fear not if you are disliking the idea of taking a random herb.
Some of this information became familiar, I have tried a Pu Erh before which claimed to be ‘glutinous rice’ flavour. It was a while ago and I remember the rice being lost against the strong Sheng. But alas, this version is an Oolong base which frankly I find super exciting!
It’s time to open the packet and reveal this mysterious wonder. As soon as the bag is open enough for me to stick in my nose I inhale deeply. First thoughts? “Woah that is ricey”. It’s sweet and toasted but the rice scent is remarkable. A part of me wants to eat it….
In appearance it looks like some normal Jin Xuan Oolong. The pieces are an assortment of small, medium and large sizes with shiny green and dark brown colours on the leaves.
This tea comes in two different grades: Classic and Premium. I dove straight into the premium end and honestly, so far I am happy with the scent and appearance enough to agree the leaves are indeed Premium. If you want more information on this tea including a comparison on the two grades then Siam Tee has a great article on their blog here.
This is the steeping instructions as taken from the sales page:
For the preparation we recommend pouring from 3.5 to 5 grams of tea- “pearl” with 85 ° C – 90 ° C hot water and a steeping time of 2-3 minutes in a first Infusion.
That sounds good to me, I’m actually thankful this was helpful enough to guide me with steeping information.
Just pouring in the water created a beautiful rice aroma that was strong enough to fill my kitchen and living room. Wow, it’s making me salivate!
Once steeped a yellow tea liquid is produced with the aforementioned rice aroma. If someone were to blindfold me and ask me to guess what it was by scent I would say it was a bowl of rice. There is also the same sweetness and toasted notes from it’s raw form.
The first few sips are interesting…I can detect a toasted grass, milky, floral Oolong but by it’s side is a sweet yet thickly moreish rice flavour. The after taste is a lingering thick (almost stodgy) rice note that has coated the whole of my tongue. A few more sips and it has an added sour note though honestly it’s not for long. I have noticed a slight dryness however which becomes noticeable in the after taste which frankly feels even more like I’m eating rice.
Ok so as rice heavy as this tastes it still does not take much away from the Jin Xuan base which manages to hold it’s own. This I am pleased with, if you’re going to drink Jin Xuan then you should really be tasting it.
Half a cup in and the dryness has increased again to a point that I have a cotton dry tongue. Not pleasant but the lingering after taste is making up for it. It’s still consistent though in strength and flavour from those first few sips.
Coming into this tea I had little understanding of what to expect, the nearest I could imagine was something similar to Japanese GenMaicha which has toasted rice pieces in. Now post drink I can say it’s very different. GenMaicha is more toasted and bitty where as this is fresh and definitely glutinous. It was strange (to say the least) but still pleasant and even the drying quality didn’t put me off. I can honestly say that I can see myself drinking a lot of this tea in the near future. Worth a try if you are after something new, or an authentic taste of Thailand.
Happy Steeping!
