I’ve totally been into French Toast Flavored Teas lately and there are some really wonderful ones out there for a bunch of different reasons. Today I would like to share French Toast Oolong from Steeped Tea!
Of course it has Oolong Tea as the base – you can tell that by looking at the name – but to look at the Oolong used – dry and prior to infusing – it is one of the darkest dry Oolong I have seen so far!
After you move along to the other ingredients you will notice this tea has pineapple bits (that are coated in a little sugar), Coconut Chips, Lemon Wedges, Cranberries (that are coated in a little sugar and Sunflower Oil), Orange Peels, Rose Buds, Pomegranate Blossoms, Prickly Pear Blossoms, Vanilla, and flavors.
The blossoms are lovely and add a VERY little floral aftertaste to this. But the flavors that really shine are the Coconut Chips and various fruit ingredients. The fruits that have just that spec of sugar coating add a nice touch. And that’s just what it is – a nice touch – it’s not overly sugared. I was actually surprised with all the fruity ingredients that it wasn’t overly fruity to the tongue. But it was surprisingly buttery-sweet, nutty, savory, and creamy! Not any of the individual ingredients are overdone. EVERYTHING and I mean EVERYTHING has just enough flavor to all mesh well with the other ingredients, too! YUM! This was a special treat!
I’ve tried other French Toast Flavored Teas that were more French Toasty but this one was a winner on it’s own. Not so much for the toastiness – not so much for the cinnamon – not so much for the buttered-bread-likeness of others – but for the ratios used and flavor combo that turned out to be something completely of its own.
I wouldn’t mind if this had a sprinkle of cinnamon in it but it’s completely fine without it, too! Well done!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Steeped Tea
Description
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Oolong +Sweetner in One Convenient Tea Bag. . . . #Embrew
I was immediately intrigued by this tea as soon as I saw it sitting in my sample box. I’d been hearing about Embrew from my fellow Sororitea Sisters for the last few weeks– they’re a new company, packaging loose leaf tea into bags with the sweetener already added. A far cry from my early tea drinking days, I don’t usually sweeten my teas now, but will occasionally when it feels like they need a little oomph (or for homemade tea lattes, because #treatyoself).
This particular brew, Creamy Honey Oolong, sounds right up my alley. Brewed, it’s a beautiful light gold liquor, with a distinct honey scent. And just like the name implies, I get it all in one sip– honey, cream, light and floral oolong. It’s a delightful cup!
As far as the sweetener-in-bag? It’s pretty cool, but I don’t find it revolutionary. I did notice that by the time I pulled my bag out of the water (it was in about 2 minutes so as not to oversteep), there were still noticeable honey granules that hadn’t dissolved. Kind of a bummer on the design, but it ended up working well regardless, as I think if this tea had been any sweeter, I’d have lost a lot of the flavor nuance. The leaves unfurled fairly well for being Oolong-in-a-bag, which was impressive. Final thoughts? Definitely a great option for on-the-go sipping, when you need to make a cuppa without all the hassle of perfectly concocting your drink, or if you’re not a fan of having to take multiple steps to brew + sweeten your loose leaf tea.
I’ve got a few more samples from Embrew calling my name, and after this one, I’m eager to see what else they can do with this neat little idea!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Embrew
Description
This green oolong has a natural subtle creaminess brought on by the unique cultivation that emphasizes the soft, milky quality. We’ve paired it with pure granulated honey to further bolster the rich sweetness.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
VariaTea Enjoys a Caramel Oolong. . . . .
Nine times out of ten I will pass on an oolong. I just don’t love it as a tea base. However, that one out of ten is usually awesome. Some of my personal favorites are A Quarter to Tea’s On Wisconsin, DAVIDsTEA’s Vanilla Orchid, Lupicia’s Melon Oolong, and this one.
When oolong teas are done right, they are just so very right and this is no exception.
The base is floral but velvety which blends nicely with the silky caramel flavor that dominates this tea. The saltiness works as a flavor booster, highlighting the creamy sweetness of the caramel.
Moreover, there’s a smooth butteryness that ties this tea together like the bow on a delightful little present. Yum!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Dammann Freres
Description
This oolong tea’s naturally velvety notes blend with the sweet-salty flavours of caramel. Enjoy a deliciously gourmet cup of this beautifully balanced blend of green and candy notes.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Discovering Nunshen’s Oolong. . . .
G’day, tea-ple! It’s time for another foray into the Land of Oolong — a lush valley between the mountains of Black and the rolling hills of Green. (Disclaimer: this is not literal.) Oolong is like Doctor Who: it can travel between green and black at will. You never know where it will be. It will always surprise you.
Today’s pick comes from Nunshen, which has a really chic Bauhaus-style logo.
The pouch that held the tea sachet was made of a fine matte plastic that felt like a high-end business card. The sachet itself was made of a nice cotton/linen sort of material and had the stitching turn into the string that held on the tag. (David’s Tea’s sachets have similar construction. I was always impressed by those, too.)
I’m sharing this because I LOVE good design. It shows, right from the get-go, that these people care. (Well-packaged tea might not always be delicious, but you know that they had some meetings and they WANTED your experience to be nice, at least.)
The oolong that came out of this hella-chic packaging is surprisingly earthy. It’s like I momentarily entered the world of Helvetica/Bauhaus and forgot that tea existed. All of this smooth black-and-white sans-serif typography is covering up… plants for me to drink. RIGHT. I WAS HERE FOR THE TEA.
More than anything, this tea tastes like healthy cereal. The descriptor on the bag uses the word “oats” and “long.” I’m absolutely getting the oats. When I ran out of my own cereal once, I tried substituting my mom’s, some kind of uber-fiber keep-you-regular comes-from-the-earth blend. This is that. If you love oats and earthiness, this is for you.
I do not, for the life of me, now what “taste: long” means. I actually opened up Dictionary.com and typed in “long” thinking there was some kind of secondary meaning. A Google search on “long taste” offered up a jumble of results, including one that mentioned aftertaste.
So I stopped sipping, and yes, I do still taste this in my mouth a moment later. So maybe they mean it’s a lasting flavor?
REGARDLESS, if you love some malty oat flavor, you’ve gotta get on board with this tea. And then report back to me on what you think “long” means. Please help.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Nunshen
Description
Get closer to nature with fresh grassy flavors and scents that will remind you of an open meadow in the spring.This blend is guaranteed to cœrce your mind and body to feel at peace and one with the Earth.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Honey Red Jade Tea from Golden Tea Leaf. . . .
This oolong is Today’s Blessing.
It’s the 4th tea I’ve tried today and the first I’ve liked. I was starting to despair that my taste buds were dead. But no — this tea is a lifesaver!
It’s a yummy oolong (my new favorite jam) with a sweet honey/nectar tang. It tastes like the spring. This distinct flavor is from the leafhoppers interacting with the tea leaves.
Let me save you a Google, friends.
A leafhopper is a little vegetarian insect that is super-into sap and sweetness. When they bounce around from local nectars onto the tea leaves, they spread that sweetness around. Into your tea.
If you think about this a whole lot, it might seem kind of unusual. But consider Kopi Luwak, the most expensive coffee in the world. It’s processed from, well, civet feces. Feel free to check out the Wikipedia page on this.
So the leafhopper thing suddenly became 100% better, right?
I have decided I’m on board with leafhoppers. They’re my newest animal kingdom friends.
Way to go, guys. You’re cute, and you come in a bunch of colors. And the tea is tasty.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Golden Tea Leaf
Description
Honey Red Jade Tea is a unique fermented black tea from the pristine hills of Taiwan. Hand-picked and processed, Honey Red Jade Tea is grown naturally to encourage the tea leafhoppers to feed on the tea leaves, producing a natural honey fragrance when the enzymes from the leafhopper interact with the tea plants. This tea brews to a dark caramel color with a sweet fragrance and refreshing taste.
Honey Red Jade tea is irresistible when it is hot. It is even better when it is cooled. The unique sweet floral and honey fragrance becomes more pronounced, with a slight hint of citrus. This is a tea you can leave in your cup or tumbler and not worry about over steeping or drinking it cold. Over-steeping and bitterness is not a problem with this tea.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
