Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Tea Leaf Co.
Tea Description:
A perfect cup of all natural apple cider to warm you up this autumn and winter.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The last couple of weeks have been crazy and the next week is going to be even more so – so it’s nice to have a tea like this Soul Good Organic Oolong from Tea Leaf Co. to help me collect myself and find a sense of calm. Tea is delightful like that – I love how I can sip it and it helps to de-stress me.
And what a delightful tea this is!
Even though it’s not autumn or winter – I am enjoying this cup of “apple cider” tea. It’s pleasantly sweet with a nice essence of apple and warm spices. And even though these flavors are prominent, they don’t overwhelm the sweet Oolong tea which appears to be a Tie Guan Yin based on the little green pellets of tea that I saw when I was measuring out the tea.
And the flavor and texture suggests a Tie Guan Yin tea to me. It’s sweet and has a soft, slightly creamy mouthfeel. There’s a light, buttery flavor to the tea that melds quite beautifully with the notes of apple and the spices.
The ginger is really nice – it’s warm and peppery without being too spicy. Generally when I think “apple cider,” I think of cinnamon flavor but I like that ginger is the star of this show – I’m really enjoying how nicely the apple and ginger taste together.
And the apple is wonderful here – it’s a strong flavor. My own experience with tea blending has taught me that apple can be a difficult flavor to nail but Tea Leaf Co. has nailed it here! It’s sweet and apple-y and authentic! This tastes very true-to-the-fruit!
A really lovely tea – and while it does have a very autumnal flavor to it, this is something I can see myself enjoying year round!
Milky Jinxuan High Mountain Oolong from Oollo Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Oollo Tea
Tea Description:
The true milky Jinxuan oolong tea with natural cream milk accent and luscious texture. The Alishan family farms tea trees that were bought from our family in 1990. They practice zero pesticide natural farming.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
It’s no big secret that I absolutely adore a good Milky Oolong tea. This Milky Jinxuan High Mountain Oolong from Oollo Tea is one of the very best I’ve tried thus far. It’s so delightfully sweet and creamy but the creaminess isn’t heavy. It’s not overwhelming my palate.
I love the texture to this first cup (infusions 1, 2 & 3 – yes three infusions in one cup, I’m using a smaller gaiwan today), it’s very silky and softly creamy. Smooth!
The flavor is sweet with notes of orchid. It’s not sharply floral because the creamy buttery taste helps soften the floral taste without overpowering this delightful flowery essence. It’s not bitter or astringent. It’s just … lovely. Oh so delightful.
My second cup (infusions 4 – 6) still has some of that silky texture, although much of the milky taste has waned. This is much more floral than the first cup. It’s sweet with spun sugar notes. I taste light vegetal notes to this too. I am also tasting a light nutty flavor that almost tastes “popcorn” like to me. As the tea cools slightly, some of the creamy notes seem to develop so it’s not completely without that milky note.
My third cup (infusions 7 – 9) was softer in flavor than the second. Not as creamy as either the first or second cup, but still beautifully floral with more nutty flavors and even a hint of peach can be detected! I still get that light, spun-sugar type of flavor that I really like.
What a lovely tea!
Anxi Tie Guan Yin Oolong from Nan Nuo Shan
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Nan Nuo Shan
Tea Description:
This tea is produced in Gande, a village famous for the complexity of its Tie Guan Yin tea. Clear and fragrant, it possesses a mild flowery taste and a milky texture.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! In an effort to get all the reviews finished that I want to get finished before May 31st, I’ll be writing about a lot more Oolongs! No complaints from me! I love Oolong!
And this Anxi Tie Guan Yin Oolong from Nan Nuo Shan is so delightful. Sweet and floral with a beautifully silky texture! It’s smooth from start to finish.
My first cup (infusions 1 – 3 … smaller gaiwan!) has very little astringency. I do notice a slight drying sensation toward the tail. Mostly what I notice is the sweet honey-like flavor that is accentuated with the soft, creamy texture and the lovely floral notes that evoke thoughts of orchid. No sharpness with this first cup – it has an almost vanilla-y flavor to it. Sweet, creamy and luscious!
And that cup was GONE before I could finish writing about it – that’s how delightful it tastes!
My second cup was stronger in flavor than the first. The creamy notes have waned and I’m not picking up on as much of the vanilla flavors that I noticed in the first cup. It’s still quite delicious but definitely different than the first cup. The floral notes are more pronounced now. I still get that lovely honey-like sweetness. The texture isn’t as silky as the first cup but I’m still noticing very little astringency here.
This cup seems to be more rounded – it’s not as sweet as the first – it’s more balanced between sweet and savory elements.
My third cup (infusions 7 – 9) was still really flavorful, even after so many infusions! That’s one thing you’ve got to love about Oolong tea – they deliver on the flavor and on mileage! They keep on steeping!
The cup was not quite as strong as the second cup. The floral notes were softer than the second cup, but stronger than the first. I still get that delicious honeyed note and I’m starting to pick up on the faintest notes of fruit now. Apple! Sweet and even hints of tart that provide a palate-pleasing roundness of flavor.
A really nice Tie Guan Yin, one of the nicest I’ve ever had! I have been so impressed with the teas that I’ve tried from Nan Nuo Shan these teas are of exceptional quality … seriously, if you haven’t tried anything from them yet, I recommend them highly!
Oriental Beauty (Bai Hao) Oolong from Oollo Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Oollo Tea
Tea Description:
Renowned for its beautiful five colour dancing leaves. This traditional beauty exudes apricot and peach scents followed by indulging orchid, muscat grape, and apple flavours.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oollo Tea offers some outstanding teas and this Oriental Beauty Oolong is a perfect example. It’s one of the nicest Bai Hao Oolong teas that I’ve tasted in a quite some time!
The aroma is lovely – it reminds me of warm peaches – like the filling in a peach cobbler. Warm and bubbly and sweet! That’s what I think of when I smell this tea!
The tea has a wonderful fruit flavor – I taste stone fruit and flower. The above description suggests orchid and when I focus on the floral notes, yes, I would say that the flower I taste is indeed orchid. I taste notes of peach and apricot and hints of a honeyed sweetness.
I don’t taste muscat grape or apple yet, but perhaps those flavors will reveal themselves in later infusions. For now, I’m quite happy with the notes of honey, orchid and peach-y apricot!
With my second cup (infusions 3 and 4) I am picking up some of those aforementioned notes of grape and apple. Really nice! I taste less of the peach and apricot flavors – those seemed to have disappeared – but I still taste a lovely orchid note and a lovely sweetness that I’d describe as more of a sugary sweetness now rather than a honey-like sweetness. This tastes a bit like the sugar notes I’d experience if I were to eat a handful of raisins.
This cup is really smooth with just a hint of astringency toward the tail. I taste a light, hay-like note to this too, similar to what I’d taste from a Bai Mu Dan (white tea). Every once in a while, I’ll also taste the slightest whisper of vanilla.
I started to notice the flavor waning with my third cup (infusions 5 and 6), so I decided it would be my last of this tea. But I had three marvelous cups of tea! The third cup still had plenty of flavor – lovely notes of apple and grape and almost a melon-like background note that I hadn’t noticed in the previous infusions! Still sweet, still lovely.
A really wonderful tea – this Oriental Beauty from Oollo Tea! If you haven’t checked out their website yet, you should stop in and check them out!
Brown Sugar Organic Oolong Tea from Tea Leaf Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Tea Leaf Co.
Tea Description:
A wonderfully bold and smooth organic tea blend of dark oolong and maple, a perfect pairing. While the oolong is bold, full-bodied, and lightly smoked, the maple is light, aromatic, and sweet. The combination of the two flavors results in a well-balanced, featured favorite maple tea blend.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! This Brown Sugar Organic Oolong Tea from Tea Leaf Co. is the first from this new-to-me tea company that I’ve tried, and it’s a good one!
The maple flavor is strong but I like that it’s not overpowering the Oolong tea. Tea Leaf Co. has managed to strike a really delightful balance between the sweetness and rich flavor of the maple and the Oolong tea with its fruit notes and hints of smoke.
The base tea possesses notes of stone fruit (peach) and I taste wisps of smoke. I like this delicate smoky note and how it plays to the notes of the sweet maple. Nutty flavors develop as I continue to sip and I like how these interact with the maple notes as well. This is a full-flavored Oolong, it’s rugged and has notes of wood and earth. It’s a strong flavor that doesn’t wimp out behind the sweetness of the maple. The contrasts in flavor from the woodsy, earthy, nutty and smoky flavors help keep the maple in check and keep it from becoming too cloying a drink.
The maple notes are sweet and pleasant. They don’t taste chemical or artificial. It tastes like someone drizzled a drop or two of real maple syrup in my teacup! Quite delectable!
A real treat – this “Brown Sugar.”