Jade Oolong #18

I’m not sure how this one has escaped tasting for so long. I was looking for something appropriate to try out my new cast-iron tetsubin and this was perfect.

The leaves were tightly curled and bright jade colored. Unfortunately, they were somewhat cramped by the pot’s steeping basket so I didn’t get the full unfurling effect.

The tea was very pale green with a vegetative, buttery and nutty fragrance. The flavor was very light and delicate; it’s possible that my sample may be aging. However, subsequent steeps were for longer periods and the flavor deepened. It’s buttery, slightly saline and finished very sweet.

I don’t drink a lot of oolongs but every time I do, I really enjoy them. I drank an entire pot of this one. (And the tetsubin is awesome. However, I need to build up calluses to use the iron cups- ouch!)

Ok, I love green oolongs and I’ve never had this (or any Jade oolong) before so when this came up as May’s Roots Campaign featured tea I was pretty much suckered in instantly.

2.25g/6oz

This may sound odd… but the raw leaf smells like matcha in a lot of ways. The tightly scrunched green leaves smell sweet, and vegetal, and just plain green. After steeping the liquor is a bright canary yellow and the aroma is a much lighter version of the raw leaf.

Yummm… light- but not weak, clean, smooth, crisp, sweet. Just plain delicious.

Doing my halloween nails. Not going out anywhere interesting besides jiu jitsu class – they said I can come dressed in costume, but not sure if that is safe, lol!

Okay, this tea has been sitting in my cupboard for awhile and barely dented. What I’m tasting could be totally off due to age. ehh, need to drink it!

This oolong is light. Slightly buttery, warm green leafy veg taste. Starting to get astringent as its beginning to dry my mouth.

This had a really nice fresh moist green scent. I love the little curled up tea leaves.
The leaves opened up into cute little Brussels sprout looking wrinkly leaves.
I like the color of the liquor – it’s a straw yellow green golden color.

Brewed up, this smells a-ma-zing. Buttery, toasty, and even, strangely, slightly jammy. Strawberry jam, I would say, if you pressed me.
Taste wise, it’s a little burnt and a little bitter, but it’s just the first infusion. I’ll do the same length for the next infusion and see if I like that better. I didn’t rinse the leaves first, either.

Second steep I did at 195 for 2 minutes. The leaves really unfolded and filled the entire cup (I have a cup sized strainer I used). The liquor was a little lighter and closer to a true straw color. The scent this time is much sweeter, in a toasty honey way.
The flavor still disappointed me. It’s too bitter. I must be oversteeping this.

I’m not giving up though! I’m going to throw adagio’s instructions out the window and try the :30, 1:00, 1:30 brewing instead.

With the name Oolong #18 I didn’t hold high hopes for this tea. It feels like Adagio didn’t care enough for it to give it a decent, meaningful name. The truth is this oolong is great and totally deserves some recognition.

It has all the qualities I appreciate in green oolongs – buttery, almost oily notes, flowery aroma and flavor with slightly dry aftertaste. It brews very light and gives away two tasty infusions, I found the third to be lacking though so I didn’t go beyond that.

I’m writing an article for my blog about green tea and thought I would cheat and have an Oolong. This is a green Oolong (hence Jade Oolong) so I don’t feel as though I have cheated too much. Still writing an article about one thing and drinking another will have it’s challenge.

Light green buds with a fresh green smell. Brewing creates a yellow coloured tea soup with a gentle flower smell.

Taste is floral, subtle, sweet and gentle with a refreshing grassy taste. Lovely light Oolong suitable for everyday drinking.

Yummy. (Shall do a better review soon).

Steeped greener than I expected, to a greenish gold, thus the name Jade Oolong? Smells of green, if green actually were a smell (no not Purple-ish grins at Angrboda). It definitely smells of greenery freshly washed by a spring rain (okay now I’m being silly, or maybe not so, it does smell fresh, clean and green!). It also has a slight spiciness in it tickling the deep recesses of my nose. As it cools the smell I’ve been calling a hint of licorice is being revealed, reminding me of Ti Kuan Yin.

Taste starts wet and ends dry…. (okay I admit the fey silliness will continue). The starting taste is slightly a pleasant wet hay, slightly greenery, and ends with a slight dryness that I typically like in many of the oolongs I’ve tried. It isn’t as complex as Ti Kuan Yin, but does not seem to suffer much with what flavors remain.

The leaves seemed to be rolled into little balls like the Ali Shan that I have typed about earlier, and seem to take about two steepings to fully unfurl. Not quite as good as the Ali Shan or the Ti Kuan Yin from Adagio but a pleasant green oolong this definitely is.

Ordered this because I saw a lot of people refer to it as their “favorite oolong”. Reading the description, it mentions that it is a green oolong (being a newbie, not sure the differences). Also the descriptions mentions fragrance again, and am not sure I’ll be a fan (after testing several jasmines).

This to me is bitter, or maybe this is what people mean by astringent (it’s different than when I say a black is bitter). I don’t like this because of that … totally assaulting my (sensitive) senses here. My immediate impression is bleh bleh bleh (going to go dump).

I don’t really have a whole lot to say about this one. It has a nice oolong flavor to it and produces a lovely scent and color. It tasted good, but wasn’t spectacular. I meant to write this yesterday, as that is when I drank this tea. I would save the note for the next time I make this, but my sample has been exhausted. I will say that with Adagio recommending two heaping teaspoons per cup, you’ll go through this tea very quickly…you can probably get by with a little less than that, depending on your personal preferences, but you’ll definitely want to try to get a few steepings out of it.

I love Adagio. I order this yesterday and it was at my door when I got back from work today. Amazing service (and super cheap shipping!). Anyway, I bought this to support their Roots Campaign for May (and bc I loveee oolongs), and it absolutely does not disappoint! I love the strong initial taste (still not so good at figuring out WHAT I’m tasting, but its deliciously oolong in any case) and the rest goes down smoothly. Smells great, and the tea leaves are beautiful both when dry (love the curly-knot look of these types of oolongs) and when wet (big, unfurled leaves). Glad that I made the leap to get the 5oz instead of the sampler.

Very nice and smoooooooth taste to this one. Suprisingly sweet yet delicate. I love to watch these leaves unfurl in my diffuser, and they withstand at least 4-5 good steeps for me. I can definitely taste the jade-ness in this tea and its really good! These big leaves are gorgeous!

wow. don’t let the numbers fool you. this tea has total personality. I always brew it with yixing tea pots, and it is good for the long haul of multiple brews. the liquor has a medium body, syrupy to start out, lightening up as you brew many times. floral and fruit notes abound as this soft yet distinct tea invigorates your senses.

Careful not to over steep this tea. The oolong flavor, while lightly smokey isn’t to over bearing for an inexperienced oolong drinker. I really love watching the leaves open up over the course of a couple steeps and would recommend a second steep. Classic taste.

I really like this. Going straight to my shopping list. More . . .

Very nice light oolong, not as good as wuyi or pouchong, this one has a more floral quality almost a woodiness. Its not my favorite green oolong but it isn’t bad and the multiple resteeps bring out different aspects of the floral notes.

I prepare this multiple times (gonfu style) with many short steepings. Each cup is very sweet, it has a flowery sweetness almost like honey. I’ve also prepared it with the recommended time on the package, but multiple short steeps is really the way to go. The tea takes on a whole new flavor that is much more enjoyable. This oolong is probably one of my favorites from Adagio.

Been a while, steepster. This is one of my favorite oolongs. I am now going on my 4th steeping, and it is still going strong. Very robust, almost smokey flavor, but subtle hints of flowery and even a little fruity notes. Very good tea morning, noon, and night.

Great all day light tea. I like this because it is a great idle tea for my blogging time in front of the computer. Taste is light but not weak. Use leaves 4-5 times when i brew this.

I can get 4-5 good steeps out of this before it starts getting noticeably weak, and the flavor is great. I actually like this a little bit more than the Iron Goddess. Wonderful blend at a wonderful price.

Need to retry this. Yesterday I brewed some up, but it was kind of weak—I think it needs more time or a more generous scoop of leaves.