Zealong Pure

So apparently New Zealand can make some tea. Who knew? But yeah, this is some seriously tasty stuff.

Normally I’m not one for using boiling water on greener oolongs. However, the directions printed inside the tea’s packaging say use boiling water and, given that Zealong’s packaging is pretty serious (a vacuum-sealed bag of tea inside a matte black square tin which sits snugly in the foam bottom of a large, magnetic-close box), I’m going to take their directions seriously, too. Zealong also says you can take this up to 8 steeps. I’m not sure I can make it that long, even if the tea can, but we’ll see.

The dry leaves have a very faint smell to them. Very faint. Even the liquid is fairly lightly scented, but it is a delicious smell anyway.
Steep 1 (1min): Sipping is kind of wow. It’s rich – dark, heavy, sweet, floral at first. Slurping a bit makes the flavor lighten up more and becomes like a fresh lemongrass flavor. As it cools, that almost-lemon-candy note comes up more and more. There’s a little dryness left behind after each sip, along with a lovely sweet, floral/fruity taste.

Steep 2 (1min): The main reason I don’t use boiling water on oolongs is that it seems that the leaves can get easily cooked and that smell and taste is kind of gross to me. After pouring the tea, these leaves now have a bit of that cooked scent about them, but instead of smelling like over-boiled collard greens, it’s like toasted bread… with some lemon preserves smeared on top. The tea, though, doesn’t have any overcooked-ness to it but there is a darker note to it that wasn’t present in the first steep. Also, the fresh lemongrass note has turned into a more lemon preserves note. The astringency is still there and adds a bit of texture at the end of the sip.

Steep 3 (1min): The flavor is darker now. The lemon note is gone and replaced with an almost honey note. Slurping brings out a woody flavor. There might be a hint of something almost spicy, or I might be insane.

Steep 4 (2min): Heavier again with the nuances and light notes of the first steep kind of muddied up a bit but still not overcooked. And is the lemon back some? And maybe something that reminds me of cream… (Though that could have been the sip of half & half I took while making the hubby some EG, but it continues to stick around so maybe it’s the tea.)

Steep 5 (3min): The leaves are smelling pretty done now but the done-ness hasn’t come into the tea. It’s darker, heavier, thicker and a little more one-note tasting than previous steeps but there’s still a faint hint of lemon/lemon preserves.

Steep 6 (4min): Might be tasting a little overcooked now? Still has a lot of the same tastes as steep 5, though.

Okay, I’m done. Seriously, I’ve had a lot of oolong – it might be coming out of my pores at this point. Could the tea take a couple of more steeps? Maybe. Can I? Nope. But I will say that this is seriously good stuff though. Congrats, New Zealand, for making good tea!
^5g/5oz

PS – Just watched the documentary All in This Tea. Definitely recommend it to any tea lover out there!

I’ve never had a New Zealander before! I didn’t even know they had a tea production to start with, and even less that it was a tea production with export. Interesting. I got this one from Wombatgirl and I have enough leaves for this pot and another one later on.

I was just in the mood for an oolong, actually, so it was kind of lucky that I just happened to spot this tin in the forest of tins that lives on my kitchen table. I have actually completely dispensed with the idea of a ‘tea cupboard’ and just moved all the tins to the kitchen table. I might as well, since they migrate there anyway. That means I’ve cleared a small cupboard which now holds three retired pots and a gaiwan, thus solving some serious space issues on my various kitchen surfaces. A little rearranging made space for four other retired pots in a different cupboard, so the pots I have out now are the ones I actually use. The rest are hidden behind glass cupboard doors looking nice and decorative. Yay me and my organising skills!

Anyway, these leaves are dark green and rolled into semi-loose little pellets, so they look more or less like your would expect any typical green oolong to look. It’s got a nice yellow-ish colour in the cup and the aroma is also unmistakably green oolong. It’s got that touch of earthyness and a strong note of cooked green vegetables. For me it’s broccoli boiled just so in lightly salted water with a little bit of butter in it.

Lots of flavour here. Again it tastes like a green oolong should taste, with a slightly rough green tea flavour combined with the earthyness of begun oxidation. The green part of the flavour is remarkably hard to pin down though. I’m thinking sort of like a cross between Long Jing and Sencha, if you can imagine that. The strong vegetative flavour of both but without the side note of cat-breath and salt water.

It’s been way too long since the last time I had a green oolong that wasn’t scented so how it holds up to the traditional ones, I can’t be quite sure. But right now I think this tastes like it shouldn’t have too many problems in a competition.

So yes. New Zealand has a tea production. And they’re good at it too.

Wow. Just, wow. I tasted the dark version first, then this Pure one and it completely knocked me out. Which isn’t an easy task for an oolong! The flavour is incredibly rich and full, fuller than any oolong I’ve ever tasted. Its like Tung Ting on crack. Seriously. I don’t even want to sully my mouth with Tung Ting after tasting this lush oolong. Wow. Do yourself a favour and try this tea, especially if you are a fan of oolongs. My god.

Steep Information:
Amount: ~6g
Water: 150ml boiling filtered water
Tool: Adagio IngenuiTEA 16 oz
Steep Time: a little over 1:30 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: vegetal
Steeped Tea Smell: honey, sweet, floral, vegetal
Flavor: buttery sweet
Body: Light
Aftertaste: vegetal
Liquor: translucent pale yellow-green

Sweet, buttery, delicious – but not as good as the Zealong Aromatic.

An excellent oolong.

Resteep (2) Information: 150ml, boiling, 1:30 – sweet, vegetal, a little nutty

Resteep (3) Information: 200ml, boiling, 2:00, vegetal, a little nutty, a little bitter

Resteep (4) Information: 200ml, boiling, 2:00, vegetal, a little nutty, a little bitter

Resteep (5) Information: 200ml, boiling, 2:00, vegetal, a little nutty, bitter

Images: http://amazonv.blogspot.com/2010/08/chicago-tea-garden-loose-leaf-oolong.html

This is the third of the New Zealand oolongs that I’ve tried. Of the three, it is my least favorite… and I love it! All of the Zealongs are outstanding. Pure has a light scent in the packet, and, not surprisingly, it is a lighter oolong as well, both in aroma and flavor. I steeped this one longer than I normally do. 195/4 min. It produced a light colored, aromatic brew that has a roasted flavor. The oolong is beautiful and has no astringency or bitterness whatsoever.

love this tea! will do a more thorough review soon :)

So I’ve been holding onto this for a while, but being such a coveted tea, I wanted to make sure the conditions were perfect: I was feeling fine, I gave myself ample time to enjoy the tea, and most importantly, I brewed it correctly.

I tried to follow the Chicago Tea Garden’s direction for brewing (video number 2: http://www.chicagoteagarden.com/zealong-new-zealand-oolong), but wound up making some minor modifications.

I warmed the pot, using boiling water, drained it, covered the bottom of my pot in the leaves, then added enough water to cover them. Of course, they floated, so let’s say it was about a half cup of boiling water. Let the leaves steep for one minute like this. Drained the water, then filled the pot with boiling water. Allowed to steep for one full minute. Poured all the tea out and enjoyed.

The aroma of this is incredible; it is crisp, clean, sweet and actually smells mouthwatering, it is everything you would hope it to smell like and nothing that you would hope it doesn’t. In one word: pure. The liquor is a pale, golden yellow, not amber, yellow. The experience is cultivated in the drinking vessel, I used a matcha bowl because I wanted to get the full bouquet while drinking it. The flavor matches the aroma, clean, crisp, sweet, yet not overpowering, it tastes like the best of the best oolongs, it really just might be. I know I have had an oolong similar, though I am not sure where, it really doesn’t matter, because this is what I have now.

That was the first infusion. I did not repeat the whole tea ceremony for each infusion, just filled the pot with more water, steeped and drank. I got three full infusions out of the one sample and each was as good as the first.

All brewed hot, no additives:
Infusion 1: one minute
Infusion 2: one minute, 30 seconds
Infusion 3: two minutes

If you get a chance to try this, I highly recommend you do. I still have the other two (aromatic and dark) to give a go. Enjoy everyone!

Before I drink enough to really get into this tea… did anyone notice that the packaging they got from the steepster select sale was not the listed packaging?
I’m not usually that suspicious… but I was really looking forward to the black box of tasty doom.

Very fresh, mineral notes are strongest.

Ah, I finally get some time with this tea. I wanted to give it a proper treatment and to have time to experience it. I find this tea’s taste to be quite full and complex. It’s floral and it’s sweet, but it’s a little bit earthy and so incredibly fresh and clean tasting in keeping with the name. Very green-tasting. The scent while it was brewing was amazingly floral. Even when I say “floral” to myself, I’m kind of put off but this floral is a beautiful, rich, complex one.

I quite enjoyed this one as it was prepared for me by Tony of Chicago Tea Garden at a tea tasting of his and then again by my hand at home. It is very clean, slightly grass, and sweet. I would say it is bright and balanced. Delicious!

A very clean, very smooth oolong aroma and taste. Deserves the pure name. From the zealong web site, it requires a little more tea for the water volume, and many steeps should be possible.

I wasn’t sure this would live up to the hype. Well, I was wrong. This tea is absolutely delicious, and as the name implies, it has a “pure,” fresh quality I don’t think I’ve ever experienced in any type of tea. There are many flavors here — honey, floral, a bit vegetal — no roasted or chestnut type flavors, though, which I attribute to the tea’s minimal processing. It’s naturally sweet, and just as good on the second and third steepings. I steeped the leaves four times before the flavor began to fade.

Delicious hot, at room temperature or iced. One of the best teas I’ve ever had. I’m going to order more very soon, because I think I am going to go through this quickly.

Wasn’t sold on the idea of a tea from New Zealand until I saw the rave reviews this was getting, so I finally sprung for it.

Gong fu in a 5-ounce yixing. Pretty darn good, if I may say so. Buttery, smooth, slightly floral. Not the absolute most amazing unroasted oolong I’ve had, but very, very good. I’ll drink what I have happily, and I’ll probably be first in line to try next year’s crop.

This. Is. Crazy. Good.

Almost buttery smooth, a creaminess is there, but still light, clean, pure, and I can taste a beautiful green flavor coming out. A little sweet, a rich quality, there are so many layers here. And every infusion brings out something a little different.

If I were to be reincarnated as a tea, this would probably be it.

The leaves for this furtive tea are made in the fashion of Taiwanese Oolongs. They’re tightly curled balls of a dark green with some stems attached. The dry leaf aroma is clearly roasted with some vegetal undertones of steamed cabbage.

This oolong brews a radiant yellow-gold liquor and provides a sweet vegetal aroma similar to that of the dry leaf, but with the roasted notes a bit subdued.

The texture and flavor are smooth on the palate with no appreciable astringency. A bit of vegetal bitterness combines with a buttery sweetness and a bit of a roasty tail keeps this tea interesting every time.

I recommend this oolong to fans of oolong teas and milk teas.

We had the privileged of trying this Tea last night via Tony at Chicago Tea Garden. Upon opening the tea was really excited by the sweet smell from the unbrewed leaves. I used my favorite Yixing pot to steep. Chicago Tea garden recommended 30sec steep time for the 1st and 2nd steeping. I did my 1st steeping for 1minute. The Zealong had a really nice pale yellow/greenish color. The smell of the brewed Zealong was still a pleasant sweet smell. 1st sip and I noticed that it had a much milder taste than a Dong Ding or Milk Oolong . Each cup still had a much milder taste.

Second steeping I steeped for 2.5 minutes and found it to be a bit bolder in taste and color was a tad bit darker and smell was still a sweet smell. Me personally, I like bolder tasting Oolongs better than the milder ones. This Oolong will be a perfect fit for those people who find the taste of most Oolongs a bit strong. If you are just becoming familiar with Oolongs this is a great start into a wonderful would of Teas!

I have received this tea yesterday straight from Zealong Company in NZ, so it is not the “Chicago Tea Garden” one but I thought there was no point to add another tea to Steepster as we are talking about exactly the same product.

I have waited the special time to enjoy it as I have been so much enthusiastic to get it and finally this afternoon the great time has come!

I have followed the instructions on the package and infused 5 gr. in 150ml of water for 1 minute … nice!!! I steeped it in the Zealong white ceramic cup with strainer and the colour was a light yet bright yellow, so inviting. This tea has a nice aroma and a full-bodied and multi-layered taste: grassy, with hints of chestnut to start with and then sweeter: the after taste in my mouth while I was waiting for the second steep clearly reminded me of apple, green apple. The second and third wash have been good as well, also the fourth even though the latter, still giving a bright yellow colour, has lost a little of the flavour. The package says you can steep this tea up to 6-7 times, I am not sure considering the fourth but when I will have some time I will definitely try to do that.

The first approach with this tea from New Zealand has been extremely positive, I am looking forward to trying the other 2 types I have received: “Aromatic” and “Dark”.

Sweet, buttery, slightly floral taste that is delicious!

This tea had a really rich, multilayered flavor. It was sweet but towards the third infusion there was a nice smokiness to it.