Orange Blossom Oolong

Country of Origin: Taiwan, Sri Lanka
Region: Tungting, Dimbula
Grade: FOP Oolong (Flowery Orange Pekoe Oolong)
Altitude 2500 ft, 6500 ft above sea level
Manufacture Type: Oolong style
Cup Characteristics: Wildly exotic. Toasty roundness with fruity jasmine notes. Stunning as an iced tea.
Infusion: Golden amber
Ingredients: Luxury oolong tea, Luxury black tea, Jasmine petals, Natural dried orange, Natural flavors.

There is something to be said for good old-fashioned romance. Flowers, candlelight, dancing, (if you’re feeling frisky, lingerie) – it’s a timeless equation. Well, we’ve got something new to add to your romantic arsenal, Oolong Orange Blossom tea – certain to have a pleasing affect on the object of your affection.

It all starts in 17th Century Italy with the discovery of a particularly fragrant type of Orange Blossom. After a botanist made the discovery, he decided to name the flower Neroli bigarade after Princess Nerola, the daughter of the ruler of the town where it was found. The princess was delighted and took to wearing a perfume created from the delicate white petals of the blossom. Some legends claim that the Princess and the botanist fell in love and were married, but as town records were poor this remains unsubstantiated. Sounds romantic though! Over the ensuing centuries, the blossoms came to symbolize the Western ideal of love and marriage and their popularity grew, particularly in wedding bouquets. In Victorian England, Orange blossom bouquets were so popular the flowers were imported from Florida strictly for that purpose. It was said at the time that the scent of Orange Blossoms could cause anyone to fall in love.

Well, we aren’t matchmakers but if there’s one thing we’re sure you’ll fall in love with it’s this tea. The blend was created using a semi-fermented oolong from Taiwan known for a lively full flavor with hints of berry jam and sweet floral undertones. Since food quality orange blossoms are a little harder to come by today than during the Victorian era, after extensive profiling we recreated their flavor using a mix of jasmine and dried orange pieces which we added to the tea. Rounding out the blend is a Ceylon black tea for some added depth. Like love, the cup is sublime. Brew a pot for someone special today!

3 Tasting Notes

KittyLovesTea

From pineapple Oolong to Orange Blossom Oolong (Ghee I wonder what sort of mood I’m in). This is my second Oolong tea from Pekko (my first being Blue Spring which I remember was very toasty).

Colour – Dark Brown with a touch of gold.
Smell – Earthy and light

My first sip in and I can tell I’m going to enjoy this. It’s a sweet and floral Jasmine tasting Oolong with only a touch of toastedness. The jasmine picks up in flavour the more you drink and starts become perfumey but in a nice way (in other words strong but not overpowering). It’s still citrus sweet (which tastes natural and more orange rind than pulp ie a little waxy) and very refreshing. There is a sort of ‘dark horse’ behind all of the flavours going on and that must be the Ceylon, it gives the blend more depth and strength.

This is so yummy, I’m glad I have roughly 47g more of this to enjoy. :)

2012-11-24 13:24:42 -0500

190 °F / 87 °C

2 min 30 sec

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Raven 2 tasting notes

I’ve been drinking out of the huuge sample of this that Pekko Teas sent for a while!

I’ve noticed that there’s starting to be more of the toasty scent on the leaves than the orange scent that was there when I first got it (hopefully not a sign that’s it going bad?), though I never really did notice the jasmine all that much. I might be looking for too much jasmine though, since the only other jasmine-scented tea I’ve had was /really/ strong (in the words of my boyfriend: like drinking the liquid from a Glade plug-in).

I love this one a daily kind of oolong! It’s a really cozy tea – a little floral, a little fruitish, but mostly a warm and crisp oolong with a perfect amount of aftertaste and a natural sweetness. I haven’t noticed any astringency in any of the cups I’ve had so far. Haven’t tried it iced yet, but I bet it’s going to be just as good.

Thank you so much for this very generous sample, Pekko Teas!

2012-11-15 23:29:38 -0500

195 °F / 90 °C

1 min 45 sec

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