High Mountain Oolong Tea

This is actually a revision.
I feel I have to write a note on this tea. It’s the first loose leaf purchase I made and it turned out to be a great stab in the dark. I must admit that cost helped drive my decision and for under $10 I wasn’t very apprehensive about it. As it turns out it is a staple around our house. Daily is there an afternoon pot of either this, or another similar Asian grocery tea, once all are in from work/school.
Dry leaf is sweet and nutty; which I will explain why I’m sure it’s nutty in a minute. Leaves aren’t necessarily quick to unfurl, mostly larger leaves with some pieces. Wet leaves are sweet smelling yet I can’t place what it reminds me of. Color is exactly the red/brown as of the picture on the can.
At first sip there is a nuttiness to the flavor (still not telling why yet). A smooth drink with no astringency. I can drink this one from my Stanley thermos a couple hours after infusing and it is still tasty.
I will often steep this 5-6 times only bringing the steep time up a tad for the last 3 steeps. I will now admit the ignorance I maintained about multiple steepings when I first started. I would lay my leaves on paper towels and re-use them 2,3,maybe 4 days in a row. I didn’t know any better and didn’t suffer any displeasure either. So if times are hard, know that you can REALLY stretch your tea dollar when needed.
So now let me finish the story (if you haven’t opted out due to sheer boredom due to my rambling). My wife is coming along on the no sugar thing with some teas, this one she still uses a spoonful. I had just poured us each a large mug when she pointed out I had to go to my job. I poured the remainder of the pot in my thermos along with what I THOUGHT was my cup and dashed (ahhh you see where it’s going).Once on the road I poured a small cup for myself and when I threw back a swig of the tea,rather than my face contorting in horror as would happen if accidently taking a drink of sweetened coffee,a look of stupified (which comes very naturally) wonder appeared instead.
Somehow I had just drank peanut butter toast…a childhood favorite. The one spoon of sugar from ny wifes cup mixed through 6cups of this oolong was a creamy peanutty surprise.Dare I say I may have to use this formula again.
For those of you who hung on for the ending bravo to you, not that your lives are any further blessed or there was any enlightenment to be gained.

Though I try this tea with a hint of sugar from time to time I still don’t seem to get the same effect that I did on this occasion. I think I still prefer this one without sweetening. Just wanted to revisit this drink since it is so commonly drank at our house.

tunes-Bobby Hebb/Sunny;Leon Russell/Tight Rope;The Stranglers/Golden Brown;The Who/Eminence Front/Reign On Me;Looking Glass/Brandy;Bobbie Gentry/Ode To Billie Joe

I received this one in a swap – thanks so much (I forgot who it was – maybe Pureleaf)

Dry Leaf Aroma is that of a sweet and sour wood. Once infused it smells like a Roasted and minimally-charcoaled Oolong.

The flavor is a little sweet, a little sour, a bit floral, a bit charcoal, and fairly roasty/toasty. It also has a strong nutty end sip on to the aftertaste.

This one is alright :)

Solid little supermarket tea. I picked this up vacuum sealed for ~11 bucks at my local asian market. It’s labeled as a high mountain oolong but its way more roasted, more like a dong ding. I’ve only tried this once so far, I think I can still get a lot more out of it in terms of flavor by tuning temperature and time. You get pretty clear smokiness, some minor sweetness in later steeps with lots of woody-autumnal-floral fun. Nothing crazy or unexpected for a cheap oolong like this but I enjoyed it a lot. I’ll revisit this review after a couple more sessions.

This cheap oolong is one of my favorite daily teas. I steep 2 tsp at 212f for 4 minutes for a strong, nutty arid earth taste. Gongfu style, this tea had me stumped for a.long time. I experimented with different quantities and water temperatures, but always came out with bitter tea. The only pleasent way I have found to brew it is with 3tsp tea in my 60ml gaiwan at 160f, increasing temps at later infusions.