What Oolong Are You Drinking

Semi-oxidized tea
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Victoria
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Mon Dec 09, 2019 9:31 am

Bok wrote:
Mon Dec 09, 2019 8:53 am
Ethan Kurland wrote:
Mon Dec 09, 2019 3:26 am
Water coming all the way from New Zealand gets bounced around too much on the long trip to the USA, breaking minerals down to nano-size which is too small to bind with all the flavors of tea :) :)
Excellent. ;)
Agreed, pretty funny Ethan. 365 Everyday Value Spring might be Chrystal Geyser repackaged and depending on your Whole Foods location its sourcing varies. It’s purified water, so reconstituted. I haven’t found its water analysis yet, so I’ll call the company to get it and add to water analysis thread.
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Mon Dec 09, 2019 2:02 pm

Victoria wrote:
Mon Dec 09, 2019 9:31 am
. 365 Everyday Value Spring might be Chrystal Geyser repackaged and depending on your Whole Foods location its sourcing varies. It’s purified water, so reconstituted. I haven’t found its water analysis yet, so I’ll call the company to get it and add to water analysis thread.
That surprises me. About every week or so, into glass I pour a small amount of water remaining in my kettle & see white "minerals" which I pour down the drain. My very unscientific mind sees what looks like thick salt as proof that the water containing that white substance is mineral water. (B.A. in English Lit.)

The recent increase in price of 10 cents per gallon for the 365 water & your information motivates me to look harder for deals on better water. My palate does not detect which waters improve tea as much as it detects which waters ruin tea.
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Thu Dec 12, 2019 5:12 am

Drinking oolong aged from 2005. The tea leaves were treated very much the same as Father Love & yield a similar drink, but for me how they differ is significant. The 2005's is much mellower. I taste the roast for sure, but it is not bold. (Although drinking Father Love is not an assault on one's mouth; it is a very bold taste of roast despite it not being charred nor harsh.) The 2005 has enough flavor but it is a soft drink of tea. Most interesting to me is that the same effect cannot be obtained by preparing Father Love to be weak nor by diluting a brew after it has been prepared to normal strength.

For me having more than one special aged roasted oolong on hand makes sense. I can imagine that one suffices for most people. \
I'll write about my other oolong like this, aged from 1998, in a couple of weeks or so. To generalize, the longer such tea is aged, the smoother & mellower its feel & flavor. However, it is not weakly flavored, nor even muted.

This 2005 is easy to drink in large quantities which I love to do in the winter. Cheers
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Sat Dec 14, 2019 11:15 pm

Winter Wenshan Bao Zhong from Taiwan Tea Crafts. Super floral and delicious. Competition grade Bao Zhong wasn't available this year, possibly due to the adverse weather conditions in Taiwan. But the winter harvest of this tea is quite stellar in its own right.
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Victoria
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Sun Dec 15, 2019 4:09 pm

Having a lightly roasted Alishan that Salvador Sosa roasted as part of his Taiwan Oolongs Study Tour (TOST) tour of Taiwan farms and processing facilities earlier this year. It’s an in-depth 10 day oolong immersion, traveling to different farms all over Taiwan for tea professionals conducted by Thomas Shu and Josephine Pan. This Alishan is really very smooth, buttery, and slightly effervescent coming from a pleasant minerality.
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Sun Dec 15, 2019 5:22 pm

Victoria wrote:
Sun Dec 15, 2019 4:09 pm
This Alishan is really very smooth, buttery, and slightly effervescent coming from a pleasant minerality.
"Effervescent"---do you mean bubbly like seltzer.
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Victoria
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Sun Dec 15, 2019 6:38 pm

Ethan Kurland wrote:
Sun Dec 15, 2019 5:22 pm
Victoria wrote:
Sun Dec 15, 2019 4:09 pm
This Alishan is really very smooth, buttery, and slightly effervescent coming from a pleasant minerality.
"Effervescent"---do you mean bubbly like seltzer.
Like a slight popping in the mouth from minerals, so a little like Gerolsteiner mineral water. Seltzer is different, it is carbonated reconstituted water, with a little sodium added.
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Mon Dec 16, 2019 6:12 am

Now I understand, Victoria. I never got this feeling from any tea. Thinking about it, I remember now that once or twice on Teachat there were discussions about what was meant by minerals noting how different it is for one another.

I drink Gerolsteiner sometimes (when I feel strong enough to carry some home from a distant supermarket where it is "only" $1.79 for a bottle. It is natural spring water with bicarbonate added for its carbonation but always seems to me like a wonderful gift coming straight from nature. In Thailand it still is still imported in glass bottles. In Boston it comes in plastic. I always think for the longer trip from Germany, the USA should be receiving the glass; however, I taste no difference. Both have great caps that keep it bubbly for a couple of days.
oolongfan
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Fri Dec 20, 2019 7:19 pm

Norbu's Ali Shan High Mountain Dong Pian 2018 Winter Harvest - Beautiful orchid and other floral notes, soft vegetal notes over a hint of buttery richness. An energetic tea (for me anyway) whose effects I feel somewhere around the third cup. Wonderful depth and power. One of my favorites. A lovely yet sad session since Norbu is closing its retail operations.
Tetsubin
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Sun Dec 22, 2019 8:37 am

Having the 2014 Qilan from Wuyiorigin. Its the second tea of the day (had the boutique tieluohan for about 15 steeps in a 80 ml Shiboridashi as a first tea of the day).

I am really feeling the effects of this tea I think it is somewhat of the accumulative effects from the tea before. But it feels very relaxing.
oolongfan
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Sun Dec 22, 2019 6:16 pm

Tetsubin wrote:
Sun Dec 22, 2019 8:37 am
Having the 2014 Qilan from Wuyiorigin. Its the second tea of the day (had the boutique tieluohan for about 15 steeps in a 80 ml Shiboridashi as a first tea of the day).
Sounds interesting. I have not had a Qulian in a long time. What is the flavor profile like? I am not familair with Wuyiorigin...have not had any of their teas before.
Tetsubin
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Sun Dec 22, 2019 11:06 pm

oolongfan wrote:
Sun Dec 22, 2019 6:16 pm
Tetsubin wrote:
Sun Dec 22, 2019 8:37 am
Having the 2014 Qilan from Wuyiorigin. Its the second tea of the day (had the boutique tieluohan for about 15 steeps in a 80 ml Shiboridashi as a first tea of the day).
Sounds interesting. I have not had a Qulian in a long time. What is the flavor profile like? I am not familair with Wuyiorigin...have not had any of their teas before.
Ohh i am not very good at sort of flavor profiles, I would say that the 2014 Qi Dan is not as sharp in its flavors then the Boutique Tieluohan. But I experience teas more in the way that they make me feel. The 2014 Qi Dans most prominent trait is that it is very warming, I need to take my socks off after the session but it is also very relaxing and soothing tea.

Right now I am having their 2019 laocong shuixian which is also a tea that you can feel the energy in, its subtle body feel, yet relaxing.

If I were you I would contact Cindy Chen who runs Wuyiorigin, either through her website or instagram and discuss what you like and let her recommend a few samples that you might be interested in purchasing.
oolongfan
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Mon Dec 23, 2019 7:52 am

Tetsubin wrote:
Sun Dec 22, 2019 11:06 pm
Ohh i am not very good at sort of flavor profiles, I would say that the 2014 Qi Dan is not as sharp in its flavors then the Boutique Tieluohan. But I experience teas more in the way that they make me feel. The 2014 Qi Dans most prominent trait is that it is very warming, I need to take my socks off after the session but it is also very relaxing and soothing tea.
I envy you your ability to experience tea by feel rather than taste. My adrenal issues mask my ability in this regard. Last year I had elevated cortisol so every tea gave me a warming energetic sensation, due to the adrenal response and already elevated cortisol levels (caffeine raises cortisol by stimulatingthe adrenal glands).

Since my cortisol levels are now mostly normalized, I am only now starting to discover which teas elicit a wamring-energized response versus a cooling one. Having said that, I still don't feel fully confident in my abilities as I have other endocrine issues that can still influence my response to tea.

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions. My oolong stash is depleted so time to stock up from my regular vendor as well a few new ones perhaps.
Last edited by pedant on Wed Jan 01, 2020 10:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: mod edit: fixed quote
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Victoria
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Wed Jan 01, 2020 12:42 pm

Breaking in the New Year with HY Chen’s Charcoal Roasted LiShan Primitive Wild. It is so aromatic and rich with some evergreen notes. My supplies are dwindling so only reach for this one on special occasions. Back home now I can finally enjoy teas. For some reason on this trip back East teas didn’t taste great, even though I was using bottled Icelandic Spring water and my standard Hokujo and or porcelain kyusu. Might have something to do with lack of humidity with forced air heating. Happy New Year everyone 🥂🎉🍾
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Wed Jan 01, 2020 6:16 pm

oolongfan wrote:
Mon Dec 23, 2019 7:52 am
suggestions. a few new ones perhaps.
I am drinking an aged oolong (from 1998). To me it feels gentle. I drank it twice in Tainan with several tea masters aged 50 - 75 years old who drink this tea in great quantity in tea sessions lasting a few hours. Some of them only drink aged, roasted oolong (LIshan because they are from there).

I've been told that there was a time when many people in Taiwan only drank roasted tea, that its taste is what they associate with good tea.

Most importantly for you, oolongfan, it is likely that such tea may not mess up your body. I don't know for sure; &, probably nobody could really say. I know for sure that I can drink it all day without any problem.

Of my 3 aged oolongs, the oldest is the gentlest, as seems logical. I use water 2 degrees higher than I do for the other 2 & steep a little longer to get enough flavor, which is simply an excellent taste of roast without char. (The other 2 are not quite as simple in taste; but, all are similar.)

Anyway, in one person's experience by use & by what he has perceived, aged roasted tea seems easy on the body.
Last edited by pedant on Wed Jan 01, 2020 10:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: mod edit: fixed quote
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