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I just received some dark oolong from Taiwan and was wondering what to look for as far as characteristics we’re concerned. What’s the best way to brew it.

Can you give more details about the tea?

'Dark' as opposed to low-roast/light green and lighter flavored oolongs still covers a large range from toasty earthy versions, fruity/plummy teas like the best of black teas without the bitterness.

There are so many different teas in Taiwan that are “dark” processed... can’t say much unless knowing the exact tea.

There’s dozens of styles and cultivars all with different characteristics. Add age to it and it gets even more complicated.

As to brewing, gong fu parameters and a Zini sort of clay tend to work well. Of its prime quality Zhuni can be preferable.

Porcelain first to determine its faults and limitations.

I agree with @Bok; knowing which tea is involved would be a big help. As to "dark" Taiwanese oolongs in general, I tend to steep these somewhat longer than the "greener" ones.

Bok wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 22, 2020 1:40 am

As to brewing, gong fu parameters and a Zini sort of clay tend to work well. Of its prime quality Zhuni can be preferable.

Porcelain first to determine its faults and limitations.

What are the common faults and limitations? And for each one, how do you remediate?

I don't think there's a checklist as such but if anyone can come up with one it's gonna be @Bok...

But to hazard a guess, with dark, assuming roasted oolong, the number one thing for me at least is the Fire Factor...

Rolling Factor also comes into play sometimes, this is related to compression of the signature oolong nuggets of pleasure... For me at least, cos you wanna make sure you got room for them to unfurl but yet get a sufficiently decadent quantity into the pot or gaiwan to maximise your brew....

Then taste and feel... Flavour and texture... Gosh for dark oolong as a general term? ...but basically you want the same in any good tea... Balance , power and weight... Mids highs lows, bright dark dull...

The gaiwan is very good for picking out details, but to remediate, you need to know what your end point is... Generally mine is to achieve power and balance and with full understanding that my pot, leaf ratio and brewing time are the only three things I can really control once the tea is in my hands...

...and grandpa style is great for dark oolongs... Can be like drinking a super healthy good for you type of root beer...

...but good dark oolong for me has to have the smoke, florals, dark sweetness and mouth feel integrated... It should grip the tongue and the corners of the mouth with good lingering flavour and returning aroma on the breath...

If you're smiling after a sip it's all good

Textbook stuff really ...

And to remedy... I'd recommend drinking the tea in the shop if possible and if you're not smiling the remedy is to not buy the tea and buy one that makes you smile...

And if it's a sample, well then it's done its job...

Getting a tea to fix is a bit fiddly... But it can be fun oh yes, like those teas one gets via gift boxes or discovers stashed away somewhere...

Oftentimes it's just figuring out whether the pot needs to be muting or enhancing and away you go... If you feel the roast needs taming, mute it a bit... If the whole thing just needs a volume boost, good fine DCQ would do hahahaa .. if the roast needs taming, shorter steeps might work but I like power and punch to deliver flavour and texture so I prefer darker steeps as well... So perhaps less leaf but I try to stay in the region of 1/3 to 1/2 of the pot and it's a struggle for me...

StoneLadle wrote: ↑

Fri Oct 16, 2020 10:18 pm

...but good dark oolong for me has to have the smoke, florals, dark sweetness and mouth feel integrated... It should grip the tongue and the corners of the mouth with good lingering flavour and returning aroma on the breath...

If you're smiling after a sip it's all good

Textbook stuff really ...

This speaks to me. I’ve found if I brew for mouthfeel, everything else follows.

And as others have said, a dark Taiwanese oolong is too generic of a description:

Rolled or strips? Medium or heavily oxidized? Medium or heavily roasted? Charcoal or electric roast? Tieguanyin, Shi Ji Chun, Ching Shin, Jing Shuan, Tsui Yu, etc? Terroir, including date of harvest?

All these things significantly affect what you can expect from a dark Taiwanese oolong.

You don’t have to know all of these things to enjoy the tea, but knowing them will help you understand what to expect.

For example, I would expect a medium oxidized, medium roasted Si Ji Chun to not have many infusions, and to have some fruitiness (and possibly some floral notes on the second infusion).

A winter or late fall harvest will have more pectin and therefore a thicker mouthfeel. Tea picked after the first heavy rains will likely have watered down flavors. Electric roast is good but charcoal roast fills the mouth more. Tieguanyin will have a wholly unique, candy-like flavor with a swirling sensation in the nose.

It goes on and on...