What Oolong Are You Drinking

[Ethan Kurland]

... It's like walking through a late spring wildflower meadow with grass starting to turn golden, while eating a Santa Rosa plum...

Pretty....wait. I don't even know what a Santa Rosa plum is & walking in meadows at any time of year is becoming a distant, blurred memory. Anyway, glad to have you waxing poetic about tea. Thanks.

[debunix]

Translation: It's floral, fruity, with good depth of flavor, and roasted without the toasty/earthy notes.

It reminds me of Korean Balhyocha and Norbu's Red Alishan, but without quite as much of the earthy underpinnings, or the spice of the Red Alishan.

[Ethan Kurland]

debunix, that tea sounds great & so does the sensitivity of your palate. To pick up all that taste for a tea that you say is very delicate---wow!

I know it is possible to be delicate & flavorful. I like the combination sometimes but not everyday. I usually want some "body" ( or depth might be a better word) accompaning the flavors usually.

[debunix]

The first infusion was delicate because I underinfused it. After that, it had more body.

[alejandro2high]

I have been on the search for a good Anxi oolong source that sells something besides TGY. I was originally looking at Verdant Teas, but for some reason I have never been drawn to their teas for some reason. I finally remembered that So Han, down the street from me in Austin, TX, sources Anxi oolongs. I quickly ordered a smaller of all the color oolongs and some modern TGY.

I ended up doing a side by side using bowl tea. I used small antique celadon cups as the bowls, and I was quite impressed with the final result. I believe that tasting notes tend to be extremely subjective, so I'm just speaking from my experience. The level of oxidation is clearly different in all of them. The nuance of the teas was wonderful to experience, and I was excited to see discernable differences instantly.

The TGY was more oxidized than the hairy crab or the golden turtle with a balanced green-floral taste.

The hairy crab tasted less oxidized than the TGY and had less floral notes, but the green notes weren't weaker than the TGY rather they're smoother.

The golden turtle was about the same level of oxidation as the hairy crab, it was less green and featured a light creamy profile. Really tasty.

Root mountain was probably my favorite. It was the most oxidized(mid) and had a profile that was extremely creamy, not buttery, which along with the oxidation made me think of a roasted phoenix oolong without storing floral notes. This tea was quite nice to experience.

All in all my two favorites were the hairy crab and the root mountain. The hairy crab is a perfect balance of floral and green notes and the root mountain is perfectly oxidized creamy goodness.

The last thing I want to talk about is the actual leaf. It was amazing seeing the difference in leave structure between the Anxi oolongs. I forgot to take a picture, but there is a clear difference in the leave structure especially between the root mountain and the golden turtle.

I would definitely recommend y'all order a sample of the teas if you're in the US and want to try an Anxi oolong that isn't TGY.

[debunix]

Sounds like a lovely session!

I have just gotten my third shipment of mostly yancha from Jing Tea Shop, but sadly it arrived during a heat wave so yancha comparisons this weekend.

But....the absolutely gorgeous Lala Shan Hong Shui I was so pleased with a few days ago was again a marvel just now, as a hot start/cool brewed sparkling oolong--it sparkled. Fruity, tart, just right with bubbly carbonation. And it's such a powerful tea that just a gram made a terrific pint of bubbly.

I've been doing well with a wide selection of teas I've ordered since Norbu went out of business, thanks to the many good suggestions and tasting notes shared here on TeaForum.

[Auxilium]

I have been on the search for a good Anxi oolong source that sells something besides TGY. I was originally looking at Verdant Teas, but for some reason I have never been drawn to their teas for some reason. I finally remembered that So Han, down the street from me in Austin, TX, sources Anxi oolongs. I quickly ordered a smaller of all the color oolongs and some modern TGY.

I ended up doing a side by side using bowl tea. I used small antique celadon cups as the bowls, and I was quite impressed with the final result. I believe that tasting notes tend to be extremely subjective, so I'm just speaking from my experience. The level of oxidation is clearly different in all of them. The nuance of the teas was wonderful to experience, and I was excited to see discernable differences instantly.

The TGY was more oxidized than the hairy crab or the golden turtle with a balanced green-floral taste.

The hairy crab tasted less oxidized than the TGY and had less floral notes, but the green notes weren't weaker than the TGY rather they're smoother.

The golden turtle was about the same level of oxidation as the hairy crab, it was less green and featured a light creamy profile. Really tasty.

Root mountain was probably my favorite. It was the most oxidized(mid) and had a profile that was extremely creamy, not buttery, which along with the oxidation made me think of a roasted phoenix oolong without storing floral notes. This tea was quite nice to experience.

All in all my two favorites were the hairy crab and the root mountain. The hairy crab is a perfect balance of floral and green notes and the root mountain is perfectly oxidized creamy goodness.

The last thing I want to talk about is the actual leaf. It was amazing seeing the difference in leave structure between the Anxi oolongs. I forgot to take a picture, but there is a clear difference in the leave structure especially between the root mountain and the golden turtle.

I would definitely recommend y'all order a sample of the teas if you're in the US and want to try an Anxi oolong that isn't TGY.

I just received my orders of all those teas lol, plus their milk oolong and all I can say is that I will gladly be ordering all of them again! I highly highly recommend West China Tea Company's teas, I'm always quite impressed with them and haven't found one from there that I've disliked so far!

[alejandro2high]

All in all my two favorites were the hairy crab and the root mountain. The hairy crab is a perfect balance of floral and green notes and the root mountain is perfecI'm always quite impressed with them and haven't found one from there that I've disliked so far!

I've had some of their roasted oolongs when they were Guan Yin Tea House (Wuyi, Phoenix, and TGY) that I did not like at all. The roast on them was, what I considered, way too overdone. It was obvious to me that their palate was , and still is, totally different than mine when it comes to roasted oolongs. I'm glad I thoroughly enjoyed these Anxi oolongs; I was pleasantly surprised to say the least.

[StoneLadle]

All in all my two favorites were the hairy crab and the root mountain. The hairy crab is a perfect balance of floral and green notes and the root mountain is perfecI'm always quite impressed with them and haven't found one from there that I've disliked so far!

I've had some of their roasted oolongs when they were Guan Yin Tea House (Wuyi, Phoenix, and TGY) that I did not like at all. The roast on them was, what I considered, way too overdone. It was obvious to me that their palate was , and still is, totally different than mine when it comes to roasted oolongs. I'm glad I thoroughly enjoyed these Anxi oolongs; I was pleasantly surprised to say the least.

Hi, was interesting to see the leaves in the bowls, but do you happen to have pictures of the broth?

[debunix]

Today was finally cool enough for hot midday tea. I'm enjoying some of Norbu's Red Alishan, which I've drunk quite a bit of as cool-brewed sparkling tea lately, and it's a delightful reminder of what a wonderful tea this is, with that lovely spicey/earthy note I adore, which is missing when the tea is cool brewed.

[Auxilium]

Today was finally cool enough for hot midday tea. I'm enjoying some of Norbu's Red Alishan, which I've drunk quite a bit of as cool-brewed sparkling tea lately, and it's a delightful reminder of what a wonderful tea this is, with that lovely spicey/earthy note I adore, which is missing when the tea is cool brewed.

How do you obtain norbu's red Alishan now that they are wholesale only?

[debunix]

How do you obtain norbu's red Alishan now that they are wholesale only?

I ordered what seemed like a lot of it from his going out of business sale. And because I drink my tea more dilute, it should last a while.

And: wait, he is now wholesaling tea? He said he had a new venture that would be launching in a few months.....although that was quite a while ago. And sure enough, there is a new Norbu web site. Interesting.

[Bok]

And: wait, he is now wholesaling tea? He said he had a new venture that would be launching in a few months.....although that was quite a while ago. And sure enough, there is a new Norbu web site. Interesting.

So now for the treasure as to who is stocking their teas in the US

[Auxilium]

And: wait, he is now wholesaling tea? He said he had a new venture that would be launching in a few months.....although that was quite a while ago. And sure enough, there is a new Norbu web site. Interesting.

So now for the treasure as to who is stocking their teas in the US

I emailed him and he gave me this shop for his red Alishan. https://www.regalisfoods.com/products/a ... tea-150-gr

[debunix]

Excellent: bookmarked that page!

I won't need to order more for many moons, of course....but so good to know a source. I've had some lovely, lovely teas that are similar in some ways, but this one has stood alone. I should ask Greg if he is supplying the miraculously lovely 'white oolong' to anyone....I got some 2011 and 2012 'White Oolong' from Jenai in Nantou, Taiwan; I think those were the only years Greg carried it.

Today's oolong, BTW, was again some sparkling Red Alishan.