I have a sample of the Coconut Pouchong, and I enjoy it greatly! It's just soooo smooth; like coconutty velvet on the tongue. It makes me want a cup just thinking about it!
I also drink Ti Kuan Yin regulary, and it's a wonderful cup to help you step further into the world of oolongs. But like you, I too, am a novice to most things Oolong!
And Jasmine #12 is one of my favourites too! I'm drinking a 2nd infusion right now!
Well I tried the Pouchong (im going crazy with teas today)
I think pouchong is a very mellow flavor.. but appealing to me.
I am starting to realize that oolongs are like a mellow version of green tea. That seem to have a characteristic that reminds me of green tea.. but is less intense (maybe sweeter and more aromatic)
I am sure this is an undeveloped palate talking here. All I know is you can mark me down as an official oolong fan. I am definitely hooked!
I will have to try these roasted varieties of oolongs for good measure now that edkrueger recommends. (how does roasting change the flavor of oolong? sweeter/less sweeter? bitter/less bitter? smokey? Not sure how roasting effects teas yet.
Last question for anyone who knows... do oolongs have the antioxidant benefits like green and white tea? I always like to think of beverage I consume in mass quantities as being something that's beneficial for my body. Also how does the caffeine compare to other teas (less then black, more then green, etc etc?)
I think pouchong is a very mellow flavor.. but appealing to me.
I am starting to realize that oolongs are like a mellow version of green tea. That seem to have a characteristic that reminds me of green tea.. but is less intense (maybe sweeter and more aromatic)
I am sure this is an undeveloped palate talking here. All I know is you can mark me down as an official oolong fan. I am definitely hooked!
I will have to try these roasted varieties of oolongs for good measure now that edkrueger recommends. (how does roasting change the flavor of oolong? sweeter/less sweeter? bitter/less bitter? smokey? Not sure how roasting effects teas yet.
Last question for anyone who knows... do oolongs have the antioxidant benefits like green and white tea? I always like to think of beverage I consume in mass quantities as being something that's beneficial for my body. Also how does the caffeine compare to other teas (less then black, more then green, etc etc?)
Nov 13th, '08, 20:14
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Remember to use a lot of leaf volume for Pouchong! It is really fluffy.
I swear nobody truly knows for sure about the antioxident issue. The theory is, less processing equals more health benefits. Thus whites and greens should reign supreme.
I would find teas you enjoy for enjoyments sake. You will likely drink more tea that way and derive more health benefits, but enjoyment should be highest priority. Health benefits should be more of a bonus. IMHO.
I just happen to enjoy the most healthy tea on the planet, sencha!
I swear nobody truly knows for sure about the antioxident issue. The theory is, less processing equals more health benefits. Thus whites and greens should reign supreme.
I would find teas you enjoy for enjoyments sake. You will likely drink more tea that way and derive more health benefits, but enjoyment should be highest priority. Health benefits should be more of a bonus. IMHO.
I just happen to enjoy the most healthy tea on the planet, sencha!
I found a site that talks about oolongs health benefits.
https://www.thepathoftea.com/health_ben ... htm#oolong
There seems to be a lot of positive things here. I especially like the one about the anti allergy (as I get allergies this time of year pretty bad)
I had to laugh when I read this excerpt off that site...
"Oolong tea has been shown to elevate spirits in some people."
Lol... I guess I am one of those people...
I do agree about drinking for pleasure and not for health. I have gotten myself in trouble adopting that philosophy with my coffee addictions (coffee is something you can definitely overdo). I think tea in general is way better for you then coffee could ever hope to be.
PS: I agree sencha is delicious.
https://www.thepathoftea.com/health_ben ... htm#oolong
There seems to be a lot of positive things here. I especially like the one about the anti allergy (as I get allergies this time of year pretty bad)
I had to laugh when I read this excerpt off that site...
"Oolong tea has been shown to elevate spirits in some people."
Lol... I guess I am one of those people...
I do agree about drinking for pleasure and not for health. I have gotten myself in trouble adopting that philosophy with my coffee addictions (coffee is something you can definitely overdo). I think tea in general is way better for you then coffee could ever hope to be.
PS: I agree sencha is delicious.
Nov 13th, '08, 20:32
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Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia
Oolong's got quite a range of colours, tastes, aromas—probably more-so than any other category of tea! So far most of your observations have come from flavoured oolongs, which aren't really representative of what this kind of tea can taste like. The flavours mute the tea and all you get is "mellow," (plus coconut or jasmine) which is nice sometimes, but not really what oolong is about.Woots wrote: I am starting to realize that oolongs are like a mellow version of green tea. That seem to have a characteristic that reminds me of green tea.. but is less intense (maybe sweeter and more aromatic)
Roasted oolongs are... a whole different cup of tea, (*groan*) and it's best to have a bit of experience going into them or you could very easily get the wrong impressions. You certainly won't find any flavoured roasted oolongs! (I hope.) There's a ton of green, unroasted oolongs from China and Taiwan that you might want to explore first. Taiwanese dong ding was my introduction to real oolong tea, and even though lately I prefer roasted oolongs, I'm glad I didn't start with them.I will have to try these roasted varieties of oolongs for good measure now that edkrueger recommends. (how does roasting change the flavor of oolong? sweeter/less sweeter? bitter/less bitter? smokey? Not sure how roasting effects teas yet.
Adagio's new alishan, which is similar to dong ding and which I'm enjoying right now, is one such example of a great place to start. This tea screams "oolong."
Nov 14th, '08, 05:24
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Dong Ding actually is a high mountain oolongedkrueger wrote:It tastes like Dong Ding but more vegetable. That would require you having had Dong Ding to understand. Dong Ding is described as honey sent and honey taste and sweet. It tastes like high mountain Oolong, but smoother with a honey taste.
It's one of the mountain regions in Taiwan that produces oolong. Granted, the term Dong Ding can also refer to the style, but those are also usually high mountain oolong.When it comes to things like health benefits, each tea is going to have it's own unique balance of chemical constituents. Processing can change that balance, but so can a range of other things. If you really want to know about them then do some searching through http://highwire.stanford.edu
The effects are also likely to depend on the individual. If you're deficient in something that it provides then it will probably have a more noticeable effect on you than others. Some teas also have more qi than others. Overall, however, teas have a lot to offer - aroma, taste, texture, mouthfeel, aftertaste, astringency, throat-feel, retro-nasal aroma, qi, and so on. Just take some time to pay attention to every aspect of the experience. Trying to find ways to describe them (try to describe them so that someone that's never had it could understand) can also help you to tease out the details and force you to notice things that you might not otherwise notice.
Personally I see no reason not to drink tea for health reasons. It's obvious that if you're getting into the good teas then you're doing so for enjoyment, but they definitely provided something (in the amino acids, particularly) that I was lacking, and I have used the health benefits as a hook to get people like my mom into tea as well.
Personally I too think you'd be best off with TeaCuppa's oolongs, as they tend to specialize in oolongs and carry a good variety that should serve to help you find what you like most. Then you can branch out to the ones that specialize in the ones you like most. TeaCuppa actually specializes in Wuyi yancha, but they have a good variety and many of their others are pretty solid as well.