Thailand Royal Pearl Oolong Red Tea
Posted: Sep 22nd, '12, 17:41
To me the name is overly long--pretentious. And it leaves out a key word. The tea is organic. All the workers are family of the farmers who form the cooperative that grows & processes the tea: Jin Xuan variety brought to Thailand from Taiwan decades ago to be grown at 1,200 - 1,400 meters. When processed it is further oxidized than usual. Reportedly, the top 2 leaves are rolled w/1 bud for each pearl of tea. My initial 20 grams looked as if this was how it was. I tried 6 grams for 12 oz. at 180 degrees steeped for 2 minutes. The taste reminded me of the free tea of Chinese restaurants in the USA, but much better: w/o bitterness & besides being perfectly smooth, a touch of sweetness that builds up & remains in one's mouth. Something about it kept me wanting more & continuing to enjoy it.
The liquid was a beautiful reddish color in my cup.
I tried 8 gr. w/ 16 oz. at 190 degrees in a pot at a restaurant & invited people around me to try some. Everyone liked it. A Chinese man got excited about it & sat w/ me & my lady, & kept refilling the tiny cup I had given him. He also kept telling me that this tea could not be from Thailand, despite hearing of my travels etc., that he knew tea & this classic, good Chinese tea.
I used the last 6 gr. at 200 degrees.
I got at least a few good pots for each of the three sessions for which I had divided the 20 grams. I could not discern a difference for lower or higher temperature for steeping. The tea did need 2 minutes to get a lot of flavor & did not suffer for extra time. I like teas that don't need exact conditions to be good.
So, I ordered a huge amount to be sent in vacuum-packed foil bags of 20, 100, & 1000 grams to my hotel, a few hundred miles away from where the tea is grown. I had to pay in advance, no COD. I worried for a few days, but it came & almost on time. The writing on the foil is all Chinese. I show it to Chinese Thais & get the whole story: The tea is not usually sold in Thailand, but sold in China & Taiwan as Taiwanese tea. It is sold at very high prices as "special high mountain tea". Typical for Thais, no shyness about $, "how much did I pay? ....Will I sell them some at my cost?" I do.
Now, back in the USA w/ an opened 100-gram bag in front of me, I see tea that is not so beautifully rolled into tight "pearls". It is not 1/3 red buds. Also unlike the initial 20 grams, the tea tastes less sweet, not perfectly smooth; yet, I want to drink more & more & enjoy drinking it.
Perhaps each pack will be slightly different.
The liquid was a beautiful reddish color in my cup.
I tried 8 gr. w/ 16 oz. at 190 degrees in a pot at a restaurant & invited people around me to try some. Everyone liked it. A Chinese man got excited about it & sat w/ me & my lady, & kept refilling the tiny cup I had given him. He also kept telling me that this tea could not be from Thailand, despite hearing of my travels etc., that he knew tea & this classic, good Chinese tea.
I used the last 6 gr. at 200 degrees.
I got at least a few good pots for each of the three sessions for which I had divided the 20 grams. I could not discern a difference for lower or higher temperature for steeping. The tea did need 2 minutes to get a lot of flavor & did not suffer for extra time. I like teas that don't need exact conditions to be good.
So, I ordered a huge amount to be sent in vacuum-packed foil bags of 20, 100, & 1000 grams to my hotel, a few hundred miles away from where the tea is grown. I had to pay in advance, no COD. I worried for a few days, but it came & almost on time. The writing on the foil is all Chinese. I show it to Chinese Thais & get the whole story: The tea is not usually sold in Thailand, but sold in China & Taiwan as Taiwanese tea. It is sold at very high prices as "special high mountain tea". Typical for Thais, no shyness about $, "how much did I pay? ....Will I sell them some at my cost?" I do.
Now, back in the USA w/ an opened 100-gram bag in front of me, I see tea that is not so beautifully rolled into tight "pearls". It is not 1/3 red buds. Also unlike the initial 20 grams, the tea tastes less sweet, not perfectly smooth; yet, I want to drink more & more & enjoy drinking it.
Perhaps each pack will be slightly different.