silk oolong/milk oolong

[sippy cup]

i've seen a few teas around online that are "infused with the creaminess of milk" called silk oolongs or milk oolongs. i guess that should sound pretty straightforward, but to me it doesn't.

what are these oolongs "infused" with milk, and what do they taste like?

[jogrebe]

I've had a few higher quality cooked puerhs that fit the bill of being called milky or silky. Pretty much they had a real smooth taste to them and a texture that reminded you of drinking whole milk.

[rabbit]

I've had silk oolong, it smelled like a fresh baked buttery milky pastry... quite relaxing, and delicious... that is until about the 3rd sip when you feel like you are going to gag from the strong smell and flavour... I personaly did not like it at all and couldn't finish the cup.

[sippy cup]

well, i've had it now, and the kind i had was really delicious, whole cup through. i just still wish i knew what the term meant. obviously the taste is slightly remniscient of milk, but the descriptions said "infused" with milk, and i just don't know...

[shen]

This oolong has the fragrance of warm milk. There seem to be
two types available - one naturally occuring; one scented.
I have heard that the flavor develops when there are very sudden and dramatic weather changes while the tea is growing.
I have had two very, very good milk oolongs - one Jian Xuan Milk Oolong from Red Blosson (online and in San Francisco) (online),http://www.redblossomtea.com/d ... a&item=360 and Holy Mountainhttp://www.holymtn.com/tea/oolongtea.htm[/url]. Both are excellent. I love this tea; but, also enjoy variety.
If you want to give this tea a try, make sure it is of good quality.
These two vendors are excellent.
Happy sipping!
Shen

[kd]

Milk oolong is not made from infusing milk into the leaves. This unique sweet milk taste comes from a drop in temperatures shortly before picking the tea leaves. To learn more go to

http://www.tealaden.com/product/quangzh ... ng-105.cfm

This is a great site for information and quality teas.

[tomasini]

i used to say i knew a lot about oolongs but this is something new to me...i eagerly await to try out silk/milk oolongs! Thanks for posting the inquiry or I may have gone through life never knowing...

[MarshalN]

Milk oolong should be from Taiwan and the scent should not be added -- it's from the tea itself. Those are the good ones, and you really do get a sort of milky creamy taste from it.

The scented ones, I've never had, but I can't imagine it being very good.

[shen]

MarshalN,
Quite right! Even smells nasty! I do enjoy the Formosa Milk Oolong from Red Blossom best!
Shen

[hooksie]

MarshalN,
Quite right! Even smells nasty! I do enjoy the Formosa Milk Oolong from Red Blossom best!
Shen

Are you referring to this?


Edit: Alright just realized how old this is... my bad.

[tsverrir]

I've had both natural and scented milk oolong. The natural one has a slight buttery smell and a noticeable milky/buttery flavor. The scented on smells more sweet (the dry leaf) but the taste didn't live up to the smell.
I find an occasional cup of the natural one enjoyable but it's far from being my favorite.

[teaguy]

Here's a brief history of Jin Xuen Oolong:

There was a Dr. Wu in Taiwan, who is (was - he died recently) famous for his tea research. Starting in 1950, he did extensive studies of Taiwan's tea varietals. In 1981, he successfully created a new tea varietal from cross pollination of 2 types: The father was 'hard red heart', and the mother was 'Taiwan No. 8 Oolong". He called his new tea Jin Xuen Oolong.

This tea is picked and produced following High Mt. tea procedures - lightly oxidized & roasted, and produces a smooth 'milky' feeling on the tongue, which is where the 'milk' or 'silk' descriptions come in. There are some producers in Taiwan that also take inferior Jin Xuen leaf and treat it to produce a stronger 'dairy' aroma - usually by the 3rd cup of this tea you'll notice a sharp drop off in flavor. With 'real' Jin Xuen, the flavor lasts through 4-6 infusions.

I think a good point to remember is that it's not supposed to 'taste like a milk tea' - it's more that the feeling on the tonge is slightly creamy, not an actual milk flavor. Some of the marketing hype for this tea may make it seem otherwise, which can be a big let down when you find the actual tea isn't what you expected.

As to the references listed about 'picking the tea after a quick drop in temperature'. that must be a Chinese thing, as it isn't the case at all with Taiwan teas.

[Victoria]

Then there's this theory:
http://www.tealaden.com/product/quangzh ... ng-105.cfm

[teaguy]

kd already posted a link to that. I wouldn't call it a theory - more of a legend. There are lots of those type of stories regarding tea history, which is part of the fun of learning about tea.

My previous post is regarding Jin Xuen Oolong, which is an oolong created and produced in Taiwan, and is not theory, but fact (Dr. Wu also created Cui Yu (Tsuey Yu) Oolong, which is another light oolong tea popular with young people here).

Mainland teas marketed as 'silk' or 'milk' oolong are not Jin Xuen Oolong. I think it's important to be aware of the difference.