Osmanthus tea

[Beidao]

Hi there, has anyone tried tea with osmanthus flowers? Saw it in a store and smelled it but couldn't feel no fragrance at all and didn't feel tempted to buy it. Anyway, since I like jasmine tea I'm getting curious about it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmanthus

[fencerdenoctum]

Osmanthus is pretty interesting by itself. I had some from adagio (the bags they sell, which are very very nice) and I was surprised at the taste. I'm not much into herbals myself, but its got a really mild sweetness about it that I really enjoy.

Give it a shot. If you don't like it, put it up on TeaSwap!

The Tea Sipping Swordsman,
Fencerdenoctum

[Beidao]

Big thanks, fellow tea-drinker! (I am a Quaker so I love all you Swordsmen out there and hope that you will come to revalation soon )

[kymidwife]

A teachat friend just sent me some Osmanthus Oolong from Upton's... as part of a teaswap... if you haven't tried any yet, I just wanted to give you my feedback and say I really love it.

The scent and flavor are much milder than jasmine (which I love also). When I sniffed the dry leaf, it reminded me of rosebuds, but very light. The fragrance was very mild during brewing. As for the taste, there's a very clear oolong taste that leans to the greener side, but this very mellow undertone of floral sweetness. I drank a hot cup unsweetened and enjoyed it very much, but found that my 2nd infusion was even better with a bit of sugar... it really brought out the floral experience.

I think this tea is really perfect for someone who wants to enjoy a floral experience but prefers to taste mostly tea and less perfume.

Sarah

[Victoria]

Thanks for the review Sarah, I got some today too.

I like scented but not flavored so it sounds great. I just found a Magnolia one from TeaSource that is very good too.

[kymidwife]

Thanks for the review Sarah, I got some today too.

I like scented but not flavored so it sounds great. I just found a Magnolia one from TeaSource that is very good too.

Let me know how the Magnolia compares to the osmanthus... so I can keep it in mind for future purchases. I am loving this osmanthus, very delicious. And the tea quality looks excellent, the leaves are huge!

Sarah

[Victoria]

Well it looks like Eric and I both have both now, and I put some in the Oolong Box Pass if you want to wait that long.

We should probably do a comparison post under oolongs - since we are not technically taking "flavors" here.

[hop_goblin]

What and where is this flower?

[omegapd]

Well it looks like Eric and I both have both now, and I put some in the Oolong Box Pass if you want to wait that long.

I couldn't remember if I sent you the Osmanthus, V. Glad I did. I hadn't tried the Magnolia but it's a much stronger scent than the Osmanthus...more along the lines of the Adagio Jasmine Oolongs. I'll have to try it today...

Glad the packages arrived to both of you.

EW

[Victoria]

Oops!! I thought you were sending it, so I assumed it was in there, I had not completely gone through it.

[Salsero]

What and where is this flower?

Osmanthus refers to Osmanthus fragrans, a plant of the Olive Family called both Sweet Osmanthus or -- around here at least -- Tea Olive. It blooms in the South in the winter and "the fragrance is powerful and exquisite."

I have had one tea doused with the perfume and didn't like it. Several teas, however, are named after osmanthus or said to have a natural osmanthus taste. I have never tasted or smelled anything like the flower in those teas. I think it is like saying tea smells like orchid ... it just means floral in most contexts. Huang Jin Gui from the Anxi area in Fujian province is called Golden Osmanthus in English, though apparently Huang Jin Gui itself means Golden Cinnamon Flower (BabelCarp).

Go figure.

Magnolia, of course, you know because you grew up in Texas, so I will not burden you with a disquisition on it.

[Maitre_Tea]

Osmanthus tea is a speciality in Guilin, China where the Osmanthus plants are pretty well known and can be found around the city. I remember I bought some osmanthus tea when I visited. It was very fragrant, but the tea itself was so-so

[gingkoseto]

I love osmanthus! And can't get it for now. I like to use it not only for herbal tea, but also for cakes, wines, congee, yogurt... It's such a nice flower! I wish I can get it on my next trip to Toronto.

Osmanthus oolong has nothing to do with osmanthus though. It's purely oolong, named after the flower due to its pleasant flavor and fragrance. I love osmanthus oolong too

[kymidwife]

I have a couple of osmanthus teas from Upton's... one definitely has flower blossoms in the dry leaf: ZM40: Osmanthus Tea (Guangxi Gui-Hua). It is a pouchong base.

Their other offering is a greener oolong with huge brewed leaf, ZM44: Osmanthus Oolong Se Chung, is oolong leaf only, no visible flower blossoms, and the description says it is naturally scented with osmanthus flowers.

I enjoyed them both... the 2nd is probably my favorite as I am preferring greener oolongs right now. Sometimes I blend it with another oolong if I want a more subtle fragrance... do the same with jasmine as well.

Sarah

[Teasenz]

Pretty surprised that some say that osmanthus tea isn't that fragrant. The smell of a fresh osmanthus tea should be very strong and distinctive in fact. I like this tea brewed stand-alone, but it's also pretty good with a light oolong. See this recipe: https://www.teasenz.com/chinese-tea/osm ... ecipe.html

Another really cool recipe is to make osmanthus sugar out of it.
https://www.teasenz.com/chinese-tea/osm ... syrup.html