Country of Origin: Taiwan
Leaf Appearance: deep green, tightly rolled
Ingredients: oolong tea
Steep time: 30 seconds
Water Temperature: 195 degrees
Preparation Method: porcelain gaiwan
Liquor: pale gold
I love milk oolong but finding an authentic one is very difficult. A lot of those available in the US are artificially flavored using powdered milk and other dubious tactics. +Mandala Tea has yet to let me down and this tea was no different. It was incredibly aromatic with a complex flavor profile. All at once my senses were bombarded with fruity and floral notes along with an almost sugary sweetness. The floral aspect was reminiscent of orchid, similar to what I would expect from Tie Guan Yin. All of this was enveloped in a buttery mouth feel and heavy notes of cream. For some reason I was reminded of one of my guilty pleasures, Cow Tails caramel candy. The creaminess stayed strong for the first several infusions and then eventually gave way to a more vegetal lean. There was no sour quality or unpleasantness, even long after the leaves were “done”.
*Just a special side note, this is 100th tea review that I’ve published this year! 🙂
Milk Oolong sample received with order from Mandala Tea.