Still trying to get back into the swing of things after Irma. This Orchid Oolong arrived a few days after the hurricane passed, while I was still in the midst of cleanup, and I’ve been waiting to do a tasting note until I feel I can give it my full attention. Well, today still isn’t that day, but I’m drinking it anyway, because sometimes, mood trumps ability.
Steeped a slightly rounded teaspoon of leaves in 9ish ounces of water about 10 seconds off the boil, 4 minutes.
Dry scent: Cool, deep, fairly complex. Sort of sweet and bitter at the same time, with varying notes. At times a chocolatey scent comes through, or a zesty fruity scent, or the oolong base, or a faint cream underlaid by sharpness. Reminds me of a cool, damp, shady tropical forest, with mossy rocks and hanging plants.
Scent of steeped tea: Lighter than the dry scent, slightly creamy, with oolong sweetness and an underlying cool earthiness.
Taste: Would it sound odd to say this tastes like light amber? A light, refreshing oolong flavor overlaid by a touch of caramel and a veil of pale flowers, not much depth. Pleasant and drinkable, but not remarkable.
Five years ago I had a sample pouch of this that I remember being intriguingly delicious, and there are multiple reviews on the Mighty Leaf site that sound like they’re of the same tea I had then: unexpectedly floral, silky, full-bodied, addictive. I wish this tea were that tea.
Flavors: Caramel, Flowers
