This is the last of my infused oolong sampler from Naivetea that I have yet to try, though I do have a few of the high-mountain ones left. I put this one off at first because I remembered not being totally taken with the aroma of the dry leaf, but then when I just smelled it now the scent was a strong, lovely floral. I’m not super familiar with osmanthus as a flower, though I’ve had a few different osmanthus oolongs that I believe I’ve enjoyed. I feel like they all taste pretty different, though, so I never know what to expect.
They weren’t kidding about the intense osmanthus aroma. Steeped, this tea is incredibly floral to the point of being perfumy. There’s a slightly buttery vegetal aroma hiding somewhere underneath those flowers, but it’s being swamped! The level of florals reminds me of the Rose Violet Calendula Oolong. The flavor of the tea is slightly sweet and super floral. Wow, it’s even a little strong in the florals for me, and that’s saying something. I feel like I am drinking a bouquet, or perhaps even some osmanthus perfume. After reading Amy oh’s tasting note for this, I’m thinking that this is one that definitely needs multiple, short steeps. One long steep brought out so much osmanthus that the rest was kind of overwhelmed. As it cools, the florals calm down a little (or maybe I’m just getting desensatized to them), but it’s not so perfumy. I’m defintiely tasting more sweet, buttery, creamy notes. Not my fave from the pack by a long shot, but I think once I get my oolong gongfu set up, it will be a great tea for that.
ETA: I’m starting to wonder if somehow my samples of the floral oolongs were more heavily scented than others have tried… all these tasting notes talking about light osmanthus, hah! The Rose Violet Calendula oolong seemed stronger than I had before, as well. Odd!
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AH, I recall I loved this one for some reason… :)
I know, it’s crazy because you loved it and you’re not a fan of strong florals, but I am and I’m kind of lukewarm about it. I guess you can never tell. :)
yeah for example the Rose Violet Calendula was way too much for me. :)
I think it was TeaEqualsBliss that commented in a review that they put flavored samples up for a few weeks before tasting so the flavors have time to work into the leaf. I tried this with some Empire Tea Services teas and it did make a big difference…. Worth a try.
I do agree that flavored samples sometimes change, especially with fresh blended ones, but these samples have been sitting in my cupboard for almost 2 months now, lol.
In that case, nevermind! lol
Maybe your tongue is just morphing into a super-tasting instrument? Interesting experience! I also find that what I drink before a tea can really influence my tasting.
I generally find when my taste buds go into overdrive its either a dietary shift or a cold coming on…but I hear what your saying about those teas, but after having suffered through many versions of osmanthus, I felt that this was about the best balance of creamy, buttery, green and fresh oolong and bold, swanky osmanthus…and the osmanthus didn’t come off as synthetic, but rather, it was a saucy, sauntering “take me as I am”….I liked the Lychee (of the flavors) best of the bunch…and ordered a pound and have been using it in cuppings and talks to the stunned ‘wow’ of the crowd…if you have a chance that one is amazing
I had my first osmanthus in late December in the osmanthus puer from purepuer.com. It must be very mild because I don’t taste it very much, or even smell it all that much, though it is pleasant enough. It just isn’t overpowering. My kids liked plain ouer better, though. I received a sample of Osmanthus oolong from Dammann Frères. Maybe I should give it a try today. It is the tiniest sample I have ever seen, definitely just enough for one small cup, so I hope it resteeps well!
I have a sample of the Lychee as well and agree that it is awesome, but my fave is actually the Passion Fruit. They’re all quite delicious, though!
@ashmanra- ooh, an oolong from Dammann, I am interested to see how that is! Not that I need more things to add to my wishlist there… :D
I thought the Passionfruit was great too. :)
AH, I recall I loved this one for some reason… :)
I know, it’s crazy because you loved it and you’re not a fan of strong florals, but I am and I’m kind of lukewarm about it. I guess you can never tell. :)
yeah for example the Rose Violet Calendula was way too much for me. :)
I think it was TeaEqualsBliss that commented in a review that they put flavored samples up for a few weeks before tasting so the flavors have time to work into the leaf. I tried this with some Empire Tea Services teas and it did make a big difference…. Worth a try.
I do agree that flavored samples sometimes change, especially with fresh blended ones, but these samples have been sitting in my cupboard for almost 2 months now, lol.
In that case, nevermind! lol
Maybe your tongue is just morphing into a super-tasting instrument? Interesting experience! I also find that what I drink before a tea can really influence my tasting.
I generally find when my taste buds go into overdrive its either a dietary shift or a cold coming on…but I hear what your saying about those teas, but after having suffered through many versions of osmanthus, I felt that this was about the best balance of creamy, buttery, green and fresh oolong and bold, swanky osmanthus…and the osmanthus didn’t come off as synthetic, but rather, it was a saucy, sauntering “take me as I am”….I liked the Lychee (of the flavors) best of the bunch…and ordered a pound and have been using it in cuppings and talks to the stunned ‘wow’ of the crowd…if you have a chance that one is amazing
I had my first osmanthus in late December in the osmanthus puer from purepuer.com. It must be very mild because I don’t taste it very much, or even smell it all that much, though it is pleasant enough. It just isn’t overpowering. My kids liked plain ouer better, though. I received a sample of Osmanthus oolong from Dammann Frères. Maybe I should give it a try today. It is the tiniest sample I have ever seen, definitely just enough for one small cup, so I hope it resteeps well!
I have a sample of the Lychee as well and agree that it is awesome, but my fave is actually the Passion Fruit. They’re all quite delicious, though!
@ashmanra- ooh, an oolong from Dammann, I am interested to see how that is! Not that I need more things to add to my wishlist there… :D
I thought the Passionfruit was great too. :)