Magnolia Oolong

Just used up the last of my sample today. Slightly different steeping parameters, and I made much more than I was initially going to because my mother spotted me making tea and wanted in. She has never tried an oolong before; hopefully she will enjoy it.

Higher steeping temperature, I think, may be the reason this looks darker. But it also might just be because I poured into a mug rather than a small teacup. I can’t quite remember how this tasted the last time I had it (I’m not going to cheat and read my old notes), but it’s pleasantly light in the vegetal taste, a stronger floral almost sweetness coming through with a sort of milky aftertaste. Sometimes I think I might be getting a nuttyness as well in there somewhere. And occasionally there is a sort of sweet yeasty ’bakey’ness, but it’s hard to pick out as a flavour on its own—I think it’s more of the taste I get because of how the other flavours blend together. Hmm. Especially since otherwise there’s no way I would consider this tea at all ‘bakey’. It’s light, maybe buttery, sweet.

I still think ‘magnolia’ just smells like jasmine, but it’s much lighter, so it’s nothing like A&D’s Jasmine Green, which seems to be much too strong for me to handle.

I plan to resteep this a few more times and enjoy my book. Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell (Susanna Clarke) if anyone wants to know. I’ve been reading this book on and off for four years. I love it, but I just can’t seem to finish it.

Giving this an actual RATING now, because I realized I hadn’t given it one before.

This sips like a good book-reading tea, I think.

And for the record, my mother really likes it and came back for a second steep. This second one seems to have a slight tang to it, I think, but otherwise I’m not finding any significant difference.

Another impulse buy from Murchie’s Tea Room when I visited Victoria, BC this summer. I’m a sucker for flower scented teas and having tried (and loved) TeaAve’s magnolia oolong, I didn’t have to think too hard about this one. Turns out this is very similar to the TeaAve oolong. The magnolia flavor is lush and fragrant, complementing the base tea nicely. It’s accompanied by notes of gardenia and a touch of perfume. The scenting on this tea is just right. It’s not cloying or fake-tasting.

I steeped this in my tumbler and had no problems with oversteeping or bitterness even after it sat awhile. When cold steeped, it’s refreshing and has even more flowery sweetness. This is the rare flavored tea that merits a rating of 100 from me because it’s just that good.