No. 001 Oolong Ice Cream

Summer Vacation! I was able to get this limited edition tea (from 2015!) from Ost in a cupboard sale. Thank you Ost! I’ve been happy with the few Steven Smith Teamaker teas I’ve been able to sample from my local grocery (err… all three…) so I’m excited to try this one, a Taiwanese oolong blended to taste like an ice cream flavor with input from Salt & Straw (my last trip to Portland, Oregon, I had a chance to have ice cream there, and it was the best; they had chocolate covered potato chip ice cream at the time, which just sang to my Idahoan heart).

The tea brews a lovely golden color and smells a bit like… butterscotch? Something about the buttery note of the oolong base plus something sweet and sort of caramelly all hitting my nose at once, I think. I wouldn’t peg the flavor as particularly reminding me of a vanilla ice cream, as I don’t think the flavors are coming off quite strong enough or creamy enough to really hit that spot, but the flavor is certainly unique and delicious. I rarely see oolong blends, especially ones done well, and in my opinion this is an oolong blend done well. The oolong base is rich and buttery, which compliments the sweet vanilla and sarsparilla notes nicely. The sarsparilla is particularly nice, it’s not too heavy but comes out toward the end of the sip and leaves a nice aftertaste. The tea still has that oolong floral element, and I get a bit of a floral softness toward the back of my tongue late into the sip, and I wonder if the jasmine is making the floral tones even more pronounced. I do love the floral notes in the tea, but wonder if that is what is making it not “read” quite as ice cream like to me?

Lovely tea. It’s sad this isn’t available anymore.

Thanks for this one from your sale, Ost! This is definitely a unique blend that I really wanted to try. I wouldn’t say it tastes exactly like ice cream, but there is certainly something delicious about it. I just wish the flavors were more pronounced. The oolong itself is definitely of the creamy/milky variety. The oolong becomes more noticeable with more steeps but it never gets too powerful. Probably because there are so many other goodies in the blend. The sarsparilla is the most noticeable. But like I said, I wish the other ingredients would have made more of a presence. (Like the sea salt! or the almonds! or the vanilla! or the jasmine!) But this was stored in a thin baggie, so maybe that is what happened to it. I should mention that anyway. I wouldn’t say no to a cup of this though. I’ll try stronger parameters next time.
Steep #1 // 10 minutes after boiling // 1 1/2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 6 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #3 // just boiled // 2 1/2 minute steep

Holy crap, you guys! This tea legit smells and tastes just like ice cream! It totally has that creamy, vanilla flavor to it! I was shocked at how much it tastes like ice cream, I’ve never tried anything like it. Too bad that it’s already out of stock, more people should be able to try it!
I really like it, but it does have that creaminess to it that makes me feel nauseous. I drank a cup of it today, along with another tea at the same time (different cups though…xD) so it kinda broke up the milky flavor so it didn’t make me sick. But I still feel like it has that potential. If it does it’s gonna have to go on the sale list. :( But I hope not. It’s a remarkable tea that is spot on with ice cream. Which I barely eat anymore becuase it always gave me insane heartburn or made me super sick back in the day…well like three years ago constantly, but I’ve not really been able to have it again since. My pain wasn’t absolutely horrible this morning when I was drinking tea though, so that also helped me not so prone to getting sick. I’m gonna try it again. Just have to remember to drink it at a completely safe time for me physically. I really lovee the vanilla flavor in this tea, it’s insanely good. I don’t wanna give it uppp!