Taiwan Ginseng Oolong

Had a very late start to the day so I grabbed this ginseng oolong on my way out the door for a boost of energy. I love oolong, I love ginseng, I love Taiwan. I’m glad I picked this up.

Tried brewing in a gaiwan around 90°C at first, but it was being very stubborn. I guess the way it’s processed into little pearls benefits more from boiling water and probably a Western-style brew, which I’ll try next time. Eventually did coax out the flavours though. It’s very sweet like honey with deeper medicinal/oven roasted vegetable notes and a slight floral aftertaste. Reminds me of some of the GABA oolongs I’ve tried actually. The liquor isn’t very thick, but it’s lubricating and fragrant. Thankfully it has taken me into a place of calm alertness, similar to a matcha buzz. All in all a lovely oolong indeed, excellent for a pick-me-up in Winter!

This is my first ginseng oolong. I bought a 5 g sample from Tao Tea Leaf several years ago and finally decided to give it a go. I steeped the entire 5 g in a 120 ml teapot at boiling for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, followed by several uncounted steeps because this tea just wouldn’t quit.

The dry aroma of these compact, powder-coated pellets is of honey and syrupy sweetness. When I poured the boiling water for the first steep, the tea seemed to crackle and squeak, which was weird. The first few steeps are very light and have flavours of licorice sweetness, honey, and herbs. The texture seems syrupy, though that could just be an unconscious association with the flavours. The leaves start to open up around the fifth steep and show classic oolong flavours of grass and butter, though the ginseng still predominates. The ginseng powder also gets into my cup. As the session progresses, the buttery, vegetal oolong becomes more prominent. Even at the tenth steep, some of the balls haven’t opened and the flavour remains strong.

This tea had great longevity and I almost certainly could have coaxed a few more steeps out of it. However, not being a licorice fan, I eventually gave up, probably around steep 14. I found the sweetness to be kind of cloying (this from someone who likes bug-bitten teas) and didn’t get much from the oolong. I’m not rating this because I don’t have a quality benchmark for this kind of tea.

I always enjoy learning about new teas, even when I suspect they’re not for me, so I’ll call this part of my tea education and move on.

This was wonderful! I bought this because recently a friend of mine had acquired some ginseng oolong and I was very intrigued to try it out. These small nuggets resemble a furry gunpowder green. I brewed them in my gaiwan gongfu style. I wished these pebbles once to allow them to open up. The aroma was immediately enticing! My tea room was filled with a succulent honey aroma. The flavor was phenomenal! The initial sip consisted of a nectar sweet syrup and a vegetal fresh base. This was a wonderful tea! The sweet flavor lasted about four steepings and then it reduced to only a warm vegetal flavor. This brew leaves a slight camphor sugar aftertaste which is incredibly enjoyable. I actually really appreciated this tea, even though I may have had some doubts. This has an excellent price, and I will be stocking up!

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