This makes a damn fine cup of tea! I consider this oolong to be a ‘tank’ as I brewed it for more than eight times, so much I couldn’t finish my last cup. The only reason why I don’t give it 100%, is because of it’s availability, it was often sold out in shop.
When you buy a Alishan/Lishan consider yourself buying concentrated tea leaves that are tanks! Kind of like how laundry detergent is concentrated to take out more loads of clothes, it is same thing, so it compensates for it’s price. I brewed this in a traditional prewarmed gaiwan. The water is prepared a little shy of boiling, or at a boil and I let it cool for a minute or two. I wash the leaves with a quick spot of the hot water, and dump. My ritual with oolongs is at one minute ascending brews. Like I said this tea is a tank, so after the fifth brew I start brewing with boiling water.
The resulting cup is aromatic with a sweet smell reminiscent of a Japanese green tea, which mirrors in it’s sweet, almost vegetably-complex taste. It has a smooth finish with a enjoyable lingering aftertaste. The leaf quality is amazing! Whole processed rolled leaves will open fully. It could rise above water level in whatever you’re brewing in.
If you want to impress someone, or need a focus booster take this tea into consideration. Like all oolongs it does a number on delicate metabolisms. This tea actually makes me hungry! So not for a person curving portions out of their diet.