A short foray into the Aroma Tea Shop this afternoon which is in San Francisco’s Richmond District. A very unpretentious little store. The Owner is quite nice and humorous and offers free tea tastings. I probably tried about 10 different teas before I ended up taking this one (the Milk oolong was also quite good).
So the Eastern beauty or Oriental Beauty is known as the champagne of oolongs. There is a good reason for this comparison. I am not an expert by any means on this tea, but I found this to be slightly sweet with a faint plummy/nectarine base and light minerality. I don’t get “malt” at all here, I’m reminded a bit more of honey. Not bitter or astringent in any way. Really hit its stride for me after the first steeping. This will be a very forgiving oolong you don’t have to worry too much about oversteeping. I will also have to try cold brewing this as I am sure it will make a fantastic iced tea. I need to experiment a bit with my ideal tea/water ratio. The rating will most likely go up if I get that figured out.
