The last of my free samples from AprTea. Thanks so much! These types of oolongs are usually tough for me to describe, but I’ll give it a try. The leaves are dark and twisted, but wide, with a red/purple tinge to them. The flavor is certainly very sweet with a caramel note, almost like a minty cooling feel after the sip. There is also a roasted flavor, not too much but noticeable. (The roasted flavor might be why I don’t gravitate towards teas like these, but it is pleasant enough here.) Almost a starchy quality too. The flavor is definitely CARAMELIZED something or other. It’s very much like maple syrup over roasted maple leaves, if I had to describe the flavor. With the third steep, the roasted flavor is mostly gone and I’m left with an incredibly sweet and smooth drink. I don’t think this one can be oversteeped, and I think I could have kept steeping past three mugs. If I had to stock up on this TYPE of tea, it’d probably be this one. Though again, I don’t have much experience with these types of oolongs because they aren’t my favorite. But this was certainly an enjoyable tea drinking session.
Steep #1 // 2 teaspoons for a full mug // 11 minutes after boiling // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // 10 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #3 // just boiled // 3 min
Flavors: Caramel, Maple, Maple Syrup, Roasted
