Ooooh Darjeeling

Ooooh, this is good! Adagio bigwig Charles Cain insisted that I try it during my recent visit to one of Adagio’s retail shops. I’m not overfond of Darjeeling oolongs, but this one is really, really good. Clean and crisp, but also slightly fruity. Color me impressed.

This is a great multi-cateory tea! It has the unmistakable sweetness and muscatel of a malty second flush darjeeling (despite the description mentioning that it is a first flush) with the flavors of a golden amber Formosa oolong…namely the peachy notes with a hint of aromatic spices. Together, the flavors combine and create (what I think is) a whole new level of flavor that one wouldn’t ever consider possible from the two types of teas separately. I smell and taste rather strong examples of cinnamony clove…without it actually being flavored with either spice. Needless to say, I bought a big tin of this and am enjoying a cup right now. :)

This has got to be one of the prettiest teas I’ve ever seen. It has really, genuinely large wiry leaves, that range in colour from almost black through brown, green and a creamy white. It reminds me both of a bird’s nest, and of white peony. In common with the latter, both twigs, leaves and buds are easily identifiable in the dry mix. It’s so airy and interesting-looking, it’s hard to believe it’s actually tea.

Brewed, this has a mineral, slightly metallic scent that reminds me both of oolongs and darjeelings. Given that this is a darjeeling oolong, I guess that makes sense. The liquor is a medium golden-brown, which is about what I was expecting. So far, so good.

I don’t mind darjeelings, but oolongs have never really been my thing. It’s understanable, then, if a little disappointing, that this tea really isn’t my thing either. I’m not picking up many of the complexities others seem to rave about, which is sort of spoiling my enjoyment. I’m picking up a muscatel note, and a slight base spiciness, but that’s about all. I feel I should be getting more from this tea, and I do genuinely want to like it (particularly as it looks so gorgeous, I suspect). I’m going to experiment a little with brew times, temparatures, and quantity before I give up on this. I would quite like to add some honey, which seems kind of perverse, but I might give it a go anyway. For the minute, though, it’s not entirely what I hoped it would be.

Quite good.

Seemed to hint at some flavors that are completely beyond my ability to identify.

I like how it is not quite a strong as a black tea, but seemed to be stronger than a green tea.

This is the first Oolong I’ve had (at least in loose leaf form). Will definitely keep drinking this, but I’m also now curious about other varieties to try.

This is another tea I received from a member of another board. I was lucky enough to actually receive it in the tin version of the sample.
The leaves are very beautiful. They have a downy fluff that reminds me instantly of white tea. When I first received this I assumed it was black tea. The smell is very different than other oolongs that I’ve encountered. The liquor is toasted brown colored and it is very fragrant. There is something almost fruity about the smell of this tea.
This tea is really surprising me! I don’t normally warm to this type of profile, but this is wonderful. This tea is very sweet and is much lighter than what I was expecting. I love how smooth this is. I was expecting maybe a bit more bite/astringency but it just isn’t there.

This tea came in an Oolong sampler.
I have little experience with oolongs and have never had a straight Darjeeling, so I was reticent to try this tea. It doesn’t remind me of the straight oolongs I have tried (all 2 of them!). It tastes like a fruity, less intense black tea. I can note what tastes like grape.
I will revisit it after I have had some experience with darjeeling. Waiting on an Upton sample.

Finishing off with a very nice treat!

I’ll admit, I’m both wholly unfamiliar with darker oolongs and completely ignorant of darjeelings, so I’m not the best to score this in comparison to other oolongs or darjeelings, but an oolong from Darjeeling, apparently rare and an experience all by itself? I had to give it a shot. I bought a sample from Adagio months ago, but never got around to trying it, and having it now, it’s quite nice (and a definite palate cleanser after the other, not very good teas I’ve had this evening).

Dry in the bag, it smells sweet and husky. Brewed, the liquor is a dark hazelnut with some amber tinges, a very warm and inviting colour. It smells a bit nuttier in the cup, but I’m not sure if that’s the best word to use in describing how darjeelings smell. Either way, it’s not a disappointment. Brisk in the mouth, sweet and malty. As an introduction to darjeelings, I am very much not disappointed.

Strangely light for a darker oolong. Leaves in the package smell floral, like some other darjeeling teas that I have had my nose in before. Once steeped the slight floral notes are still there but not overwhelming. In addition I get a hint of black tea and something else… Maybe a slight malty nuttiness… This will require further research in the smelling department! laughs

Taste, is not overwhelming, slight notes of fruit, yet hard to nail down, fig maybe? Slight woodiness kind of like a very light Rooibos tea. All in all I may need to add more leaf in my next steeping (4 teaspoons to just under two cups of water, however the leaves are long enough that I can’t say they were a full four teaspoons). As it cools the floral notes are fading and the tea is tasting like a lighter black tea. The nose is still slightly of fig… A nice cup I will say…

A great late morning dark oolong tea that still has some kick but isn’t the typical morning black. I may need to buy some more of this than just the sample.

Leaves smell malty and examining wet leaves, I see tips of bud and a leaf and relatively whole leaves. Taste honeyed tones and it veers more toward a light black than a green, for an oolong. Will add more later but I foresee lots of tastings paired with dim sum.

Maybe the first flush Darjeeling I just drank is clouding my judgment but I am not uttering any ‘ooohs’ or ‘aaahs,’ that’s for sure.

The aroma coming from the tin is very Darjeeling-like and absolutely delicious and I couldn’t wait to brew some. My excitement ended as soon as I took a sip. The tea tastes surprisingly bland, it’s some sort of generic dark oolong with a hint of muscatel which is discernible if you try real hard to find it. Or maybe I’m even imagining it because I know it’s Darjeeling and it is supposed to be there.