Taiwan Alishan Oolong Tea High Mountain Tea

Decided to leave this intact from earlier today:

I walked out the door this morning and was greeted by the most beautiful orange world. The rising sun was bouncing its beams off the big fluffy clouds in the west. The result was breathtaking. I drove to work with the windows down and could smell fresh cut grass, wild onion, and garlic. There was also the scent of wet dirt. I have not noticed this for months. The Arizona like dryness we have had all summer has been replaced by Louisiana humidity. Ugh. But with it came the remnants of Isaac. It may have brought devastation on many but it brought refreshment and new life to our area. I have missed the smell of morning.

This tea came as a free sample from Nuvola Tea. There is a link on their website for a free sample. When you follow the link the sample has a 5HK price tag. Well this confused many of us who were in a messaging conversation with Nuvola. The fee is for the shipping and works out to about $0.60. Nuvola offered this one to me without the shipping fee for pointing out what was confusing to us. They mentioned the currency converts during checkout. Nuvola’s website is being worked on and hopefully it will allow buyers to see the cost in their own currency without adding to the cart for a conversion. I also hope they explain the mailing cost on the sample. It is not a big deal unless you are confused by it. I thought 5HK meant $5 and that sounded high for a sample.

The sample packet is of sturdy construction and the company logo is high class, professional looking, and very attractive. The postal service however was not so professional. The sample was largely powder when it arrived. Sorry Nuvola. It looks beautiful in the picture :) So making the best of the situation I used the entire 5g sample in my press. Normally I would have used only half. The scent seemed malty to me, though it disappears once brewed.

I checked online for Nuvola’s recommended temperature and time parameters. And brewed accordingly. The liquor was light yellow. The scent brewed is floral oolong, a bit roasted, and a bit vegetal.

The sip on the first cup is very buttery like dragon well. There is a hint of spice, it reminds me of cinnamon. I am also noticing a light bitter note, like dandelion, in the background, late in the sip. This is followed by the long lingering floral oolong aftertaste.

I just noticed someone broke the skirt on my Marvin The Martian bobble head that has been sitting on my work desk for six years. Good grief (or maybe I should say, “You’re making me very angry!”). Despite the attempts to ruin my day – I refuse it. This life is too short, and the next too long, to allow that to happen. This is a good tea and I am going to enjoy it. Take that!

Second cup – I rinsed out the press before starting this morning but I am thinking I did not wash away all the remnants of the Silk Dragon from yesterday. I am tasting some vanilla. I like it of course, but it may be left over. Or maybe not. As the cup cools, the vanilla disappears, and I am getting more of the dandelion mixed with the floral oolong.

The third steep continues where the second left off. There is still plenty of power in this but it is about to storm so this will be the last cup for this tea. Oh, almost forgot, it leaves a heavy cooling affect on the breath.

Thank you Nuvola for the sample I very much enjoyed it. To all who made it to the bottom of this – umm, sorry about the ramble.

I am fascinated by the texture of really good oolongs—so heavy and silky that you feel like you’ve used lip balm after a few good sips.

This is one of those. The flavor reminds me of butterscotch when I roll it around in my mouth.

Perfect light supper substitute…we ate from the Hobbit menu at Denny’s for lunch and OD’d on pumpkin pancakes, Shire sausage, and seedcake french toast. It’s a wonder Hobbits could even waddle, with seven meals like that a day :)

P.S. Thanks to K S for the sample!

Thank you very much for this tasting opportunity, Nuvola Teas! They sent me a small sampler, and I am very excited to try all these high grade teas.

The leaves of this tea are lovely. Glossy and dark green, rolled into little nuggets with their stems on the outside. They smell delicious and springlike, with a hint of sweet creaminess. I’m still getting into oolong, and this seemed very promising.

I was gentle with it, brewing it just under 185 degrees for a minute and a half. The resulting liquor was a pretty pale green that smelled faintly nutty. I allowed it to cool for a minute or two before tasting. It’s an absolutely pristine flavor… somehow rich and mildly vegetal. The creaminess I smelled translates well into the taste. So smooth. There’s also a gentle floral taste in the background that I mostly taste when I breathe out. I think I like that part the best.

In all, this is a very complex and tasty oolong. I made a cup for myself and my brother, and almost wish I had kept it all for myself!

A review of Alishan Oolong Tea by Nuvola Tea

Date: 11/11/2012
Company: Nuvola Tea
Tea Name: Alishan Oolong
Tea Type/ Oolong
Region: Taipei Taiwan
Steeping Vessel/Amt. Leaf: cup/ loose leaf
Plucking Season:
Liquor Color: light yellow
Leaf Characteristics: The tea leaves when brewed became plump and supple with a buttery taste to the wet leaves.

1st Steeping:
Water temperature: 200 Fahrenheit
Time: 5 minutes

Note: I emptied the sample packet into my tea mug and pour the boiling water, leaving it to steep for five minutes. I like watching how fully the leaves plump while brewing and when I place the cover on my mug the leaves were able to fully steam/as if cooking so that when I remove the cover, I am met with this green/veggie like aroma; smelling so much like broccoli. As I taste the tea it is sweet and buttery like, there is absolutely no astringency to this oolong tea.

This Alishan Oolong is a floral bouquet with a smooth buttery finish of a taste when swallowed. I was able to have multiple infusions with this sample. I drink it first alone and later during the day with my diner, some Udon Noodles and it made for a very enjoyable meal since I felt like I was in a restaurant where they keep refilling your tea pot with oolong tea or something similarly.

Thank you Nuvola Tea for sending me a sample of this Alishan Oolong, it is quite nice, just as I remember. I had some of Fong Mong’s Alishan earlier this summer as well; they are both lovely teas that I have enjoyed with a full meal.

Thank you Nuvola Teas for this free sample!

I decided to brew this tea in the Gongfu manner.

Leaf Quality:
The dried tea leaves smelled very floral. They had dark and light green as well as yellow sections, and were very delicate. The brewed leaves smelled wonderful. I detected roses, peach, and perhaps some cinnamon. This is one very floral tea! They unfurled, but the beautiful greens and yellows still sowed up. Perhaps I also smelled honeysuckle.

Brewed Tea:
The brewed tea had a bright greenish-yellow appearance, and was very sweet-smelling. The scent was almost as floral as the leaves themselves. The taste was wonderful too. A bit of vegital hints behind great floral qualities. The first brewing was very nice. Very pleasant.
Second Brew
This steeping was very floral as well. There was a light scent of pineapple. Aside from the new fruity scent, the cup was very consistent with the first, and was very tasty.
Third Brew
This was lighter than the previous cups. Nevertheless, it was still great. Those floral qualities pull through each steep. Silky smooth, and very sweet.
Fourth Brew
This brew showed more fruit notes, but the floral qualities were still present. It was much weaker than the third brew.

This is a very nice Oolong. I’m glad to have tried it.

I asked for a gooseneck Bonavita kettle for Christmas especially for our gong fu sessions, and this is my first time trying it. I like it, and it works very well for this.

Since I knew I wanted to gong fu, and since I am trying to get old tea out of the house, I took a chance on this sample. It is quite old – this company is no longer in business – but I wanted to give it a shot. I am glad I did because it was very good. I suppose it really helped that it was a small, individually sealed pack and some oolongs age very well anyway.

I warmed the gaiwan and put the leaves in. After a minute we gave the leaves a sniff and found that they still had good aroma and were on the savory side, but with creamy, almost vanilla frosting notes.

The liquor was not as strong as a TGY, but was full of flavor and very tasty. It was smooth, slightly savory, with sweet dessert notes and a bit of floral. I got five solid steeps,before it was weak enough that it wasn’t worth continuing.

Pairing: Since my husband hasn’t been feeling well he didn’t want supper, so I was actually using this as an excuse to get a little food in him as well as tea. I warmed some cheddar on Garden Herb Triscuits, and then topped each one with a tiny bit of apricot jam. There were also a few pecan tartlets because we are swimming in leftover Christmas dainties. Ha ha!

He really, really enjoyed this tea. I am sorry to see that Nuvola is gone, but I will probably order some Alishan pretty soon from either Teavivre or Harney. (Since Teaave ALSO seems to be gone…)