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“Backlog from three days ago. Purchased 30 grams only of this one since it was $14.99. Almost got 50. Glad I got 30, though I would buy it again. Roswell’s note sold me on it. I wasn’t quite sure...” Read full tasting note
“Gongfu… and, well, fuck me. This was good! Had this one during the afternoon a few days ago when it was a pretty grey and chilly day filled with some pretty substantial snowfall. I leaned in hard...” Read full tasting note
Milk Oolong (奶香烏龍茶, Nǎi Xiāng Wū Lóng Chá, “Milk Fragrance Oolong Tea”) comes from a Taiwanese cultivar called Jīn Xuān 金萱 (“Golden Lily”). Legend has it that one year there was a late freeze that caused the plants to get frostbitten and wilt just before the harvest. Thinking their tea was ruined, some farmers decided to pick and process the tea anyway to cut their losses. When they started firing the tea, they were surprised that a distinctly sweet dairy aroma emerged. I inherited the source for this tea many years ago at my first tea-serving job at Jade Leaves Tea House in Austin, TX. I poured at Jade Leaves from 2009-2010, just before I moved to China. Jade Leaves closed in 2010, and when I started selling tea in Austin after returning from China, many of my old tea friends wanted Milk Oolong. The owner of Jade Leaves graciously shared his source with me, and over the years it has perennially been one of the most popular teas at the teahouse, especially for beginners, as it is an incredibly forgiving tea to steep. It has a pronounced buttered-popcorn and condensed milk fragrance with a big stone-fruit finish on the exhale. Many Milk Oolongs on the market are scented, or have milk powder added to them, to create this distinctive flavor. Our Milk Oolong is certified organic and contains no additives. While Milk Oolong is originally from Taiwan, this particular version comes from Quan Zhou, near Anxi in Fujian, just across the water from Taiwan. We have searched and as yet failed to find a Taiwanese or Mainland Milk Oolong that is as good as this classic.
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Backlog from three days ago.
Purchased 30 grams only of this one since it was $14.99. Almost got 50. Glad I got 30, though I would buy it again.
Roswell’s note sold me on it. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but I was pleased with this one. It’s an Anxi varietal for sure. Gong fu or western, this one has the trademarked condensed milk and savory coconut milk viscous texture note of a gong fu, but some fruity notes later on bordering on peach, mango, or something else tropical. Sometimes, it reminded me of pear-not usual. Personally, orchid and extremely dense lilac notes are prominent in aroma and taste, with some vanilla. It’s also fairly woodsy and stemy. It can be vegetal if I brew it for longer, but when I go lighter Western or Gong Fu, it’s really not that vegetal for an oolong. It continues to rebrew 5 times from shorter western steeps, and 7 times from gong fu. It’s a little bit smoother western, a little bit woodsier gong fu. I might have to change some parameters.
I’ve had similar Jin Xuans before, specifically What-Cha’s Anxi and a few others. The particualr flavor profile of this is one resembles the Jin Xuan from The O Dor, but this one has more fruit in its accents whereas that one is more cakey.
I definitely like this one, but I am not entirely convinced this was not at least scented, or flavored. The lilac and the condensed milk aspects are too strong even in the dry leaf when you open the bag. It’s almost oily when I whiff off it from the opening seal. The fruity notes are kinda expected from the Anxi varietal, but the others are almost perfumey. Natural, but strong.
With that said, it’s a bit steep in price. It seems you cut most of the costs from West China Tea through it’s loyalty program. The 6-7 business day shipping policy also kinda bugs me. I usually don’t have an issue if it takes long and letting people actually be human beings that have lives, but I was kinda perturbed considering the cost with shipping. Despite this minor complaint, I was satisfied with the tea, and I also hope the company is doing alright with the winter storm power outages from the last few weeks.
Overall, I would recommend this tea for others and get it again. It’s got all the flavors I look for in my oolong, and it is pretty darn close in rank to the Mandala one personally. I also like some of the unique profiles I get from the lilacs and the interesting fruit notes that pop up. There are a few other teas I’d be willing to try from West China’s selection, like their Black TGY, but I’m going to plan it out if I do another purchase. While this is one of my more mixed and critical reviews, and I am very satisfied with the customer service, the price and the possibility of flavoring still bugs me. I’m curious to see what others think.
Flavors: Butter, Caramel, Coconut, Cream, Creamy, Floral, Mango, Milk, Orchid, Peach, Popcorn, Savory, Stems, Stonefruit, Sweet, Vanilla, Wood
Gongfu… and, well, fuck me. This was good!
Had this one during the afternoon a few days ago when it was a pretty grey and chilly day filled with some pretty substantial snowfall. I leaned in hard to the cozy and comforting teas and this was my favourite of the day – it’s just so thick and creamy with notes fatty whipped fresh cream, double churned butter, and coconut milk w/ a delicate soothing floral orchid and lilac undertone. So coating on the palate, and a very lush mouthfeel! Can’t think of a tea that would have satisfied this afternoon more than this one!
Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CKzpxE8AoUo/
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1olciyA128E&ab_channel=TheWyze-Topic
I’ve been waiting for you to post these lol. I’m debating if I want to be dumb and get some samples from West China tea. I might have to get more of this one lol.
Honestly, my impression for most of them thus far is that they’ve been really good but arguably not worth the price – except this one. I would buy the fuck out of this one again.
