Found Oolong

[liralen]

Bought: Uhm... sadly I don't know where this came from. I just kept it in a blank Upton tin to keep it fresh. It looks like a 1 ounce sample from Imperial Tea Court, as in it doesn't fill the tin (i.e. is unlikely it's and Upton packet and unlikely it's one of the much smaller Upton samples), but it could have been from Town and Country teas which imported directly from China some really excellent greens and oolongs, including an Ali Shan oolong that's part green. Probably old past its prime.

Leaf Appearance: Long, full, rolled leaves (needles), mostly brown with green spots here and there and a bit of stem. Dry: Dark and mildly oolong fragrant with broader hints of green.

Brewed: 190 degree water, 4 oz of water to 2 serving teaspoons of loose tea in a Yixing oolong pot for 1 minute for first steep and 1 and a half minutes for second steeps:

Taste: Rounded, full, rich body even to the first steep, which is unusual, lightly scented (not the usual all perfume in the first steep, all taste in the second). Hints of peaches and oak amid the tannin and tea flavors. Defintely diminished by age, but still good. No bitterness, no off flavors. Second steep is a little stronger with the oak flavors, the peach sweetness lessens, but it's still a comforting cup.

Rating: 6 of 10 Mostly because it's way too old and faint, but it's still a nice afternoon cup for getting me past the post-lunch nap urge.