Down to a T: Oolong Tea

​General Info
Origin: Camellia sinensis
Taste: Fruity, sweet, honey, woody, thick, roasted, green, fresh
Caffeine level: moderate to high
Storage: in an airtight container, away from light, moisture and spices.
Best before: from 6 months to 2 years, depending on how oxidized at has been. The more oxidized, the longer it’ll stay fresh.

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​This Down to a T series is really fun to make and I’m thoroughly enjoying researching the different types of tea, down to the smallest details. I thought I knew a lot about tea before, but I find myself learning a whole lot while doing this research work. Getting up close and personal with oolong tea made me realize how majestic it truly is. Full disclaimer: for the longest time, I wasn’t a massive fan of it. Up until now, it was actually my least favorite. Working on this post completely changed how I perceive oolong tea. I’ve learned to see it for its subtleties and the mastery that goes behind making this ancient type of tea. Now, I enjoy brewing a steaming cup of oolong tea and drinking it slowly, letting the subtle aromas hit me in a delicious succession. Oolong tea is truly something to discover.

​History
The cultivation of oolong tea started as early as the 18th century, in Taiwan. Oolong tea literally stands for “black dragon tea” – called that way because of the shape of the curly leaves, resembling a dragon, and their dark pigmentation once oxidized. The plant, Camellia sinensis, thrives in cool weather and on rocky grounds, like the Wuyi Mountains and Anxi County. Today, multiple countries are making their very own version of the traditional oolong tea, like Japan, Thailand, New Zealand and, of course, India and Sri Lanka. Let’s not forget that the latest is among the biggest producers of tea in the world. However, the particularity of oolong tea doesn’t lay in its rich history, but more in the artisanship that goes behind cultivating this tea.

​The making
Oolong tea is made much in the same way as green or black tea; the leaves are picked and laid out in the sun to dry, then are rolled and roasted. The period of time over which the leaves were cultivated can alter the taste of the tea is a surprising way; if the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant are plucked in the spring, the taste of the finished product will be more floral (how convenient!). If they are picked in the winter, the tea will taste like - you guessed it - winter (roasted and woodsy flavors). It can be interesting to look into where your oolong tea is coming from and how it was cultivated, and see if you are able to pick up on the subtle changes (I’m still working on that, personally. I don’t have the nose or the palate of a connoisseur.). After the plucking of the leaves, the process of rolling and roasting can be done multiple times, giving the tea its full dimension. Oolong tea greatly varies in taste, color and aroma, depending on the producer. A great deal of attention is given to when the rolling and the roasting happen, at which temperature the leaves are fired and in which shape they are rolled. Making oolong tea is truly a form of art. 

​On many levels, oolong tea is the middle ground between green tea (very lightly oxidized, pale in color, fresh) and black tea (highly oxidized, dark and roasty flavors). Depending on where it is made, the oxidation level can range between 8% and 85%. For example, in Taiwan, oolong tea tends to be less oxidized than its Chinese counterpart, which means that the Taiwanese oolong is traditionally lighter. 

​Once the final phase of rolling and oxidizing is complete, the leaves are left to dry until they are completely rid of their moisture. They are then sorted by hand (a strenuous process) in order to be categorized into different tea grades (lots of whole leaves = higher grade). After this long process, the tea is ready to be enjoyed.

​Proper Use
Just like green tea, oolong tea is believed to have a wide array of health benefits. Some studies have raised the hypothesis that oolong tea could help diminish stress, boost the metabolism, decrease the risk of heart disease, improve brain function, relieve eczema and help lose weight. Unfortunately, most of these theories have not been well researched and it is hard to know if a cup of tea a day could really do all that. Consequently, drinking too much tea (any tea) has its downsides. Among other things, tea is high in flavonoids, which can bind the iron we get from plant food, making its absorption a lot harder (or impossible). That means too much tea can lead to serious iron deficiencies, especially if you drink tea with your meals and eat mainly plant-based (e.g. a vegan diet). Similarly, tea leaves contain fluoride (yes, the same thing that you find in toothpaste), which helps prevent cavities. On the flip side, too much fluoride can be harmful. Bottom line, too much of anything is never good, and the same goes for tea. Tea has many health benefits on the long-term, but it’s no magic cure. 

​A good cup of oolong tea calls for a leaf to water ratio that’s higher than usual, and needs a little more steeping time. Because steeping times can be confusing, I made a handy tea cheat sheet, which you can get in the Perfect Cup of Tea post. The great thing about oolong tea is that you can steep the leaves more than once, and it’ll only taste better each time. It’s almost as if each infusion reveals a new layer of the flavor, a subtlety that you hadn’t noticed in the first cup. You can infuse the same bunch of leaves up to 5 times. To keep the natural flavor and honor the mastership of oolong tea, enjoy it plain, with no added milk or sugar.

​Learning about oolong tea pushed me to reconsider the way I perceived tea. It’s something that is so easily accessible to us, but what we don’t see is all the work that goes behind making a high-grade tea. It’s all about details, timing and the passion that is put into the process. 

​I hope that you had as much fun reading this post as I had writing it. You can find the other Down to a T posts under the Blog Posts tab in the drop down menu (or under the banner, if you’re reading this on a computer). 

​Love you all!

 Much love,