Red Oolong (Organic)｜紅烏龍 (有機)
Tasting notes: Malty, ripe fruit, honey
Red Oolong (Organic) is one of our most popular teas—distinctively fruity and seductively sweet. It is from a small organic farm led by the matriarch Lian A Na, who invented this breakthrough oolong-black hybrid tea in 2008, in collaboration with Taiwan’s Tea Research and Extension Station. Its delightful honey aroma is produced by the tea plant as a defence against tiny leafhoppers that nibble on the leaves.
It’s a wonderfully warming and comforting tea for crisp winter days or rainy afternoons.
As one of the few teas to come from Taitung, an idyllic pocket of pollution-free land in Eastern Taiwan, our Red Oolong (Organic) is a highly oxidised oolong tea made using black tea production methods. The result is a smooth, sweet tea with top notes of a black tea and undertones of an oolong.
Red Oolong (Organic) is grown using organic methods to allow the leafhoppers to do their work, and harvested 5 times a year. The best harvest is in summer when leafhoppers abound. You can actually smell this honey scent in the fields!
The farmers must ensure the leaves are harvested when exactly the right amount of damage has been done by the leafhoppers. Too little damage, and the honey aroma is not distinctive enough, while too much damage actually increases the bitterness of the tea.
Fact file
Origin: Luye, Taitung, Taiwan
Oxidation: ⦿⦿⦿○○
Roasted: Medium
How to brew Red Oolong (Organic)
Gongfu style (Gaiwan)
6g | per 100ml | 98°C | 1 min
+ 10s per steep for at least 5 steeps
Western style (Teapot)
3g | per 100ml | 95°C | 3mins
+ 1 min per steep for at least 3 steeps
Cold brew
10g | 1L | Room temp/ refrigerated | 6 hours
As a roasted, balled tea, Red Oolong (Organic) does well with temperatures close to boiling. You can rinse the tea first to speed up the unfurling process and get a stronger first infusion.
These are just guidelines. As we always say, it’s best to experiment with a range of temperatures and leaf-to-water ratios to understand the tea and your own taste preferences.