Imperial Black Dragon Oolong - a milky treat

2023 Alishan Harvest - Jin Xuan Cultivar

Floral, Creamy, Refreshing - a perfect example of a Taiwanese milk oolong that offers natural sweetness with a milky and floral undertone. 

Black Dragon Oolong is a lightly oxidized jade oolong tea originating from the Alishan Mountain in Taiwan. At the elevation of 1500m above sea level, the Alishan Mountain offers mineral-rich soil and a cool, misty climate, which is ideal for the production of the best quality high mountain oolong teas, as the cooler temperature and limited exposure to the sun slow down the growth of tea plants and yield sweeter and tender tea leaves and buds.

Tea notes

• Appearance: Golden yellow liquor.

• Aroma: Milky, floral.

• Flavor: Milky, buttery, creamy, sweet, grassy, floral (magnolia)

• Mouthfeel: Thick, buttery, smooth, well-rounded liquor with a velvety mouthfeel. Lingering creamy, sweet aftertaste.

Brewing Idea

• 3-4g of tea per teacup (200ml). Boil filtered water at 95℃. Steep for 30seconds- 1 minute.

• Makes an excellent 2nd and 3rd cup. Increase steep time with each brew.

• To uncover more flavor try infusing the leaf in small amounts of hot water with a high leaf-to-water ratio, and infusing many times rather than making one large pot. 

Throughout Chinese history, the best and most luxurious of teas have been given in tribute to the Chinese emperors. Oolong tea was one of these tribute teas and was invented during the 10th Century Song dynasty. During this time, the famous tea garden ‘Beiyuan’ in Fujian, produced a compressed tea cake with an imprint of a phoenix and a dragon. As loose leaf tea became more popular than compressed tea, the Beiyuan tea cake went out of fashion. It is said that the Beiyuan garden then began to produce a dark loose leaf tea which was the first version of Oolong. They named it ‘Wu Long’ (‘directly translates as Black Dragon’), inspired by the dragon on the tea cake and the dark color of this new loose leaf tea. Through Chinese whispers, ‘Wu Long’ became ‘Oolong’ and a new tea category was born.