Today while browsing Aliexpress and deciding what silly sale items I need (want) to buy, I drank a mystery tea from a reddit swap. Based on what the guy told me he was giving me (he didn’t label anything) it was either an oolong or a Korean green. I was leaning toward it being a green tea before I drank it, because the leaves were quite green and it had a bit of a grassy smell. Once I brewed it though, I quickly learned I was wrong. The liquor came out pretty orangeish, and the leaves were a reddish-brown with bits of green. Clearly an oolong, partially oxidized. The leaves smelled like malty plums after I started steeping. The color and profile leads me to believe it may have been some kind of bug bitten oolong. Then again, I’ve had teas that looked like this that weren’t bug-bitten also, so who knows.
Through the whole session, this tea teetered on the line between being a greener oolong and a darker one. I got a lot of those “dark” sweet flavors I would expect from a more oxidized tea, including maltiness, raisin, and a slight bit of cinnamon, but it always stayed pretty crisp and refreshing feeling as well. I found it to be an interesting and enjoyable juxtaposition. About halfway through the session, the tea picked up a slight bitterness (not astringency) in the finish, which I found enjoyable. This tea was pretty solid – no idea where it came from or anything though :P
