Indian Oolong Tea: easy guide, 5 best teas

Indian Oolong is a relatively new type of tea.

Tea evolves. Nowadays, tea producers get inspiration from the world, embrace new ideas and new techniques. As a result, we see new trends and new products. India, historically known for its remarkable blacks, increasingly introduces new types of tea, lighter and greener on the oxidation scale. Indian oolong, mostly produced in Darjeeling region, represent a new generation of Indian teas.

What kind of tea is it?

Best Darjeeling oolongs, although a departure from full-fermented traditional Indian teas, tend to maintain muscatel flavor of their ancestors. They produce light amber clear infusion with pronounced astringency and sweet finish.

Tasting notes and reviews

Indian oolong teas offer a range of aromas and flavors depending on the microclimate in which they were grown and the techniques with which they were processed. Generally speaking, tea drinkers find Darjeeling oolongs to be “gentle and refined”. Springtime Indian oolongs make for a “light, clean and well-balanced” cup, though they “bitter quickly if left too long”. They have “lovely floral aromas”, reminiscent of the “classic Darjeeling first flush”, complemented by hints of “fresh greens”. Autumn Darjeeling oolongs tend to be bolder in comparison to their spring counterparts, offering “similar flavors to a black tea, but with many more notes”. These “smooth and full-bodied” teas have “gorgeous colors” and “warm, sweet raisin notes” that make them “perfect with a warm dessert”.

5 best Indian Oolong teas to buy online

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