This Wu-Long is made from white tea cultivar (Da Bai), the only one of its kind I’ve ever come across. Shang makes two varieties of this, and of the two this one is superior. Out of curiosity I had one of the folks at the shop fix me a sample of this and the other one and not tell me which one was which so I could decide which was better without a bias. I tasted both for a few infusions and compared to see which one I’d like more and this one was the winner for sure.
It’s been about a year since I purchased this tea and it has become even better with age. I have to say I made a major discovery with this tea today that I wish I had made earlier. That is that you should brew it at hotter temperatures like you might with any other oolong. I had always brewed it at 185F, the temperature I brew white teas. Oh foolish me! I tried it at 194F today while pondering on some info I have come across lately that talks about how oolongs get their distinct flavor from polyphenols that require high temperatures to dissolve. What a difference nine degrees makes!
The leaves smell a lot like golden raisins when dry and have a sort of wine-like scent after brewing. It reminds me of a second flush Darjeeling in many ways. The brew is incredibly buttery, sweet like dried fruit and has a splash of saltiness. In the second infusion there is an incredible spritz of floral notes along with it that sort of tingles the tongue and stimulates the saliva glands. The brew color is a beautiful apricot and the scent gives off notes of allspice and autumn forest. The tea is very wet and thick feeling in the mouth, not drying at all. The lingering aftertaste is honeyed floral and just sits in your mouth for a long time.
This is an all-star tea. It had been silently tucked away on my shelves for quite some time after I had gradually come to feel it wasn’t one of my preferred teas, but with age and some hotter water, this produced something absolutely transcendent. Way to go Shang Tea for pulling this off! White tea as oolong is a really unique concept in the tea world.
I’ll be coveting the rest of what I have of this. What a wonderful and appropriate tea for Autumn too. Really suits the atmosphere.
Flavors: Dried Fruit, Flowers, Honey, Salty, Sweet
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Great review Lion! Sounds wonderful. That’s going on my wishlist!
Agreed – great review, and the tea sounds amazing! Tbh, most of Shang’s whites look/sound delicious. I think a nice big order may be in order after Christmas…!
There really isn’t anything at Shang you can go wrong with. :)
Definitely, Nicole. My one caveat with Shang Tea is the Orange Blossom White Tea, but it’s not because it isn’t good quality. I think I’m just really sensitive to bitter tastes. It’s wonderfully aromatic but the taste is just too much for me. I’ve tried literally every other tea from Shang Tea and there isn’t a single one that wasn’t great.
Great review Lion! Sounds wonderful. That’s going on my wishlist!
Agreed – great review, and the tea sounds amazing! Tbh, most of Shang’s whites look/sound delicious. I think a nice big order may be in order after Christmas…!
There really isn’t anything at Shang you can go wrong with. :)
Definitely, Nicole. My one caveat with Shang Tea is the Orange Blossom White Tea, but it’s not because it isn’t good quality. I think I’m just really sensitive to bitter tastes. It’s wonderfully aromatic but the taste is just too much for me. I’ve tried literally every other tea from Shang Tea and there isn’t a single one that wasn’t great.