So this was actually my first time trying an oolong tea at all, and aside from reading complicated descriptions of how the various teas differ from one another, I figure there’s no better way to really tell the differences than to simply try them out.
So, along came vanilla-orchid from david’s tea. I mainly picked it because I’m typically drawn to stronger, black teas, and I was told that oolongs are at least closer to black than other types of tea. That, and the light vanilla-orchid scent wafting up from the canister was calling my name. I have to say, however, that even when inhaling the scent of this tea, I don’t get much orchid—mainly a creamy vanilla scent, with “something else” that seems unidentifiable (perhaps that’s the oolong though, who knows).
Upon the recommendations of pretty much everyone, my first sip of this tea was plain—i.e. with nothing added to sweeten or thicken it. I found the initial taste to be a bit strong, bland, and a bit thin (if that’s an appropriate descriptor), so I added in two cubes of sugar, and that seemed to make a huge difference. I still got a distinct tea flavour, but there was also a delicious vanilla flavour that seemed to be a more “adult” vanilla and less of a birthday cake and sprinkles vanilla. I threw out the leaves, because I couldn’t fathom using them again (I’m terrified that the second cup will only be weaker), although I intend on trying it again, this time perhaps adding a touch of cream. all in all, I like it so far, and am interested in tinkkering around with it a bit to see if I can’t manufacture the perfect taste I suspect is lurking in these leaves! (as a side note, it might be worth mentionning that I heat and dispense my water with the keurig, and this morning discovered the nastiest, grittiest film coating the water storage tank on the side of the machine. Horrified, I uselessly chipped away at it a bit with my fingernails, only to discover it was caked on and actually covered the entire inner area of the tank. I think that has to do with the utterly disgusting water quality here in this city, and until I saw that cakey build-up, I never really believed I needed filtered water for tea—but now I’m heading out to get a filter pretty much immediately.)
