1993 Family Reserve Aged Oolong Tea, Lot 238

Tea type
Oolong Tea
Ingredients
Oolong Tea Leaves
Flavors
Not available
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Loose Leaf
Caffeine
Not available
Certification
Not available
Edit tea info Last updated by eastkyteaguy
Average preparation
Boiling 0 min, 15 sec 4 g 2 oz / 59 ml

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5 Tasting Notes View all

  • “Thanks for this one Terri! I think this one is my second favourite of the bunch you sent me. I guess i’m on a bit of a “let’s drink some oolongs” kick. This one has less of the charcoal notes to...” Read full tasting note
    81
  • “This afternoon I did some Gongfu steepings of this one, finally. It is a really nice smooth tea, lightly sweet & delicately fruity. I gave it a quick rinse, then 15, 30, 45 sec, etc, adding 15...” Read full tasting note
  • “Good but not great, mellow easy drinking, smooth and relaxing, but nothing special to justify the price premium of an aged tea (though from what i understand these things are actually dime-a-dozen...” Read full tasting note
    77
  • “This is a tricky little one. I have no experience with aged oolongs. Zippo. This tea right here is it. So, I have no other points of reference. Take everything that follows with a grain of...” Read full tasting note

From Taiwan Tea Crafts

We are rather proud to propose this special Lot of a tea that has matured, like many of us, right on the premises we occupy. There is a row of large earthenware jars in a corner of the warehouse that get dusted-off periodically to review the markings on them and, if deemed worthy, opened for tasting. This tea is one of the pleasant surprises that came out from one of these warehouse rounds. The other one is here. Judging by the writing on the jar, this tea was put away by Mr. Chen himself in 1993. What we know is that it is a blend of Cing Xin tea of mostly high mountain origin. It is not uncommon for tea producers to blend some remnants of small lots for ageing. Judging by what is on our tasting table, this was not a bad batch at all! If you have enjoyed our very popular 1991 Aged Oolong, you will be in very familiar territory. The dried fruit notes with delicate winey complexities and supple, leathery aromas are quite alluring. It is very accessible to the palate and would make a good introductory tea if this is your first step with aged oolongs. This Lot has aged properly and doesn’t present any of the unpleasant sourness found in many badly aged teas. We wouldn’t even present it if that was the case, especially that it comes from our family!

About Taiwan Tea Crafts View company

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5 Tasting Notes

81
15019 tasting notes

Thanks for this one Terri! I think this one is my second favourite of the bunch you sent me. I guess i’m on a bit of a “let’s drink some oolongs” kick.
This one has less of the charcoal notes to it than the other, but is still clearly an oolong. It’s smooth tasting though and slightly fruitier than the others. Thanks again terri!

Hesper June

I too have been craving oolongs lately! Must be something in the air:)

Terri HarpLady

Glad you like it!

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3294 tasting notes

This afternoon I did some Gongfu steepings of this one, finally. It is a really nice smooth tea, lightly sweet & delicately fruity. I gave it a quick rinse, then 15, 30, 45 sec, etc, adding 15 seconds to each steep. I ordered small samples of several of TTC’s aged teas, they made them sound so amazing on the website, & quite honestly, I haven’t been particularly thrilled with most of them. So far, this one is my favorite.

Sil

i’ll stick to the few i really like :)

Terri HarpLady

Yeah, I’m glad my aged samples were small :)

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77
18 tasting notes

Good but not great, mellow easy drinking, smooth and relaxing, but nothing special to justify the price premium of an aged tea (though from what i understand these things are actually dime-a-dozen over in taiwan). It definitely has some nice aged flavor (dusty and dried fruit-ish, sort of), plus noticeable roast flavor still, but not much else, the roast and the aging is all that’s left.

Preparation
Boiling

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167 tasting notes

This is a tricky little one. I have no experience with aged oolongs. Zippo. This tea right here is it. So, I have no other points of reference. Take everything that follows with a grain of salt!

I struggled with this tea. I first tried it four months ago and didn’t like it. Literally tasted like a charcoal briquette and some lighter fluid. It has been “airing out” and I decided to give it one more chance. I can say that it certainly has improved. Would it continue to improve with more airing out? Yes and no.

Yes – the roast is prominent. Very medicinal, phenolic. This aspect has definitely died down to something palatable after letting it breathe for four months. Probably would continue with more airing out.

No – the flavors simply aren’t there. The point of aging is to add complexity and layers of flavor. The interesting flavors that are here (prune, baking spice, orange-citrus) are light and not particularly long-lasting. It’s as if this tea has simply been aged too long, and the leaf has lost its potency.

There you have it. An interesting experience, but roasting an oolong to hell and back and letting it sit for twenty years is a lot of trouble for a return that isn’t very great.
*
Dry leaf: charcoal, lighter fluid, medicinal/phenolic, some prune and dry dark fruit sweetness – like some dry, dusty, left-in-the-cupboard old prunes. In preheated vessel – medicinal, lighter fluid, some prunes.

Smell: charcoal briquette, ash, vague dark fruit flavors and dry baking spices

Taste: arrival of charcoal briquette. Development has dry medicinal notes and hints of dry baking spices. Finish has slight creaminess and light hint of prune. Aftertaste slowly builds to orange-citrus, but is very light. Some hints of milk chocolate as aftertaste fades.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 0 min, 15 sec 4 g 2 OZ / 59 ML
Ken

try the 2008 songboiled oolong, its fruity, floral and fragrant. I think you might like it better. I have this tea but havent gotten around to trying it yet.

Also can I ask how you brewed it?

apefuzz

I’ll keep the Songbolin in mind. For this one, I brewed about 4g in a little 60ml gaiwan, water off the boil. Steeps were about 15-30sec.

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