Oolong Tea History
Oolong tea, named after its creator, is a Chinese tea with unique and distinctive characteristics, produced mainly in Fujian and Guangdong, as well as Taiwan. The most famous Chinese teas include Tieguanyin, Dahongpao, Phoenix Narcissus, White Crest, Phoenix Bush and Iron Lohan, while the most well know of Taiwanese Oolong's include Dongding, Wenshan Pouchong and Oriental Beauty. Taiwanese Oriental Beauty is also well known as Formosa Tea, or – because of its abundance of white pekoe – White Tipped Oolong Tea.
In the early 19th century, the British ambassador to China dedicated some Oolong tea to the Queen of England. The queen was very taken with the unique taste and aroma, as well as its distinctive appearance – quite different to any teas seen before in England – and gave it the name “Oriental Beauty”.
Being a slightly oxidized tea, Oolong has a taste and aroma that sits somewhere between green teas and black teas. Individual types of Oolong tea can range from almost like a green tea to almost like a black tea, depending on the degree of oxidation during processing.
