Oolong

Oolong

Oolong, blue, blue-green, semi-green, black-green or red tea? It does not matter for a tea with a wonderful taste and an intriguing legend.

The story of Wu Lung tea, whose name has become Oolong, or Black Dragon, tells of a tea collector. As he walked around the garden plucking the best leaves, he came across a bush of extraordinary fragrance. When he came closer, he saw a large black snake wrapped around its branches. Of course, this could be nothing less than a sign that this was the best tea tree far and wide. Indeed - the leaves of the bush made an exceptionally delicate and unique tea. To this day, Oolongs are said to be made only from the offspring of that bush.

Wu Lung's semi-fermented leaves resemble the shape of a Chinese dragon.

The choice is yours. And rest assured, Oolongs will capture you with a strong aroma and a rich, sweet, long-lasting flavour.

Different degrees of fermentation, different tastes, aromas and appearances

Chinese partially fermented teas, or Oolongs, have about 3,000 varieties. It is not easy to tell them apart. The most obvious identifying feature is the degree of fermentation. According to this, we divide these teas into those fermented between 50-70 %, around 40 %, above 20 % and below 20 %.

The leaves are left to wilt briefly in direct sunlight immediately after picking, then their texture is gently disturbed by tossing them by hand on bamboo skins or in special rotating baskets. The procedure is repeated several times, with breaks for the leaves to rest. Already at this stage, the leaves are undergoing controlled fermentation. That is aptly called green shaking. At the end, the harvest is about a quarter lighter, and the leaves have a beautiful floral fragrance. They are then heated rapidly, cooled, rolled or granulated and dried. Interestingly, farmers have always used quality vegetable oils and waxes in the moulding process.

These ensure that the individual leaves do not stick together, the tea lasts longer and does not absorb as much ambient moisture. Finally, the Oolongs are heated for varying lengths of time and intensity, giving them different flavours and aromas.