TRUE CREAM GOLDEN BUD {Jin Xuan} OOLONG
This is consistently my favorite oolong. Season after season. Between this and our Gyokuro Karigane, I could be satisfied tea-wise for the rest of my life I’m pretty sure.
This oolong has a natural sweet cream taste and feel that is truly special and like no other tea I’ve had before.
Tasting Notes: Soft, sweet cream, buttery, orchid-like floralness, with a little vegetal earthiness for balance. Very low to no astringency.
Origin: Nantou, Taiwan
Cultivar: Jin Xuan
Preparation: Use a healthy Tb per 16 oz. of 185º water. I prefer this tea at around 3 minutes for the first go round, but would add a minute or so for the next few steeps.
Moderately Caffeinated
What is Jin Xuan ? …
Jin Xuan is the milk oolong cultivar (cultivated varietal) created by tea growing geniuses in Taiwan a few decades ago.
There is no milk involved in this tea, the Jin Xuan cultivar comes by it’s creamy and sweet naturally without any embellishment by us humans.
This can be a bit confusing as there are other teas like our Milky Oolong that are created using milk steam, and then other “flavored” milky oolong that we will not carry as they just have a flavoring sprayed on them…
The latter two oolong are an attempt to create a tea like the Jin Xuan oolong. We appreciate the milk steamed version as that is a natural process and creates a beautiful tea all it’s own as it’s a little more obviously creamy, as it’s been literally imparted with milk steam, while the Jin Xuan teas are more subtle and nuanced as the creaminess is tied to its very DNA and must be coerced out through the steeping process.
Jin Xuan oolongs will very in the amount of milky sweetness. Some will just have a hint of it in the aftertaste, while some, like this True Cream, will be obviously creamy and sweet throughout! I have never experienced a Jin Xuan quite as creamy and sweet and special as this True Cream Golden Bud.