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Oolong tea (simplified Chinese: 乌龙; traditional Chinese: 烏龍; pinyin: wūlóng) is a traditional Chinese tea (Camellia sinensis) somewhere between green and black in oxidation. It ranges from 10% to 70% oxidation. It is among the most popular types of teas served in typical Chinese restaurants.
In Chinese tea culture, semi-oxidised oolong teas are collectively grouped as qīngchá (Chinese: 清茶; literally "clear tea"). Oolong has a taste more akin to green tea than to black tea: it has neither the rosy, sweet aroma of black tea nor the stridently grassy vegetal notes that typify green tea. It is commonly brewed to be strong, with the bitterness leaving a sweet aftertaste. Several subvarieties of oolong, including those produced in the Wuyi Mountains of northern Fujian and in the central mountains of Taiwan, are among the most famous Chinese teas.
Oolong tea leaves are processed in two different ways. Some teas are rolled into long curly leaves, while some are pressed into a ball-like form similar to gunpowder tea. The former method of processing is the older of the two.
The name oolong tea comes into the English language from the Chinese name (Chinese: 烏龍茶), which is pronounced as O·-liông tê in the Min Nan spoken variant. The Chinese name means "black dragon tea".
Possible origins
There are three widely accepted explanations on how the Chinese name came about. According to the "tribute tea" theory, oolong tea was a direct descendant of Dragon-Phoenix Tea Cake tribute tea. Oolong tea replaced it when loose tea came into fashion. Since it was dark, long and curly, it was called the Black Dragon tea.
According to the "Wuyi" theory, oolong tea first existed in Wuyi Mountain. This is evidenced by Qing dynasty poems such as Wuyi Tea Song (Wuyi Chage) and Tea Tale (Chashuo). It was said that oolong tea was named after the part of Wuyi mountain where it was originally produced.
According to the "Anxi" theory, oolong tea had its origin in the Anxi oolong tea plant. A man named Sulong, Wulong or Wuliang discovered it.
Another tale tells of a man named Wu Liang (later corrupted to Wu Long, or Oolong) who discovered oolong tea by accident when he was distracted by a deer after a hard day's tea-picking, and by the time he remembered about the tea it had already started to oxidize.
Classification and grade
Tea connoisseurs classify the tea by its aroma (often floral or fruity), taste and aftertaste (often melony). Oolongs comes in either roasted (炭焙) or light (密香 or 清香). While most oolongs can be consumed immediately postproduction, like pu-erh tea, many oolong can benefit from long aging with regular light roasting with a low charcoal fire (烘培, pinyin:hōngpeì, literally: bake cultivation or 焙火, pinyin:peìhǔo, dry roasting by fire). Before roasting, Oolong tea leaves are rolled and bruised to break open cell walls and stimulate enzymatic activity. The process of roasting removes unwanted odours from the tea and reduces any sour or astringent tastes; in addition, the process is believed to make the oolong tea more gentle on the stomach.
Brewing
A small tea pot brewing charcoal fire oolong
Generally, 2.25 grams of tea per 170ml of water, or about two teaspoons of oolong tea per cup, should be used. Oolong teas should be prepared with 180 to 190 °F (82 to 88 °C) water (not boiling) and steeped 3–4 minutes.[8] High quality oolong can be brewed several times from the same leaves and, unlike other teas, it improves with reuse. It is common to brew the same leaves three to five times, the third or fourth steeping usually being the best.
A widely-used ceremonial method of brewing oolongs in Taiwan and China is called gongfucha. This method utilizes a small brewing vessel, such as a gaiwan or Yixing clay teapot, with more tea than usual for the amount of water used. Multiple short steeps of 20 seconds to 1 minute are performed; the tea is often served in one- to two-ounce tasting cups.