The Gui Hua Jin Xuan Oolong Tea,harvested in Mingjian, Taiwan, during the spring months, combines the typically milky hints of the Jin Xuan cultivar with the taste of osmanthus flower and the soft fruity notes of apricot and peach.
"Gui Hua" in fact means "osmanthus": you will recognize these sweet, floral notes in the liquor's fragrance as well. This is a masterfully flavored and very balanced tea, where the hints of osmanthus do not cover up the naturally occurring creamy notes due to the famous Jin Xuan cultivar of origin.
TASTING - Sight and Smell
Gui Hua Jin Xuan oolong tea leaves are clustered and medium in size, with colors ranging from light green to army green to the darkest, shiniest forest green, with ochre dots at the stems. Once infused, the buds open slowly releasing sweet aromas of butter cookie, shortbread, osmanthus flower, apricot and peach compote, and caramelized sugar. The liqueur in the cup is pale gold in color with good transparency and intense floral and fruity aromas of osmanthus and ripe apricot.
Tasting Notes
GONG FU CHA
The first infusion of Gui Hua Jin Xuan oolong tea is delicate but already very rich aromatically: notes perceived on the palate include white sugar, osmanthus flower, apricot jam and a hint of ripe peach. The second infusion brings out the typical elements of the cultivar of origin, Jin Xuan: milky notes of pastry, which can also be recognized in the aroma of the cup bottom. The floral and fruity profile remains, but less intense, with the liquor becoming more full-bodied and extremely smooth. With the third and subsequent infusions, a rather pronounced peach note returns, accompanied by a sugary sensation. This is followed by the hint of osmanthus, delicate and pleasant, and a slight buttery note on the finish.
WESTWIDE
When infused in the West, Gui Hua Jin Xuan oolong tea opens with notes of shortbread and roasted almond, which give way to the floral nature of osmanthus and then to notes of ripe yellow fruit, such as peach and apricot. The finish is sweet and reminiscent of acacia honey, while notes of osmanthus and peach remain in persistence for a long time. It is a silky-bodied tea that shows no trace of bitterness or astringency.
Location of origin
Mingjian, Taiwan
Method of infusing Oolong Gui Hua Jin Xuan Tea
We strongly recommend infusing Oolong Gui Hua Jin Xuan Tea in the traditional Chinese method (Gong Fu Cha) with a gaiwan with a capacity of about 150 ml. Following this preparation, multiple infusions can be made with 5 grams of leaves that are useful to best capture all the flavor nuances of the tea.
Heat the water to a temperature of 85°C and proceed to an initial infusion of 15 seconds. Keeping the water at the same temperature, you can then continue to exploit the same leaves by adding more water and increasing the infusion time by 10 seconds each time (15 - 25 - 35...).
This tea has a longevity of 4-5 infusions.
For a more classic preparation according to the Western style we recommend 3 grams of leaves in a 200 ml cup with water at 85°C for an infusion time of 3 minutes.
For a better tasting experience we suggest that you strain the tea as soon as the infusion time is over. The infusion timings we suggest can be slightly modified to your liking to achieve a more or less intense taste.
We recommend storing in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight.
Benefits of Oolong tea
The main benefits to be derived from Oolong teas, a category to which Gui Hua Jin Xuan belongs, derive from the significant content of mineral salts and antioxidant phenols in the leaves.
Some studies, in fact, report that daily intake of Oolong tea can affect bone health by improving the concentration of minerals in this tissue and promote a decrease in blood sugar due to the stimulating effect of phenols on insulin.
Oolong teas also generally possess a low concentration of caffeine. This characteristic makes them suitable to be consumed at any time of the day, even by people who are more sensitive to this exciting substance.
