Tea Name: Formosa Nut Oolong Tea
Brand:
Form: Loose Leaf
Cost: $9.20 for 2 ounces, greater discounts in quantity
Review: When I visited Teavana a few days ago, my plan was to pick up a few green teas: This plan was thwarted, however, by the sales technique that Teavana’s people employ so well. You see, all of the tea at Teavana’s shop is stored along its back wall in airtight tins. If you inquire about a tea, the shop assistant takes out the tin, opens the lid, and fans the lid over the bin. This results in the beautiful scents of Teavana’s teas being directed toward your nose, upon which all restraint is scattered along with the tea-scent, and your wallet is opened wider than you ever expected.
Ahem. . .<regains composure>
In any case, the scent of almonds, apples, candied violets, pistachios and oolong tea proved too much for me to bear. I did get some green tea, but the Formosa Nut Oolong was also lovingly nestled beside it in one of Teavana’s beautiful bags.
(Naturally, the Formosa Nut Ooling was also the first tea I sampled that evening.)
As the name suggests, this is a nutty tea, though not as heavy-bodied as one might expect. Instead it has a fairly light mouthfeel, is sweet, and has an almost candy-like taste. The oolong is primarily a backdrop to the other flavors: One can pick up on the slightly roasted notes of the oolong in the back, but the nuts (along with a hint of apple) predominate. Like many oolongs, this tea can be steeped numerous times, and in my opinion, actually improves as some of the stronger nut/fruit/candied violet notes dissipate and the taste of the oolong emerges.
Recommendation: This is a warm and comforting tea: I am looking forward to sipping it in the winter months. Flavors are strong: The tea itself isn’t that obvious, which is great for those who are interested in drinking tea as an alternative to coffee and/or other beverages, but who are not overly fond of tea itself. This tea is already sweet, so don’t add any sweetener until you have sampled it first: You can then adjust the sweetness as necessary.
One nit: Tea purists will likely find this tea over-the-top as far as non-tea flavors are concerned.
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