Alishan High Mountain Tea by Everspring Tea
Oolong Tea / Straight
$19.99 for 100g
First Impressions
Alishan High Mountain Tea was one of those impulse grocery store purchases (yet again). The golden tin on the shelf just called to me (and it didn’t hurt that it was also on sale). It’s a metal tin with a plastic bottom to it. Beneath the shrink wrap and under the lid, there’s a plastic seal that peels out. Inside of that, however, is the vacuum-sealed gold foil pouch of tea.
There isn’t a lot of informtion on the packaging – just that it’s oolong tea and it is a product of Taiwan. Alishan is a mountain in Taiwan, so that also checks out. The leaves themselves are tightly bunched up leaves, with the colouration varying from a bright green to a dark green that’s almost brown. The aroma is lightly floral with a touch of grassy aroma in the background.
Preparation
Everspring Tea recommends steeping Alishan High Mountain Tea in “hot water”.
I opted to use 195°F (90°C) water and did an initial steep for 2 minutes.
First Taste
Alishan High Mountain Tea steeps to a pale yellow. It has a sweet floral aroma to it. The flavour to Alishan High Mountain Tea is grassy, floral, with a honey sweetness to it. There’s a thin texture to it, but the flavour coats the mouth well. I like the sweetness to Alishan High Mountain Tea, because it’s at the tail end of each sip.
A Second Cup?
I resteeped Alishan High Mountain Tea five times, six steeps total with the same leaves. The flavour of Alishan High Mountain Tea got more grassy and less floral, while the sweetness lingered and then slowly waned. The colour of Alishan High Mountain Tea became a darker yellow with the subsequent steeps before it started to fade in colour again.
My Overall Impression
I loved Everspring Tea’s Alishan High Mountain Tea. The flavour is enjoyable, and the pricing was decent for the amount of tea you get in the tin (100g). The tea has a nice aroma, resteeps well, and the leaves look beautiful! Not a bad grocery store purchase on a whim.
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