Earl Grey

The shades of Earl Grey are plentiful, more than fifty.   Earl Grey is the most recognized flavored or scented tea in the Western world.  It is named after Charles, second Earl Grey and prime minister of UK from 1830 to 1834.   All the tall tales about the tea imply that Earl Grey received the recipe from a Chinese official as a gift.   The traditional Earl Grey tea is Chinese and/or Indian black tea flavored with bergamot oil.   Bergamot is a citrus fruit grown in Mediterranean and its rind yields perfumery oil.   Twinings is said to have the rightful claim to the original Earl Grey tea formula.  Twinings tried a new Earl Grey blend with lemon and extra bergamot in recent years but had to bring back the classic edition after outrage from its customers.

Many tea merchants today create their own shades of Earl Grey using different types of tea and flavorings.   There are Earl Grey oolong, Earl Grey sencha, Earl Grey silver tip, and smoky Earl Grey, just to name a few.  This Earl Grey is the classic one from Twinings. The tea is not too strong and the bergamot flavor is neither overpowering nor Pine-Sol-like. It is a nice go-to tea in the afternoon.   Because of its fragrance, Earl Grey tea is often used in baking and confectionery.  

Earl Grey

Type:  Scented Black     Producing Country:  England   Preparation:  100°C 4 Min

Dry Leaf:   The small pieces of black tea leaves give off strong aromas of lemon, grapefruit and cedar.

Wet Leaf:   The wet leaves have a strong cedar scent.

Liquor:       This mahogany-colored Earl Grey is light, citrusy and mildly astringent.  The lemony taste stays in the mouth for a while.    

Tee Score:  3 out of 5

Tan Huong Oolong

Tan Huong is a tea cooperative in the northeastern Vietnam's Thai Nguyen province.   Vietnam processes and exports mostly black and green teas.  With the assistance of a Taiwanese tea specialist, Tan Huong produces this oolong.   Like Zealong, Tan Huong Oolong is presumably created in the image of Dong Ding.   The aromas of its dry and wet leaves are evocative of Dong Ding but the flavors of the steeped tea are untypical.  The tea has slight astringency and  mild licorice sweetness.   In other words, it is uniquely Vietnam oolong.

Vietnam Oolong

Type:  Oolong     Producing Country:  Vietnam   Preparation:  95°C 4 Min

Dry Leaf:   The dark green rolled pellets are raisiny and biscuity. 

Wet Leaf:   The deep green leaves are floral.

Liquor:       This tea is yellow.  It is light, slightly astringent and floral.  It has the sweetness and spiciness of licorice.    

Tee Score:  3 out of 5

Zealong

Zealong is oolong produced by the Zealong Tea Estate in the Waikato region of New Zealand.   A Mr. Chen and his son, immigrants from Taiwan, imported 1500 tea cuttings in 1996 from their homeland to pioneer the first and only tea garden.  Only 130 survived New Zealand's agriculture quarantine but they thrived and multiplied after careful propagation.   Then, 13 years of hard work later, Zealong tea was officially launched.

This unroasted Zealong is likely modeled after Taiwan's Dong Ding, and may still be a work-in-progress.   It has the smoothness but lacks the depth of a fine Taiwanese Dong Ding.   It is light and enjoyable.

Zealong

Type:  Oolong     Producing Country:  New Zealand    Preparation:  95°C 4 Min

Dry Leaf:   The dark green rolled beads are clean and biscuity. 

Wet Leaf:   The deep green leaves are slightly toasty and faintly floral.

Liquor:       This tea is bright yellow.  It is light, smooth, a bit sugary but not complex.   It begins to taste watery after the second infusion.  

Tee Score:  3 out of 5