Oolong Tea Review: Where To Buy The Best Oolong Teas
In this post, I briefly describe the process of manufacturing oolong tea and expand on the unique features of this tea. I then review and recommend a selection of oolongs that I think you will appreciate.
I surveyed the best oolong tea brands that have excellent value in the following categories:
- Best Taiwan High Mountain Oolong
- Best Budget Oolong
- Best Tie Guan Yin Oolong
- Best Milky Oolong
If youre pressed for time, jump ahead to the tea reviews listed in the table of contents.
Best Bargain Oolong: Prince Of Peace Organic Oolong
I am not a tea snob. I appreciate that there are times when a no-frills, no-fuss, easy-to-use bagged tea is the best choice considering your budgetary constraints and personal tastes.
But come on. Most of what passes for tea in those bags is not much better than the dirt that grew the tea. And theres no telling what agrochemicals have been applied to that dirt!
The solution to the bagged-tea dilemma is to go with an established brand. In addition, look for a brand that has made some effort to verify that farming practices do not include pesticides or herbicides. Go with a certified organically grown tea.
The Prince of Peace Company has been making people happy for years with their budget-friendly offerings, including a gentle oolong tea that is packed in simple, unbleached tea bags.
Reviewers applaud the consistent quality standards maintained by the company over many years of operation. They also appreciate that USDA organic certification has been applied to POPs oolong.
Tea reviewers describe this oolong as light and floral but with body emerges from a brief oven roast given to the leaf. Tea drinkers who are caffeine sensitive also report that POPs oolong has low levels of this stimulant, which is consistent with the companys claim of 30 mg per 8 oz cup, on average.
I like having in my cupboard a ready-to-use bagged tea for when Im short on time. For my money, I think that the Prince of Peace brand oolong tea is the way to go.
Oolong Tea May Help Protect Against Diabetes
In general, tea has been shown to help protect against diabetes and complications from diabetes, possibly by easing insulin resistance and decreasing inflammation, among other mechanisms .
Accordingly, a study from 2021 and a review from 2019 both report links between regular tea consumption, improved blood sugar management, and a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes .
However, the specific effects of oolong tea are generally not as well researched as those of green or black tea.
That being said, one smaller, older study does point to the possible effectiveness of oolong tea in lowering plasma glucose in patients with type 2 diabetes .
Nevertheless, not every study agrees on oolong teas ability to help ward off or ease type 2 diabetes symptoms, with a 2011 study involving approximately 5,000 Japanese men concluding that consumption of the tea may be a predictor for the onset of the disease (
15 ).
In a large study from 2003, people who drank more than six cups of tea per day had a significantly lower rate of coronary heart disease than non-tea drinkers .
Several studies have also investigated oolong tea specifically.
One study of more than 76,000 Japanese adults observed that men who drank 8 ounces or more of oolong tea per day had a 61% lower heart disease risk .
Whats more, a study done in China reports that adults who drank 1 to 2 cups per day of either green or oolong tea significantly lowered their risk for a stroke .
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In Which Aisle Can You Find Oolong Tea
Once youre in the store, you should look for tea next to the coffee section, since theyre both similar products.
Since there is a WIDE variety of teas, you have to closely analyze the whole section to see if you can find it, but if that doesnt happen to be the case look for the international aisle. The international aisle should be divided by different cultures , so you should be able to find it in the section with Chinese food items.
At Walmart you have Bigelows oolong tea bags in the tea/coffee aisle, and then you should have bags of oolong tea leaves in the international aisle.
If you dont feel like going through the trouble of finding it in-store, then just type downoolong tea on Amazon, and youll find a great selection of it.
What Does Oolong Tea Taste Like
Mmmmmm! The varieties of oolong tea taste craftily complex and subtly sweet, even grassygreen with fresh, fragrant flutters amidst a bright and bold black tea body!
Sometimes itâs a little nutty and people say it can be kinda fruity too, but oolong istotally loveable for all its idiosyncrasies.
How many ways can I drink T2 Oolong tea? To begin with letâs tryâ¦
- a heart-warming teapot brew of oolong loose leaf tea leaves, or
- the luxurious blend of Oolong Chocolate Chai Loose Leaf Tea with just a dash of milk,or
- a nourishing, nurturing cup of Milky Oolong Loose Leaf Tea gently brewed at 80°C.
Oolong is a fabulously flexible and flavoursome tea just perfect when you feel likesomething different.
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Is It Time To Get A New Milk Oolong Tea
Youre looking for a new milk oolong tea. What do you think? Its difficult to predict future price changes. If there are no signs of production slowing, it can be worth buying now to enjoy your investment sooner. But if output is declining and prices are predicted to rise, you might want to wait until the buzz has died down before making a choice.
Strengthening The Immune System
Oolong tea is known to prevent cellular damage and increase the production of anti-bacterial proteins which result in a stronger immune system. It also helps in fighting certain free radicals that have the potential to cause harm to free-moving cells and lead to diseases such as cancer, stroke, rheumatoid arthritis etc.
Oolong tea contains an abundance of antioxidants, which can help reduce cell damage and protect the body from cancer and other diseases. The most abundant antioxidant compounds in Oolong tea are flavonols and flavanols.
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Oolong Tea Health Benefits: The Truth About Weight Loss
You may have seen many ads for The best green tea weight loss system or Detox green tea weight loss. There are so many of these claims for Oolong tea health benefits that they are hard to avoid, especially on the internet. But are they true or false? We have done the research on the topic and well answer that for you here.
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Best Tie Guan Yin Oolong Tea By Oriarm Tea
One of Chinas most famous teas is Tie Guan Yin oolong or Iron Goddess of Mercy oolong. In China, Tie Guan Yin, or simply TGY, is often exchanged among friends as a symbol of goodwill and hope for the future.
In my experience, TGY was the first gratifyingly mind-blowing oolong tea that I had yet tasted. More still, TGY was to become a gate-way tea that seduced me down the path of ever more compelling and challenging teas.
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Learn About Our Tea For Trees Campaign
Our Tea for Trees campaign creates a sustainable model that restores one of our most precious resources while offsetting the paper used in our products. Weve partnered with The National Forest Foundations Trees for Us, a program that annually plants millions of trees throughout our national forests.
By giving back whenever possible, Buddha Teas strives to honor the earth and its many blessings. Help us plant trees while enjoying an unadulterated tea thats healthy for you, and our planet. Read more about it here.
Medium Roast Or Oxidation Oolong
Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik
Flavor profile: Mellow and warming.Oxidation level: Moderate.Roasting: Medium.
Kick up an oolong’s oxidation more, or subject it to a controlled roast, and you lose the super-fresh aromatics of the jade styles. These more heavily processed teas develop more warm spice notes and a deeper, more mellow body. You’ll notice accents of honey, toasted grain, or white sesame, but with a more woodsy character than the red-wine fruitiness of black teas.
Taiwanese dong ding oolong is one of my favorite moderately oxidized oolongs, full of nutty, sesame flavors that can be brought out even more by controlled roasting. A related style, so-called concubine oolong, uses similar processing methods but with leaves that have been bitten by a tiny, leaf-hopping insect that drives the tea bush to develop extra-fruity and honeyed flavors. Then there’s the traditional hong shui style of processing, which kicks up oxidation closer to black tea levels but balances out the tea with a long, low-temperature roast. The result is an exceptionally mellow and sweet brew that’s full of roasted nut and dark fruit flavors, but smoother and with a thicker body than most black tea.
Generally speaking, these more oxidized teas will last for more infusions than their green cousins. A green oolong starts getting grassy around the fourth or fifth steep, but you can push many moderately oxidized oolongsâespecially the roasted onesâto twice that number of steepings easily.
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Where To Buy Oolong Tea Online Some Good Online Tea Stores
Here are a few including . Amazon is often a good starting place to shop and compare. Remember though that a good quality tea can be like a good bottle of wine in that you usually get what you pay for. High grade teas can get quite expensive. Shopping for tea online is going to be a bit of trial and error initially, especially if you re planning to buy for the first time from an unknown store. Some tea stores do offer assorted sampler packs, which is sometimes a good way to start with a new store before investing a lot of money in buying their teas. And of course everyones taste preferences are a little different. But thankfully there are hundreds of tea varieties available so there are plenty that you can choose from and find your favorites to enjoy if you havent already discovered that.
Does Oolong Tea Contain Caffeine
Is there caffeine in oolong tea? Yes, because all teas from the camellia sinensis plantcontain caffeine to varying levels.
But oolong tea contains nothing like the amount of caffeine in coffee, or even black tea. Soif you need a big caffeine hit opt for coffee. A robust cup of strong breakfast tea or agutsy black tea brew is great for some get-up-and-go in the morning and oolong will do thattoo, but to a lesser degree.
If itâs an after-dinner tea you seek oolong may be just a little bit too perky â dependingon your sensitivity to caffeine and your sleep habits of course.
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How Does Oolong Tea Promote Weight Loss
One might wonder what is so unique about Oolong tea that makes it useful for weight management. The answers lie in the overall composition of oolong tea and the various useful compounds present in it.
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The two main ways to reduce food-related body weight are increase energy expenditure and inhibit the absorption of nutrients, including fat and carbohydrates and oolong tea helps in both the ways.
Oolong tea is full of antioxidants and hence it helps in boosting up the metabolism rate by up to ten per cent which leads to more burning of calories.
These antioxidants also help in burning fat more effectively and strengthen the overall immune system. Oolong tea is also known to have a significant amount of caffeine that works effectively with the EGCGs to help in burning of overall fat.
Another important effect of oolong tea is in reducing overall cravings by maintaining blood sugar levels. The polymerized polyphenols present in oolong tea also help in increasing the overall metabolic rate and hence promote weight loss. Polyphenols also help in reducing overall absorption of fat in the body and lowers cholesterol levels. This is because the polyphenol molecule activates the enzyme lipase which is responsible for lowering LDL cholesterol.
Lowers Risk Of A Stroke
Speaking of strokes, lets take a look at how oolong tea can help reduce your risk. Green tea and oolong have both been studied when it comes to exploring their positive impact on stroke prevention. The data came back looking good as studies showed that those who supped a cup a day were less at risk of a stroke than those who didnt. Those who drank three cups of day also found that their chances of having a stroke were reduced by a staggering 21%.
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How Much Caffeine Does Oolong Tea Have In It
All teas made from Camellia sinensis naturally contain caffeine. The function of caffeine is to defend the plant against insect herbivores.
However, methods of tea manufacture can have a dramatic impact on the amount of caffeine that is available in your morning cuppa. For instance, tea made from tippy leaves generally has the most caffeine because tips are more vulnerable to insect attack and, therefore, require high levels of chemical compounds for self-defense.
But banji leaf used for oolong is not like the tips. Banji is structurally tougher and lacks altogether a tender leaf bud that might attract insects. Therefore banji can defend itself with relatively less caffeine.
You, as the tea drinker, will consume less caffeine per cup of oolong than you will in green or black teas. Perhaps as low as 37 mg of caffeine, on average, per serving of oolong compared to matcha tea and some black teas which have, on average, about 85 mg of caffeine each.
Thats pretty a significant difference if youre caffeine-sensitive or if you just want to sleep after your evening tea.
Where To Buy Oolong Tea
Like we mentioned before, the team here at Talk Boba like loose leaf teas more than the quick and convenient tea bags you might find from popular tea brands. With that said, well only refer some of the best loose leaf teas around, for oolong tea that is. With the internet being the prime place to consume anything nowadays, were taking the same approach.
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Where To Get Nice Oolong Tea
Oolong can be found in most grocery stores. You can also find them on Amazon and eBay.
For a tea bag of one of the good tea brands, the average is 20-30 cents. If youre looking for high end gourmet packages which offer better leaf than others, it may cost more than 40 cents per cup.
For loose whole leaf artisan-crafted teas, it costs 25-40 cents per cup for most good grade teas.
Here weve got some nice oolong tea recommendations for you:
Best Teas
- Guang dong phoenix dan cong
- Tsui yu jade
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Where To Buy Oolong Tea In Stores
Tea bar and tea serving area. Zensation Tea House Sydney Australia
Stores that sell iced teas and the regular standard brands of tea bags are pretty easy to find and you can buy these products in almost every convenience store and supermarket. But our focus here is on stores that sell good quality, specialty teas which is where you are most likely to find good quality Oolong tea. Every store is, of course different and unique in their special way, but good quality tea stores will usually have some, or most of the following attributes
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Why Do People Use Oolong Tea
Tea is a caffeinated beverage. A major benefit of drinking oolong tea is heightened awareness and energy along with sharpened thinking skills.
These effects are directly related to the level of caffeine, and a related chemical, theophylline. The effects increase as the caffeine level increases.
Some drink oolong tea to prevent or treat obesity and diabetes. One study suggests that drinking six cups of oolong tea daily for 30 days might help people with type 2 diabetes reduce blood sugar. Other studies — in both humans and animals — suggest that drinking oolong tea can help in weight loss.
Some people drink oolong tea because of a belief that it helps with other conditions, such as:
- Heart disease
- Tooth decay
But studies done in these areas have been inconsistent and not conclusive.
Some studies have suggested tea might offer some protection against mental decline. While a recent study in China supported the idea that oolong tea might offer that protection, the results weren’t conclusive and further study is needed.
Experience 100% Organic Tea
At Prince of Peace, our 100% Organic Oolong Tea has a woody aroma and a full-bodied flavor. Oolong Tea is from the Wuyi District of Fujian, China, which is also famous for its Rock Tea. Oolong is a semi-fermented tea that possesses the rich taste of black teas as well as the antioxidants benefits of green teas. Enjoy pure organic tea with Prince of Peace!
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Oolong For Weight Loss
The polyphenolic compounds found in oolong tea are known to be effective in controlling the rate of fat metabolism in the body. This compound activates enzymes responsible for metabolizing fat cells which is why daily consumption of oolong tea has been linked to obesity control.
Organic oolong tea is best known for the health promoting properties of alkaloids that are present in ample amounts in this tea variety. Regular consumption of oolong has been known to boost mental and physical energy, burn calories, improve skin condition, increase serotonin production, and counter free radicals.