The history of oolong tea or wulong tea, its types and why we love it so much

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Wulong tea or oolong teas, with their approximately 300-year history, are partially oxidized teas.
It is the type of tea that ranges across the widest range, with some types being closer to green tea and others closer to red (black) tea.
This depends on how much the leaves are allowed to oxidize.
Oolong teas are those that achieve their final form through multiple, more intensive and controlled crushing, rolling, and roasting, and are made from more developed leaves.

One of our tea masters, Mrs. Chen, illustrated the quality of oolong tea with a triangle, the vertices of which were:
natural environment - climate - tea farmer expertise .
If any point or base of this triangle is not stable, the finished tea cannot be perfect.
If the soil quality is poor, the plants will be weak, and they will need to be fertilized and sprayed to make them resistant.
If the weather is bad, for example, it rains a lot, the tea will not have a rich flavor, it will literally be “watery”. This is usually compensated for by roasting it heavily. So if you are dealing with a very, very roasted rock oolong, it is most likely that the raw materials were not the best.
If tea farmers do not manage their tea properly, they make mistakes at several points during processing, and defective tea can also be produced. During processing, in the timing of the harvest, in the withering process, in the winding process, in the final drying - baking and even in storage.

What exactly is oolong tea?

The term oolong or Wulong means "black dragon" in Chinese (wu long: 烏龍).
The shape and color of the oblong leaves remind the Chinese of a dark "ghost" dragon.

The Chinese pinyin transcription is wu long, or wulong, as is the English transcription oolong.
Oolong is not a type of tea plant. It is not even a picking style.
A perfectly tuned processing process that requires the harmony of nature and human efforts.

"The type of tea that requires the greatest expertise."

Its processing is an extremely meticulous process, starting from the moment the leaves are picked.
They can process small amounts of leaves at a time under manufacturing conditions.
Tea-making families often pick the leaves separately from each tea garden and process and sell them “by vineyard.” Here again, there is another parallel with artisanal winemaking .

As mentioned, the processing of this type of tea requires perfect timing of continuous crushing, rolling, and resting of the leaves.

After the oolong tea leaves are picked and briefly wilted, the crushing and rolling process damages the cell walls and allows the fragrance and aroma substances in the leaves to come to the surface and transform before they are fixed on the surface of the leaves by heat treatment.
Naturally, when they react with air, they oxidize and transform, becoming refined and thickened.

A brief history of oolong or wulong tea

Oolong tea originally comes from southern China and Taiwan and, like other types of tea, is made from the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis tea plant. Of course, it doesn't matter which type of tea plant it is, as not all of them are suitable for making oolong tea.
Imagine the tea plant variety as if there were Gala, Jonathan, Idared, etc. among apples. Or in the case of white wine grapes, there are Furmint, Olaszrizling, Hárslevelű, etc.
Each has a different character. Some are sweeter, more aromatic, richer in acids, etc.

The same is true for tea.
Like other teas, oolong teas have a unique flavor that comes from the way they are processed.
The oxidation level mentioned above ranges from 8% to about 90%.
This wide range also gives this type of tea a wide range of characteristics.
Their taste can range from floral, green, sweet and fruity to woody and toasted, nutty and a host of other flavor and aroma notes.

Steps in processing oolong tea

It is important to note that these steps may differ in one or two points across the 4 major oolong tea producing regions. Different tools, timing, and form are used.

Cultivation

Tea plants are grown in rows, which together are called tea gardens. Think of our producers' teas not as large, continuous areas, but rather as smaller gardens with different characteristics. It's like the many, many tiny vineyards in winemaking.
Older bushes and trees grow in more disorderly rows.

Proper timing of harvest

The best oolongs are harvested during the spring harvest . They can be harvested both by hand and by hand machines. In certain regions, tea is picked several times, as the environmental conditions allow it, for example in Taiwan, it is picked in all 4 seasons. Here too, spring can produce outstanding teas, as can winter ones. On Mount Wuyi, picking starts in early May, but roasting the tea leaves can last until December. In the Phoenix Mountains, harvesting begins around April.

The best oolongs are harvested during the spring harvest . They can be harvested both by hand and by hand machines. In certain regions, tea is picked several times, as the environmental conditions allow it, for example in Taiwan, it is picked in all 4 seasons. Here too, spring can produce outstanding teas, as can winter ones. On Mount Wuyi, picking starts in early May, but roasting the tea leaves can last until December. In the Phoenix Mountains, harvesting begins around April.

Method of collection

May 2019 - We hiked to Ma Tou Yan - Horsehead Rock, one of the most famous Rou Gui rock oolong growing sites. During the harvest season, we met many tea pickers who walk kilometers with huge and heavy bags to the processing plants.

The first three or four leaves of the tea plant, which have developed from the fresh shoot, are suitable for making this type of tea. Too small and immature leaves or buds would not withstand the more vigorous rolling and crushing phases, and are not as rich in aromas. Picking tea leaves by hand is the best way to create the perfect tea, and it is also the most pleasant for the tea plant. Nowadays, the two-man manual picking machine used in Japan is also used, as labor has become very expensive in China, and it is difficult to find skilled tea pickers during the harvest season.

Wilting - “withering”

After the tea leaves are picked, the enzymes within the leaves immediately enter into a chemical reaction with the oxygen in the air, they begin to change, turn brown, and wilt. During this stage, they become softer and softer, just like when a flower is picked, it quickly begins to wilt and soften.
They also lose moisture, helping with the subsequent rolling operations. The tea farmer constantly checks the leaves to see when they are ready for further processing.
There are several styles of withering. If the weather permits, the leaves are left to rest outdoors in the sun, and then the tea maker continuously turns the leaves, which are placed on round bamboo trays, so that they oxidize evenly. The leaves are damaged during the turning, and before they can dry completely in the sun, they continue the process indoors, in the shade. The turning and tossing is continuous. In ancient times, even our smaller producers used bamboo trays.
bamboo baskets on which the leaves can dry in an even layer.

Oxidation

The aforementioned oxidation, when the leaves begin to brown, change, and darken. Their transformation begins, their flavor profile develops.
In Taiwan, the leaves are usually continuously rotated in long woven bamboo cylinders, causing them to be slightly damaged, while being blown with warm air to allow oxygen to permeate them.
If the weather makes it necessary, this air is heated by blowing warm air over charcoal embers.

In addition to changing the flavor of the tea, oxidation also darkens the color of the leaves. The more oxidation, the darker the color and the deeper, more distinctive flavor the tea will have.
This is why red teas (black teas) are deep dark red in color. The skill and experience of the tea maker also plays a very important role in controlling the level of oxidation for the desired type of tea.

Stopping oxidation - baking

Heat treatment is used to stop the oxidation process. The tea maker, the tea producer, determines the level of oxidation of the leaves and stops the process by heat treatment. The enzymes responsible are stopped and the change in the tea stops.

Taiwanese oolong - slightly different processing

Taiwanese and Anxi oolong teas are rolled into small balls. After the withering and wilting phase, they are placed in large cloths and then rolled into small balls using various machines.

In the picture above, the “concrete mixer”-like equipment is used to shake the rolled leaves apart before rolling them again. This process is carried out overnight until the tea takes its final, ball-shaped form.

For certain types, additional baking (over charcoal embers or in electric ovens)

Depending on the type of tea, the tea leaves are roasted. This is also a very important post-processing step, which is an art in itself and requires a great deal of professional knowledge. We have seen cases where 3-4 tea growers bring their teas to 1 tea roaster because they do not yet have enough experience to properly roast their tea.
Tea roasters take everything into account. What type of tea leaf is it, when it was harvested, its oxidation level, to determine the appropriate roasting level. They decide through tasting what style of roasting suits a given tea best.

There are also oolongs that are not roasted at all.
One such tea is Taiwanese Jin Xuan .
Roasting is often done over charcoal embers for rock oolongs and more traditional oolongs.
Taiwanese oolong tea roasted over charcoal embers
In Taiwan and Anxi, electric ovens are now typically used, which are more stable and controllable.

The 4 main oolong tea producing regions

Anxi Oolongs (Tie Guan Yin)

It can generally be said that, besides Taiwanese oolongs, the first tea for novice tea drinkers is “tiku” as it is called in tea slang. It has a pleasant, floral, slightly creamy flavor. It is easy to understand and tolerates any mistakes made by the tea maker. Place of production: Fujian - Anxi. These are teas rolled into a ball shape.

Wu Yi Mountain Rock Oolong Teas

The Wuyi Mountains, a World Heritage Site, are also located in Fujian Province, a little further north. The teas known as rock wulongs are exceptionally aromatic, roasted, mineral and extremely flavorful. Their preparation requires extraordinary expertise in this tiny tea-growing region.

Phoenix Mountain Dan Cong Oolongs

Dan Cong (single bush) oolongs from Guangdong Province are also called the “champagne of teas”. They are characterized by naturally bringing the scent of various exotic flowers and spices. They are perfumed teas in which you can feel the minerality of the soil.

Taiwanese oolong teas

Another favorite everyday tea for novice tea drinkers, it brings many smiles and joy to its drinkers. It is grown in the high mountains of Taiwan and has a sweet, creamy, floral flavor.
Taiwanese tea growers are innovative people who are constantly experimenting with new processing methods and crossbreeding tea varieties. Among the many, Gaba oolongs are very popular, known for their calming effects and sweet, pumpkin-like flavor.

It is worth treating separately

Here we need to mention a category called “roasted or aged oolongs”. They can be from Wuyi or Taiwan, their common characteristic is the traditional roasting over charcoal embers and their age. These can be oolongs as old as 10-20 years old, which are roasted again every year and matured further.

You can find our full range of oolong tea here.

Health benefits of Oolong tea

It contains slightly fewer antioxidants than green tea, yet it has countless beneficial and beneficial effects on the body.
Here is some interesting English-language research on the effects of oolong tea .