Tea: Pomegranate Oolong
A Flavored Oolong from Harney and Sons
Brand: | Harney and Sons |
Style: | Flavored Oolong |
Region: | ????? |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Loose? | Loose |
# Ratings: | 2 View All |
Product page: | Pomegranate Oolong |
Reviewer: Alex Zorach
✓ 1453 teas reviewed
✓ 13 of Flavored Oolong
✓ 261 of Flavored Tea
✓ 69 of Harney and Sons
✓ 168 from ?????
Review of Pomegranate Oolong
February 16th, 2011
Aroma | Flavor | Value | Total |
5 of 10 | 2 of 5 | 5 of 5 | 60 of 100 |
Fair | Mediocre | Outstanding |
I probably would not have chosen to buy this tea on my own, but I had the opportunity to sample it. Even though this is not the sort of tea I usually like at all, I am impressed. I am especially impressed with the quality of the base tea.
This is a fruit-flavored oolong with a greener Tie Guan Yin as the base. I rarely encounter blends like this, as usually a lower-quality base tea is used whenever a similar type of fruit flavoring is added.
Aroma is intensely fruity, however, bordering on artificial. The fruit aroma dissipates quickly...even when brewing and drinking a single cup, I found it was much stronger at the beginning and diminished as I drank the cup. At first, the fruit aroma obscures the aroma of the underlying tea, which is more subtle, but upon drinking more of the cup I began to get a glimpse of the base tea, which is smooth, honey-like, somewhat floral, and has no noticeable roast.
Flavor is sour, more so than a typical Tie Guan Yin. It's not clear whether they add any citric acid or other flavorings to add sourness, but I suspect that they've added something and I don't like it. I'd prefer the flavor of the underlying tea only. Overall though, I like the flavor profile of this tea: it's smooth, typically for a high-quality, greener Tie Guan Yin.
This tea works well for multiple infusions. Making a 3 minute first infusion, I prefer the second, slightly longer infusion most of all: it still has a hint of the fruitiness, but the base tea really shines through, and balances / blends well with the pomegranate. Third infusion was decent but weaker than I'd like. In retrospect I wish I had made a 1-minute first infusion, but I only had enough of the tea to brew one cup.
This tea is very pricey in sachets, but bought loose in bulk, it is exceptionally reasonably priced. I am rating the quality based on the bulk price. I am highly impressed with this tea based on its price, even if it leaves a few minor points to be desired.