China Oolong Se Chung tea

About 500 years ago tea developed in varieties other than green, when the OOLONG procedure of tea making was discovered in China. Due to intense manual labour required for producing OOLONG tea we can actually say it was manufactured. Tea leaves are hand-picked and repeatedly rolled, dried, heated and rolled again by hand. Due to their method of production they are already partly oxidised, with degrees of oxidation ranging from 7% to 70%. Oolong tea falls between the green and black tea categories. Their antioxidant level is expressed by the colour: the greener they are, the closer to the green tea and its healing effects. The most complex method of oolong tea production was perfected in Taiwan, formerly known as Formosa, which makes their oolong teas most prestigious and appreciated, reaching the highest prices. They still go by the name “Formosa Oolong”.  The second most well-known oolong tea area (following Taiwan, i.e. Formosa) are the provinces of Fujian and Guandong in the Southeast China. Our SE CHUNG tea comes from Fujian and consists of big, fleshy leaves. Owing to its stronger oxidation the tea has intense, spicy aromatic note. In China this is an everyday tea drunk during the day, whereas its stronger brew is used to accelerate digestion.   Oolong teas can be prepared similar to black teas, by pouring a cup of hot water over a teaspoon of tea, leaving it in for 4 to 5 minutes. The second method of preparation is only typical for Oolong tea: take two teaspoons or more of tea, pour over hot water, leave for a minute, and filter. Used tea leaves can be infused several times, but remember to use freshly boiled water, and each time prolong the time for a minute. Regardless of the preparation method, we drink oolong tea pure, without any additions.