For those who like the aroma of black tea and the flavour of Oolong tea, you must not miss Honey Black(Red) Oolong. Honey Black Oolong is fermented black tea combined with Oolong tea, both simultaneously roasted and processed together using the production method of single-origin Oolong. Because of its high-grade and smooth taste, Honey Black Oolong is also often called Champagne Oolong.

Honey Black Oolong or Honey Red Oolong is based on tea species grown in middle – low altitude tea areas, mainly large-leaf Oolong tea trees, and is made from whole plant tea leaves, most of which are harvested by machine in summer and autumn. The degree of fermentation is greater than that of Oriental Beauty Tea, but because the degree of fermentation is incomplete, it is still an Oolong tea. The multi-layered tea aroma is the biggest feature of Honey Black Oolong. The natural floral aroma and strong taste make it one of the most popular black teas in Taiwan.

What is Honey Black Oolong?

The origin of Honey Tea

Why does Honey tea have a natural honey taste? The source is the special tannins released after the tea leaves are bitten by small green leafhoppers. By injuring the tea leaves, the tea brew has a natural honey aroma.

Honey tea is a tea tree variety extended from Oriental Beauty Tea, also known as “Xianzai Tea”, named after the little green leafhopper. At first, the farmers were worried that the tea garden would be invaded by bugs, but after making tea from compromised leaves, they realised how miraculous it was.

A telling feature of this tea is that it needs to be bitten by insects for its unique flavour to evolve. To achieve this, many tea gardens do not use pesticides, which makes the tea from these non-toxic natural environments safer to drink.

The golden-brown liquor of Honey Black Oolong shimmers like liquid honey in the afternoon light, inviting me to indulge in its rich, malty flavor. Savoring every sip, I am transported to the tea gardens of Alishan, where the crisp mountain air and fertile soil have imbued the leaves with their unique character and depth.

Tea Classroom – Honey Red Oolong

How does Black Oolong differ from black tea and Oolong tea?

Black Oolong is a new tea that combines the advantages of black tea and Oolong tea. Applying the process of making Oolong tea to black tea, the aroma and taste are diverse and rich with a sense of layering. Along with Oolong tea, there are also different fermentation degrees, which are divided into light, medium and heavy.

Introduction of Honey Red(Black) Oolong

Main producing areas of Honey Black Oolong

Taiwan is the only country in the world that produces Honey Red Oolong, and because the government actively promotes the production of higher-quality tea in low-middle altitude areas, the tea harvested in summer is made into distinctive Honey Black Oolong. One of the main production areas is Wuhe, Hualien, otherwise known as “hometown of Honey Black Oolong tea” due to its annual production of 20,000 catties.

Other varieties of Honey tea

Aside from Black Oolong, Honey tea is fermented at different degrees to form additional options such as “imperial concubine tea” and “Honey green tea”. The special sweet flavour of Honey tea leaves is unique to Taiwan.

Black Oolong tea egg rolls and tea cakes

Based on Black Oolong tea leaves, the Luye area in Taitung incorporates the taste of tea into handmade snacks. The most popular being the Black Oolong tea cakes and the Black Oolong tea egg rolls with peanut butter, allowing you to enjoy tea and desserts at the same time. Every bite has the aroma of Black Oolong tea, making them popular souvenirs from Luye, Taitung.

Benefits of drinking Honey Black Oolong

The tea polyphenols and catechins in Oolong tea can prevent cardiovascular disease and body fat accumulation, lowers blood pressure and blood lipids, and has antioxidant effects which not only eliminates free radicals in the human body, but also slows down the ageing of skin. In addition, it can improve bad breath, prevent tooth decay, and also help digestion and metabolism.

Features of Honey Black(Red) Oolong

Honey Black Oolong tea is mainly made of the big-leaf oolong variety (Taiwanese tea No. 2), which is one of many Taiwanese tea varieties with a very long history. There are also Black Oolong teas made from tea trees such as Qingxin Oolong and Jinxuan. Because of the characteristics of Honey tea leaves, the tea garden needs to appeal to green leafhoppers by being a friendly habitat, and in order to do that, it must be kept natural, pesticide free, and surrounded by grass, quite the contrary to the neat tea trees in other tea gardens.

Such a special way of growing tea is a gift from nature! The tea leaves that have been bitten by insects must go through abnormal metabolism in order to grow, and this metabolism happens to be the best way to bring out the quality honey taste. The picking season of Honey Black Oolong is suitable all year round, but it is mainly concentrated in summer.

The taste and colour characteristics of Honey Black Oolong

The shape of dried tea is strip-shaped, and the colour is mainly dark brown
Long brews are bitterless, and also well-suited for delicious cold brews
The Tea brew is amber with a lustre of dark red
Light elegant honey flavour with a naturally sweet floral fragrance
The planting process is natural with low-to-no chemical fertilisers and pesticides

The rich amber color of Honey Black Oolong tea is as warm as the embrace of the sun on a summer’s day. Its smooth and velvety texture, combined with the delicate sweetness of honey, creates a symphony of flavors that sings in perfect harmony.

Recommended Honey Black Oolong Tea Bags

The reason why Honey Black Oolong tea can stand out among many other teas is that, in addition to the natural honey aroma, characteristics of black tea and Oolong tea are combined without affecting each other’s advantages. The natural honey flavour and aromatic fermented Black Oolong is what has people praising this fresh and unique combo.

Brewing method of cold-extracted Honey Black Oolong

Brew the boiled water with Honey Black Oolong tea leaves for 3 -5 minutes. Because of the strong taste, the amount of tea leaves used can be reduced by one-third compared with ordinary tea. In addition, you can place 1-2 tea bags directly into cold water, and leave it to sit in the refrigerator for 4-6 hours. The cold-brewed honey-flavored red oolong can better show the natural honey flavor. Honey Black Oolong is resistant to foaming, has a long storage life, and can be rebrewed many times without losing its aroma.

【Honey Black Oolong】Top 1 Famous Taiwan Tea - ABoxTik 一盒精品 6

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Where to buy Honey Red Oolong? ABoxTik gives you the best quality tea series.

The tea planted with the nutrients bestowed by nature has a strong aroma, and this injured tea leaf can be made into a Honey Red Oolong tea with a sweet and mellow taste. After being skillfully prepared by the baker, Honey Red Oolong not only is appealing in appearance and colour, but also lasts long. ABoxTik provides the best tea, whether for personal use or as a gift, we can attend to your needs. We insist on the use of carefully selected and locally produced Taiwanese tea from small farmers.