Teavana - Monkey Picked Oolong Tea Review

(photo credit - Me)

The second of the three teas I’m reviewing from my holiday gifts is the Monkey Picked Oolong tea. I’m had several cups of it so far, and it really reminds me of the Silver Yin Zhen Pearls White tea that I reviewed in the past. A lot, there’s not much difference in the taste really. Just one is a white tea, and this one is an Oolong

The ingredients in this tea is just one.

-Oolong tea

Pretty simple. To prepare the Monkey Picked Oolong tea, you need 1 teaspoon of the tea leaves for every 8 ounces of water. Let it steep for 3 minutes and you’re good to go.

This tea reminds me of a very light green tea. If you like your teas stronger (like I do), just let it steep for a few more minutes. It smells really nice too. The Teavana website describes it as having a “bright orchid aroma”, but I don’t really think it smells like orchids. I think it smells more like a light green tea. I’ll have to pay more attention to the smell when I make it again, and see if I can pick out the orchid aroma.

Another great tea from Teavana! I do love their teas!

Check out my my other tea reviews!

“Silver Yin Zhen Pearls White Tea” Review

I just got this tea from my parents for the 2012 holidays (thanks!), and I can’t find the exact tea on the Teavana website, but I found one that is almost exactly the same. The Silver Needle White Tea. Contains the same ingredients and preparation instructions, but the Silver Yin Zhen Pearls has hand-rolled leaves. I found the information on the Yin Zhen on the Teavana app.
Ingredients include the following:

• Hand-rolled silver needle white tea

When I first opened the tea tin I smiled. It does in facts look like pearls (green pearls). I even took a picture for you all to see.

When I first smelled it, it smells like green tea only not as strong. Same with the taste, it tastes like a mellow green tea.

The recommended amount to use is 1.5 teaspoons for every 8 ounces of water. The suggested time to steep it says 4 to 5 minutes, but it won’t hurt to steep it longer. It get a little more bitter the longer it sits, but not overpowering. It also contains less caffeine than green tea. This white tea contains about 1% of the caffeine that is in one cup of coffee.

So if you enjoy green tea, but don’t need that much caffeine, this is a good alternative.

Be sure to read all of my tea reviews on the My Tea Reviews page of this blog.