This is a very light, bright oolong – I tend to favour riper, fruitier ones as they always seem to infuse the flavoured tea with depth and dimension.
Accordingly, this comes off a little flat to me. This is my second time trying it – the first time around I brewed at 90C, with a steeping time of 3 minutes, and now I upped that to 5. The difference isn’t huge – a bit more complexity in the cup.
Unlike its not so aptly named traveling companion Buttered Rum, this tends to get very buttery, so maybe it wouldn’t have been a complete disaster if this tin had imploded as well.
I’m really sensitive when it comes to artificial vanilla – the vanilla in DT’s Buttered Rum was nice, but this one, even if it is the same, clashes somewhat with the floral, buttery notes of the oolong itself.
It won’t be difficult to clean this tin out, but overall, Vanilla Orchid is too light and inconsistent to be a cupboard staple.
[Gifted by C, October 2013.]
90 C, 5 min