Oolong (also "Blue")
Oolong Tea (烏龍茶, Wū Lóng Chá, "Dark Dragon Tea") is partially oxidized tea, landing roughly between 20%-80% oxidation. This makes oolong tea one of the largest categories of tea, encompassing a broad range of flavors, fragrances, and processing styles. We've chosen to subcategorize our oolong catalogue by growing region. There are four main regions known for producing oolong tea: the Wuyi Mountains in Fujian; Anxi County also in Fujian; the Phoenix Mountains in Guangdong; and the island nation of Taiwan.
QUEST: Look for and add a better reference to "blue tea" being an alternative name for "oolong".
Wikipedia reference that needs verifying: The Chinese term wulong (oolong) was first used to describe a tea in the 1857 text Miscellaneous Notes on Fujian by Shi Hongbao. In Taiwan, oolong teas are also known as qingcha (Chinese: 青茶; pinyin: qīngchá; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: chheⁿ-tê) or "dark green teas" since early 2000. The term "blue tea" (French: thé bleu) in French is synonymous with the term oolong.[4]
Phoenix Mountain Oolongs (鳳凰單樅, Fèng Huáng Dān Cōng, "Phoenix Single Bush") are known for their highly specific and distinctive profiles. Tea farmers and masters from this region are known for cultivating tea plants by cloning an idiosyncratic mother tree, resulting in a batch of leaves that are all genetically identical. This produces the single-genome varietals known as dān cōng 單樅 ("single bush").
Wuyi Mountain Oolongs (岩茶, Yán Chá, "Rock Tea") are known for the distinct mineral flavor of their leaves. The Wuyi Mountains are craggy, with a generally thin topsoil layer, resulting in dwarfed trees that grow slowly, concentrating minerals in their leaves. Often collectively known as Yán Chá 岩茶 ("Rock Tea"), these oolongs exhibit complex roasted flavors with nutty or caramel aromas. The Wuyi Mountains are also the origin point of the oolong technique.
Anxi County Oolongs (安溪烏龍茶, Ānxī Wūlóng Chá, "Anxi Oolong Tea") can range from floral, lightly-oxidized jade oolongs to dark, high-oxidation, charcoal-roasted varietals. This region is most famous for producing Tiě Guān Yīn, but is also home to some dynamic heirloom varietals, collectively known as the sè zhǒng 色種 ("color types"). Anxi Oolongs are characteristically rolled into little pebbles that unfurl and expand when you steep them.
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