The Way Of Health >> Oolung Tea
Oolung Tea
The Virtues of
High Mountain Oolung Ch’a (Tea).
High Mountain Oolung Ch’a (Tea).
I wish very much to share this information passed on to me by Daniel Reid some years ago. Daniel introduced me to a Tea connoisseur friend of his whom I visited in N. Thailand back in 2001 whom introduced me to this remarkable drink. During my stays in S.E Asia in order to satisfy my thirst I engaged upon numerous Ch’a pilgrimages and passed away much of my time seeking out and experimenting with the Chinese and Japanese traditional art and celebration of tastes ,flavors and healing properties. The antioxidants in the tea which counteract fatty deposits in the arteries can help to keep cholesterol low and improve circulation by helping to increase blood flow and prevent the hardening of the arteries. Ch’a has shown to contain B1,B2, & B6 as well as vitamin C, flavornoids,(which help prevent cancer) polyphenols, manganese and potassium. As with everything overdosing on Ch’a can have negative side effects such as irritable stomach membranes, insomnia and stained teeth. So please keep the brews light and be aware not to make it too regular. Personally, in general I find two brews a day to work well for me. It is said that Tea is a silent but powerful influence in our lives. Happy drinking!
Among the many varieties of tea in the world today, there is only one whose fragrance and flavor clearly distinguish this tea above and beyond all others, and it only takes a single sip to recognize its peerless distinction. That noble tea is a particular variety of Oolung (Black Dragon) tea known as High Mountain Oolung Tea (gao-shan wu-lung cha), carefully cultivated for the past 300 years on the fertile, sun-splashed, mist-drenched slopes of the lush central highlands of Taiwan. Introduced to Taiwan by early Chinese settlers from mainland China during the late 17th century, Oolung Tea thrived in the high humid mountains of Taiwan, and over the centuries Chinese tea planters meticulously culled and crossbred the finest specimens to create what well cultivated tea connoisseurs throughout the world today recognize as the non plus ultra of all teas on earth--High Mountain Oolung Tea.
This tantalizingly tasty tea is also a most excellent elixir for human health and longevity. Only very slightly fermented, High Mountain Oolung retains all of the vital health benefits of natural unfermented green teas, but without the “raw” grassy flavor and the harsh impact on the stomach that make green teas disagreeable to so many people. High Mountain Oolung is also completely free of the tannins and other irritating byproducts of full fermentation that are present in all black teas.
One of the great beauties of genuine High Mountain Oolung Tea is that its unique fragrance and flavor speak distinctly for themselves, the moment they touch the palate, in a tone that cannot be faked or imitated by less well bred teas. Introducing itself softly onto the tongue with a dry, slightly astringent foretaste that instantly cleanses the mouth of all stale residues and conflicting flavours.
Like Chinese food and so many other things Chinese, High Mountain Oolung Tea not only pleases the senses, it’s also very good for the body. Long known in China for its detoxifying medicinal properties and its digestive virtues, recent research in Japan has shown that the volatile aromatic elements contained in the tea, which as gases are naturally excreted from the bloodstream via the lungs rather than the kidneys, eliminate heavy metals, tars, and other hazardous toxins from the delicate alveoli sacs that line the lungs, thereby purifying lung tissues and protecting them from damage by smoke, smog, dust, and other airborne pollutants. That’s why today so many Chinese and Japanese people, who rank among the world’s heaviest smokers, drink High Mountain Oolung Tea throughout the day, and are willing to pay almost any price to obtain it.
Modern medical science has discovered another compelling reason to adopt High Mountain Oolung as a daily beverage for health: it contains abundant supplies of polyphenols, which are powerful antioxidant compounds that protect bodily tissues from the formation of tumors, and thus they serve as a highly effective preventive against cancer. High Mountain Oolung Tea is one of the richest and by far the most palatable source of polyphenols. In conjunction with its proven lung cleansing powers, this tea, if consumed on a daily basis, provides particularly effective protection against lung cancer and other debilitating respiratory ailments. While polyphenols are also found in unfermented green teas, they are almost completely destroyed by the fermentation process used to produce the ordinary black teas commonly consumed throughout the world today. Significantly, the sort of black tea found in most tea bags and tea cups everywhere these days, even in the most expensive hotels and restaurants, was traditionally dismissed in China as the most inferior grade of tea, and thus it rarely found its way into the tea pots of discriminating connoisseurs.
In the traditional method of preparing High Mountain Oolung Tea at the table, all residual traces of dust, oxidation, sprays, fumigants, smog, and any other contaminant to which the leaves may have been exposed during growing, processing, and shipping are all completely washed from the tea by a preliminary “hot bath” in the pot. This technique, whereby an infusion of boiling water is first poured onto the dry leaves in the pot, then immediately poured off and discarded, is unique to the classical Chinese art of tea, and it guarantees a pure, perfect, unadulterated cup of tea each and every time.
The top grades of High Mountain Oolung from Taiwan currently rank among the most expensive and highly prized teas on earth. And as this tea becomes better known throughout the world for both its unsurpassed flavor and fragrance as well as its potent virtues as an elixir for health and longevity, market demand continues to soar while production supplies remained limited, and therefore prices for the best grades continue to rise far beyond the reach of many customers.
Fortunately, the shortage of supply has recently been remedied by the transportation of several million top grade High Mountain Oolung Tea saplings from the overcrowded tea plantations of Taiwan to the fertile highlands of northern Thailand, where this tea is now flourishing to full potential under the tender loving care of experienced professional tea planters from Taiwan. Indeed, several of these High Mountain Oolungs grown in Thailand from Taiwanese saplings have won top awards at professional tea tasting fairs in Taiwan, and a few of them even surpass equivalent varieties grown in the over cultivated soils of Taiwan. Moreover, owing to the lower cost of labor and land in Thailand, these teas are grown organically there, further enhancing their therapeutic virtues.
High Mountain Oolung Tea from Thailand is now available on the market at prices that are less than half of those produced in Taiwan, with equivalent qualities in fragrance, flavor, and therapeutic potency, and at these prices, virtually anyone can afford to join the growing international fraternity of High Mountain Oolung Tea devotees. In light of the scientifically proven health benefits, the deeply satisfying flavor and fragrance, and the spiritually uplifting cultural aspects, of preparing and drinking High Mountain Oolung Tea the traditional Chinese way, there are many compellingly good reasons to make this elegant, earthy, heart-warming tradition an indispensable part of your own daily routine and integrate its many virtues with your own local lifestyle.
Fortunately, the shortage of supply has recently been remedied by the transportation of several million top grade High Mountain Oolung Tea saplings from the overcrowded tea plantations of Taiwan to the fertile highlands of northern Thailand, where this tea is now flourishing to full potential under the tender loving care of experienced professional tea planters from Taiwan. Indeed, several of these High Mountain Oolungs grown in Thailand from Taiwanese saplings have won top awards at professional tea tasting fairs in Taiwan, and a few of them even surpass equivalent varieties grown in the over cultivated soils of Taiwan. Moreover, owing to the lower cost of labor and land in Thailand, these teas are grown organically there, further enhancing their therapeutic virtues.
High Mountain Oolung Tea from Thailand is now available on the market at prices that are less than half of those produced in Taiwan, with equivalent qualities in fragrance, flavor, and therapeutic potency, and at these prices, virtually anyone can afford to join the growing international fraternity of High Mountain Oolung Tea devotees. In light of the scientifically proven health benefits, the deeply satisfying flavor and fragrance, and the spiritually uplifting cultural aspects, of preparing and drinking High Mountain Oolung Tea the traditional Chinese way, there are many compellingly good reasons to make this elegant, earthy, heart-warming tradition an indispensable part of your own daily routine and integrate its many virtues with your own local lifestyle.
