Oolong tea is a traditional Chinese tea. In Chinese language it means “black dragon tea.” It is commonly brewed to be strong, with the bitterness leaving a sweet aftertaste.
Oolong tea contains tea polyphenols which are thought to improve health, particularly catechins, the most abundant of which is epigallocatechin gallate. Unless specifically decaffeinated, oolong tea contains caffeine.
Oolong Tea Varieties
The main varieties of oolong tea include Wuyi Cliff Tea, Fenghuang (Phoenix) Dancong, Taiwan Oolong Tea, Tie Guan Yin, etc.
Oolong Tea Benefits
Oolong tea has been credited with providing a wide variety of health benefits, some of which have not been validated by scientific evidence. They include:
- The prevention and treatment of cancer.
- Oolong tea consumption is epidemiologically associated with reduced heart disease, and animal studies have found that it can reduce cholesterol. Several small, brief human trials also found that oolong tea consumption did reduce cholesterol in humans.
- Keep slim. Oolong slimming tea is a natural way for weight loss.
- Anti-aging.
- Reduce active oxygen in human bodies.
Brewing
Generally more than two or three teaspoons of oolong tea per teapot should be used. Oolong teas should be prepared with 180°F to 200°F (82°C-92°C) water (nearly boiling) and steeped 1-4 minutes depend on the different times from the same leaves. Almost all kinds of oolong tea can be brewed multiple times from the same leaves. It is common to brew the same leaves three to seven times, the second steeping usually being the best.
Side effects: Some oolong tea lovers, especially pregnant women and children, commonly restrict their intake because of the stimulants it contains — equivalent to about half or a third the amount of caffeine as is found in coffee. Too much caffeine can cause nausea, insomnia, or frequent urination.
China Oolong Tea Market and Fujian Oolong Tea Market
China produced about 150 thousand metric tons of oolong tea in 2008. Most of the Chinese oolong teas are grown in the South-China Fujian Province. Fujian produced 130,000 metric tons of oolong tea in 2008, accounting for 86% of China’s total output.
Fujian exports one tenth of its oolong tea, mostly low-quality, for few foreign consumers accept expensive oolong tea. In the first half of 2009, it exported 7,010.2 metric tons of oolong tea at a price of $25.351 million, or averagely $3.6 a kilogram. The export in volume decreased 3.8% while in value increased 2.5%.
The price of the best-quality exported oolong tea is $1,000 per kg. But the average price of exported oolong tea is only a third or a fourth of the domestic one.
Anxi Oolong Tea Market
Anxi County produces best and a third oolong tea in China. In the first 9 months of 2009, it produced 40,000 metric tons of oolong tea at a sale of 4.8 billion yuan, or averagely 120 yuan a kilogram. Anxi has the biggest oolong tea wholesale market in China.
How to Get There
Fujian Province has international airports in Fuzhou city, the provincial capital, and Xiamen city.
Anxi is an easy 50-minute bus ride from Xiamen city, or a 3-hour bus ride from Fuzhou city.
Fuzhou city has 2 big oolong tea wholesale markets:
1. Xi Ying Li Tea Wholesale Market. It locates in the west side of the Wu Yi Plaza.
2. Wu Li Ting tea wholesale market. It locates in the Jin’An District of Fuzhou city.
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