Space 2/8/06


I need to state obvious definitions because I don't see how you can use
them for any real meaning of a tea that might fall through the crack.
By definition Oolong means some degree of oxidation. If it isn't
oxidized by definition it is green. Full oxidation is called black. I
exclude White tea as a special case. The lightest oxidation levels
I've seen are the Pouchongs.

We're together so far. Thus, Pouchong is the lowest level of oxidation, and
thus still qualifies as an Oolong.

The heaviest oxidation levels I've seen
are DimSum TGY and I guess 80%. I've never seen anything that would
fit your definition of green Oolong.I don't think that crack exists.

Feel free to disgard my definition. I'm just reporting how I experience
them. Most of the Oolongs I get on the greener side, both PRC and Taiwan fit
my description -- fisted, brilliant green, some straw yellow or some
permutation thereof.

If you do anything to the leaf it will cause brusing and oxidation and
require roasting.

Why would some small degree of oxidation generate a need for roasting? It
does seem to make some sense though, especially to stabilize the tea. But,
then there is steaming. Who knows? Come forth!

I buy every Taiwan pouchong I find.

In my case, that would be a *lot* of it.

You'll see it
described also as green jade oolong.

I think you will find that, while they are close,
they are not exactly the same at all.

The commercial brands from Good
Young are now my favorite. That leaf is half fisted. The first time I
tasted Taiwan pouchong is still seared in my brain.

Sorry to hear about your brain. Did it require surgery?

I can remember
other first time tea tastes but it is faint memory.

Faint memory? Was that a result of the brain sear?

I'm going to
scratch out and post the Taiwan characters for Pouchong and see if
anyone knows they mean Baozhong or not. It's been a question for me a
long time although everyone says the two are transliterations.

That would be very helpful. That way, we'll both get something more
definitive.

Everything I get from Taiwan is still sold as a pouchong and never as
baozhong.

I think if you look hard enough, you'll find some "Bao Zhong" out there from
Taiwan. If you are shopping for it exclusively in grocery stores, then they
might be more prone to the Wade-Giles transliteration than to the hipper,
more up-to-date, cooler Pin Yin as for example, BabelCarp uses.

Michael