Oolong: what kind of tea it is and why it's brewed many times
What oolong is, how it differs from green and black tea, where the most famous oolongs come from, what milky Jin Xuan is and how to brew oolong the Chinese way.
2 min read, 18 October 2026
Oolong (wulong in Chinese, “black dragon”) is a semi-oxidised tea: it sits somewhere between green and black. Lightly oxidised oolongs smell of flowers, like green tea; more heavily oxidised and roasted ones bring to mind honey, roasted nuts and cocoa. It's the most varied family of teas.
How it's made
After picking, the leaves are withered and then repeatedly shaken or tumbled in drums. The edges of the leaves get lightly bruised and begin to oxidise. The producer decides when to stop the oxidation by heating the leaves: at just over ten per cent, or at several times that. Then the leaves are rolled, often into tight balls, and dried. Some oolongs are also roasted over charcoal.
Where it comes from
- Fujian, China: floral Tieguanyin from Anxi, and dark, roasted, mineral oolongs from the Wuyi mountains.
- Guangdong, China: Dancong from the Fenghuang mountains, with distinct notes of fruit and flowers.
- Taiwan: high-mountain oolongs (gaoshan), rolled into balls, creamy and floral, as well as Dong Ding and honeyed Oriental Beauty.
Jin Xuan, the milk oolong
Jin Xuan is a tea bush cultivar bred in Taiwan in the 1980s. Tea made from it has a naturally creamy, buttery note, which is why it's called milk oolong. A word of warning: some teas sold as “milk oolong” are flavoured. Real Jin Xuan owes its flavour to the cultivar and the processing, not to additives.
Why it's brewed many times
The rolled balls unfurl gradually. The first infusion is delicate, the second and third are the fullest, and the ones after get lighter and lighter. A good oolong gives five, six or even more infusions from the same leaves.
How to brew it
In a teapot: 5 g to 150 ml of water at 90–95°C, 60 seconds. Each infusion after that 15–20 seconds longer.
The Chinese way (gongfu cha): 5 g to 100 ml in a small teapot or gaiwan, water at 95°C. First infusion 20–30 seconds, each one after that 5–10 seconds longer. You drink from small cups, and every infusion tastes a little different.
Good to know
Oolongs rolled into balls take up little space, and 50 g goes a long way. Store lightly oxidised, green oolongs like green tea: airtight and away from light. Heavily roasted ones will keep longer.
In our shop: Jin Xuan. It's also in the Explorer Set. You can read how many times other teas can be brewed in the article how many times can you brew tea.
