Renegade Tea Estate’s Red Sunrise | Tea Review

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I’ve been drinking my way through the various teas made in Georgia (Europe) over the last half year and have finally reached oolong!

Description: “This well-oxidized oolong has the flavour combination of sweet fruits and berries, honey and flowers with some light tannins.”

Instructions: 90°C/194°F | 3 grams | steep 3-4 minutes  

Review: So far, I have tasted white and green tea which have been lovely experiences. It is a learning experience to taste teas from the same farm because then you can explore an area and how the processing impacts the final taste of the tea.

Opening the bag of tea, there was a wafting smell of berries, grains, and charcoal. The dry dark black leaves were long and twisted with some scattering of orange-red tips. The leaves were picked in September 2022 and were withered, rolled, oxidized, fixed and dried which produced 5.3 kilograms of tea.

Steeping the tea for the first infusion, the brewed liquor had a warm, caramel, chocolate, and roasted nutty smell. After 4 minutes, the liquor developed into a deep golden reddish-brown colour. The taste was sweet, wand nutty, as well as stone fruit, chestnuts, and vegetal. There was also a lingering mineral quality and syrupy texture

The second infusion, with hotter water, had a hint of bitterness. It was similar to the first infusion – vegetal, sweet and woody, but with less flavour and complexity. When cooled, the liquor was sweeter and fruity like red dates or grapes. The rolled wet leaves and steams were brown, reddish and green in colour with a mild roasted, woody, and mineral smell.

Despite being an oolong, this one reminded me much more of a smooth fruity black tea. After a 3 minutes infusion, the liquor was sweeter and grassier, whereas, with an additional minute, the liquor leaned more woody. This tea is on the milder side, so this may be good for people who enjoy sweet or fruity black teas, but want a more delicate version (4/5 rating).

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