Ito En – Sencha & Oolong Shots
An energy drink without any sugar? Yes please! The Sencha Shot and Oolong Shot from Ito En are just the ticket!
(I like the Oolong Shot myself!)
Many thanks to Ito En for sending us samples of their teas!
UPDATE! Rona, a tea expert from Ito En, was kind enough to share why oolong is called a “blue tea.” Thanks, Rona!
Great review!
Thanks, Mark! And thanks again for sharing Ito En’s products with us!
Did the oolong have the dry chalky taste that some oolongs do? Wish the site would be more specific.
Eric,
While the taste was definitely more dry than an unfermented tea (green, white, etc), it definitely was not as dry as a highly-fermented oolong. Overall, the flavor on both of these is light and not too offensive to the palate, although Derek (the other, more silent half of nerdiTEA) thought the sencha seemed a bit oversteeped.
Also, I should note that I tried both of these teas after they’d been thoroughly chilled, which tends to affect some of the “dry” flavors.
Hope that helps! If you have any more questions, I’d be more than happy to answer/address them, and I’ll try to be a bit more specific in future episodes.
Hi Jess,
It looks a lot like Ito En has simply re-packaged their standard bottled Sencha and Oolongs for the US market. These kinds of teas are all over the place in Japan. You can literally get them anywhere. There are several different manufacturers. Kirin makes some nice golden oolongs, which are less roasted and more fragrant than the standard bottled oolong available everywhere.
Maura -
(Any excuse to go to Little Tokyo!)
Having tried their standard bottled Oolongs and Senchas, I can say that there is a little bit of a difference in the taste; the flavor is a little bit more condensed in these, and I think there’s a slightly different tea-to-water ratio. I do agree that I think it’s a bit of a repackage of the Japanese versions (because I’ve tried the Japanese versions of these from Asian supermarkets in the area), but I’m still a supporter of the cause behind this effort — competing against those nasty canned energy drinks by bringing a healthier tea-based alternative to the American market.
While I’m fortunate enough to live in LA, where I can get the imported Japanese teas pretty easily, I know there are a lot of people who don’t have that luxury, and I think this is a good way for Ito En to get their products out into the US market. I’m sure Kirin is attempting to do the same!
Also, Ito En has a new golden oolong in their Teas’ Teas line that I’m going to be trying out soon. I’ll try to get my hands on a Kirin golden oolong for comparison.
Thanks for the reply. Just to clarify my comment about specific details wasn’t directed to you/your site, you reviews are great, I was talking about Ito En’s site. I wished they would give a little more detail about the leaves, where its from, how oxidized it was, etc. I’m just really picky about oolongs because I generally don’t enjoy really green oolongs.
I’m pretty picky about oolongs too, although in the other direction — I adore green/jade oolongs! I think if you’re looking for the really heavy fermented oolong flavor that comes from, say, a good Ti Kuan Yin, this is not the place to look. It’s more of a good beginner’s oolong flavor — one to help you get used to the flavor before you dive into all of its iron goodness.
Hi Jess, great review! My name is Rona and I’m a tea expert over here at ITO EN. I noticed that you had a couple of questions about the Oolong Shot and I just wanted to help answer your question on why Oolong is called “blue tea”. Simply, because the dried oolong tea leaves gave a bluish hue when reflected in the light. As you may already know, oolong is semi-fermented tea with a dynamic balance between green(unfermented) and black(fully fermented). Its been gaining popularity since research shows that an unidentified compound in oolong may promote weight loss.
Thrilled that you have given our new Oolong Shot the thumbs up! Let me know
if we can answer any other questions you may have. You can email me at
rtison(at)itoen(com)
Enjoy your videos!
Thank you, Rona!
That’s really interesting… I guess I’ve mostly been drinking jade oolongs, which are pretty much just a deep green… I’ll look for the blueish hue next time I brew up a cup of oolong (a non-jade one, that is)!
Hiya! Great reviews…I enjoyed it…have yet to see those anywhere yet but I hope to. Also enjoyed reading the comments…I looked for the Blue Tea Explanation and found some stuff but it basically said what Rona said! LOL
[...] nerdiTEA + Comment on Where “Blue Tea” Comes From [...]
Oolong Tea is supposed to be a weight loss tea. Does this drink offer the same properties. Anyone bought it for this reason and had weight loss success ?