oolong
noun/ˈuː.lʊŋ/ · /ˈoː.loŋ/
Etymology 1850s. From either Mandarin 烏龍 /乌龙 (wūlóng) due to hypercorrection, or directly from Hokkien 烏龍 /乌龙 (o͘-liông), from 烏 /乌 (o͘, “black”) + 龍 /龙 (liông, “dragon”). See also pouchong from Hokkien 包種茶 /包种茶 (pau-chióng-tê, literally “tea of the wrapped kind”).
1
A partially fermented tea, often roasted, which combines the characteristics of green tea and black tea.
- Near-synonym: black dragon
- Flavour and aroma of semi-fermented teas is dictated by the extent of fermentation and, for this reason, oolong has a considerably stronger flavour than pouchong, which undergoes a significantly shorter fermentation.1994, A. Varnam, J. M. Sutherland, Beverages: Technology, Chemistry and Microbiology, page 187:
- Derived terms
- oolong tea