Jinxuan (Milk) Oolong Deep Dive
Mountain Stream Teas Teaducation Subscription Service
May, 2026
As the 2026 spring tea harvest season keeps us busy with a ton of beautiful teas to try, we thought a Milk Oolong cultivar study was in order. Second only to the Qinxin cultivar in popularity, after this month’s box it should be easy for you to recognize an authentic ‘milk’ oolong in the future!
What are the teas we will look at this month?
Included this month are:
- Alishan Firefly Milk Oolong, 1400m elevation, 20% Oxidization, Jinxuan (Milk) Oolong, handpicked I n November 2025, Alishan, Chaiyi County,
Tasting notes: Soft vegetal, subtle floral, smooth thick mouthfeel
- 2026 Buttermilk Oolong, 400m elevation, 35% Oxidization, Jinxuan (Milk) Oolong, machine picked on April 24th, 2026, San Ming, Ilan County
Tasting notes: Thick, sweet mouthfeel, fruit aftertaste, buttery
- Mayor’s Alishan Medium Roast, 800m elevation, 30% Oxidization, electric roast, hand picked in spring, 2025, Alishan, Nantou, Junxuan
Tasting notes: Warm roast, caramel, fruit and nuts
- 2026 Buttermilk Green, 400m elevation, 5% Oxidization, Jinxuan (Milk) Oolong, machine picked on January, 2026, San Ming, Ilan County
Tasting notes: Rich corn silk vegetal, thick mouthfeel, hints of floral
- 2010s Reawoken Dong Ding, ~600m elevation, 30% Oxidization, light roast, machine picked in spring, 2010s, Dong Ding, Nantou, Jinxuan
Tasting notes: Soft roast, sweet vegetal, deep yellow fruit
- Acacia Charcoal Roasted Milk Oolong, 400m elevation, 30% Oxidization, 1 charcoal roast, hand picked in spring, 2025, Taoyuan City, Taoyuan, Milk Oolong
Tasting notes: Soft roast, smooth mid mouth transition to sweet fruit thick mouthfeel
What is ‘Milk Oolong’?
The Jinxuan cultivar imparts a flavor/mouthfeel that in Mandarin in called ‘Nai Xiang’. The best direct translation of that idea that we have come up with is ‘the positive essence of milk fat’. Not perfect, but you get the idea. Teas made with the Jinxuan Cultivar can be thick like butter, and some even taste a little like butter(or buttermilk perhaps) but an authentic Taiwanese Milk Oolong does not taste ‘like milk’.
Unfortunately, the idea that a Jinxuan oolong tastes like ‘milk’ has contributed to the growth of many strange, and some rather disgusting, artificially flavored milk oolongs that are absolutely nothing like an authentic ‘milk oolong’. Thankfully, questions like ‘do they really steam the teas with milk to get the flavor?’ questions have stopped, but for a while there was the urban legend that Milk Oolongs where ‘steamed’ in milk. This might have happened somewhere, but certainly not anywhere in Taiwan!
The Jinxuan cultivar is one of the highest yield and most versatile cultivars in Taiwan. It is the most common tea used in floral scented teas by far, mostly due to the fact that it doesn’t have a strong floral note. It also tends to hold a roast very well. It is also made into black teas and red oolongs, but we don’t usually carry these teas because a higher oxidized Jinxuan often has a starchy flavor that we don’t enjoy. When mid or low oxidized, beautiful sweet thick buttery fruit and vegetal flavors are why this cultivar is so justifiably popular.
Comparing These ‘Milk’ Oolongs
The two Buttermilks are an obviously great comparison, showing the difference a light and mid oxidized tea. Remember, they are made from the exact same plants! The two roasted oolongs and also a great comparison of charcoal vs electric roast and the Reawoken Dong Ding is a great example of how little age can ‘ripen’ the Jinxuan Fruit notes. The Firefly is the pinnacle of the most famous flavor notes of the cultivar, grown in the famous Alishan region. It is consistently the best ‘Milk Oolong’ we have ever tasted!
The Mystery
This month we will see if you can tell the difference between two similar milk oolongs, one charcoal roasted(warm and smokey) and the other electric roasted(sharp and nutty). Some other differences are that one of them is hand picked and one is machine picked and one is from a higher elevation. Can you tell them apart?
The June Box
As the spring season keeps rolling along we can’t wait to share the fresh high mountain oolongs with you. They will be picked this month and be in next month’s box!
Spring Harvest Season Update
Late but good seem to be the words to best describe the 2026 Spring Tea Harvest season so far. The teas we have been able to sample are stellar, and we hope that the trend continues.
Leave a comment