AMA No. 4 — Golden Lily Milk Oolong

Milk Oolong Tea — Aromatic Base. The single tea component is Milk Oolong from Taitung, Taiwan, a tea situated between green and black tea in its degree of oxidation. Taiwanese milk oolong is among the plants AMA Brewery cites as expressing regionality in its sourcing.^[1]

AMA Brewery's house method starts with extracting the teas, preparing microorganisms in the lab, reviewing formulations and inoculating the tanks. Primary fermentation runs in a steel tank with a self-cultivated SCOBY — the symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeasts carried over from the previous batch. Depending on the composition of the tea or herb infusion and the SCOBY's activity, micro-batches are ready for bottling between one and three weeks after brewing.

Appearance. Pale golden, with soft bubbles.^[1]

Nose. Caramel, milk tea and cooked chestnuts.^[1]

Palate. Full-bodied and well-rounded, carried by a soft mousse.^[1]

Structure. Points the published notes establish:^[1]

• Body: full-bodied, well-rounded
• Mousse: soft bubbles

Production. AMA Brewery is located in Irun, Spain, having been born in San Sebastián, and brews its pét-nat teas in small batches in the northern Spanish Basque Country. Because the drinks are bottle-fermented micro-batches whose bottling point depends on infusion composition and SCOBY activity, output varies from batch to batch.