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If your oolong does not have enough aroma, the most common causes are incorrect water temperature, insufficient leaf, poor water, improper brewing, stale tea, or a mismatch between the tea's style and your expectations.

Oolong is particularly interesting because aroma is one of its defining strengths, yet aroma can disappear quickly when brewing or storage conditions are unfavorable.

You can often steep a good Chinese oolong tea several times—commonly around 5–10 infusions with Gongfu brewing, and sometimes considerably more—but the actual number depends on leaf quality, processing, roast, leaf condition, water, and brewing technique.

The main difference between light and dark roasted oolong is the intensity and duration of roasting, which can shift the tea from fresh, floral, and creamy toward deeper notes such as toast, nuts, caramel, spice, and roasted wood.

Roasting is one of the most important variables in Chinese oolong.

You can buy high-quality Chinese oolong tea online from specialist retailers that identify the tea's production region, cultivar or style, processing method, roast level, harvest information, and brewing characteristics, rather than treating all oolong as one category.

Tieguanyin can have an especially strong floral aroma, but the comparison is slightly misleading because Tieguanyin is itself one type of Chinese oolong tea. Other Chinese oolongs, including Phoenix Dancong and some lightly processed varieties, can also be exceptionally aromatic.