1997 Wild Hong Yin

***Sold Out***
I haven't written a tea review for a long time, longer than I can remember. The Hong Yin deserves a review of its own. I took out a few things for tasting with RS yesterday, some which we didn't get to try. After I rearranged the furnitures, the tea table is calling out to me for tea drinking at that table side with detail utensils as soon as I arrive to work everyday. I gave in and have tea myself, thinking maybe for just an hour. Tea jars from the day before are still out, so I picked the 1997 Hong Yin from the bunch.



The first time I had it, it wasn't impressive after drinking many signature aromatic and honey water like Dan Congs in one seating. The second time I tried it, it was nice and I didn't pay too much attention to it again. Both tastings were a few months ago from today.

Today's tasting turned out wonderful and impressive. Using Chao Zhou Stove to boil water in a Chao Zhou red clay pot, it sure made a big difference. As I also noticed from last tasting session, the color is a beautiful salmon rosie pink with a touch of peach color. It's the most beautiful and unusual color I have ever seen from tea. Pictured is 4th infusion, it still looks like this at 15th infusion. After a quick steaming in a steamy hot gaiwan, the leaves smell like pu-erh, and looks like seaweed. Tea soup is thick and sweet, somewhat reminded me of plum wine, both the taste and color. This sweet after taste is long lasting, I am still drinking it and still feeling it at 15th infusion for 3 hours. Strong qi from the first 5 infusions, I'm now feeling so relaxed, it's time for a nap. :)

Wild Hong Yin is one of the Phoenix Tea varietals, believed to be the original varietal which the rest are mutated from during the past 900 years or more. Due to the coarse texture/flavor and lack of aroma, the locals do not domestically cultivate them, however there are plenty of trees grow in the wild which are collected by the locals for medicinal use. Only aged Hong Yin is drinkable, similar to green pu-erh. Yong harvest can be too astringent for many stomaches. Aged Hong Yin are used to treat cold, sore throat, sinus problem, cough, fever, upset stomach, infections, bug bites, and allergies. It's a miracle cure for minor health issues.

The long lasting sweetness of this 11 years old tea is winning me over. Something that took a few times to uncover it's greatness will hold its place on my list of preferred teas.

Why isn't oolong tea a main stream tea like green tea?

There are many reasons to why oolong tea is so much better, but not popular.

1. Small production, only 3 regions in 2 provinces produce oolong tea in China. Taiwanese oolong teas are not widely available in China. Majority of the country of China produce green tea.

2. Complicated process also limit oolong production.

3. Transportation in the old days took much longer, shelf life was a big concern, light fermented teas could not make it else where and maintain its freshness simultaneously. In recent days, Tie Guan Yin gained popularity after a face lift and benefiting from refrigerated shipping and storage.

4. Local teacoholics consume most of the oolong teas before the tea had a chance to get out of town. City of Guang Zhou population consume an average of 2.5 kg annually, Chao Zhou population consume an average of 4.5 kg of tea annually, the entire China consume only 1/4 of a kilo of tea annually.

5. Complicated brewing method. Kung fu tea is a tradition in the southern states, west to Yunnan, east to Fujian, but not for the rest of the country. Si Chuan mainly used gaiwan as drinking vessel, later adopted by the rest of the country.

Oolong teas - who are they?

Oolong tea is one of the six main types of Chinese teas. Many of us tea drinkers heard of and had some oolong tea, most of my customers had never heard of it. Well, if you ask a random person on the street, most likely they have only heard of black tea and green tea, and nothing else.

Oolong tea is my love, and because of that very reason, I try my best to introduce oolong tea to any body, newbies, experienced drinkers and tea virgins.

If you were Chinese and think you know a lot about oolong tea because you drink tons of it, well there is always more to learn.

The birth of oolong tea was relatively recent compare to other types of tea, around the end of Ming dynasty 1600's. Early 1700's documented process of Wuyi oolong tea involved wilting fresh leaves under sun layered thinly in bamboo container, then fried and roasted to dry. Green portion is the effect of frying, the red portion is the effect of roasting. I'll explain this in an other article regarding processing and the chemical change during the process in detail.

In recent days, the process of oolong tea is the most complicated (procedures and chemical change), time consuming, labor intensive method, traditionally done by human hands. Picking, wilting, fermenting, tossing, repeat fermenting and tossing for 8 hours or more, kill green, rolling, frying, rolling, repeat frying and rolling, roasting, re-roasting multiple times. It's a sleepless 2 day continuous hard labor result.

What exactly is oolong tea? Is it a varietal or is it a process? Well, it's a combination of the 2. It takes suitable tea trees combine with the above method to produce oolong tea as a finishing product. There are 4 regions in the world produce oolong tea. Other regions produce so call oolong teas by using similar method, or some call semi-fermented teas as oolong tea. All oolong teas are semi-fermented, but not all semi-fermented teas are oolong teas.

Northern Fujian province, Wuyi mountain is the birth place of oolong tea. The processing method were then adopted by other regions, and modified to better suit local varietals for its unique flavors. Wuyi rock tea is macho by Yun, an experienced middle age man.

Southern Fujian province, Anxi Tie Guan Yin is the signature local flavor. Traditional heavy roast is like an old man, even tempered with lots flavor. Light roast TGY is like a young girl, likable with not much complication.

Taiwan oolong is every where, there's high mountain, baozhong, Tie Guan Yin, high fire, light roast, fisted, stranded, you name it. It's an united province of northern and southern Fujian. Women working in the city, in every level of the corporate ladder, administrative girls (jade oolong or Light roasted BaoZhong), middle management of the 30's (Dong Ding or High Mountain), the executive super women (Oriental Beauty).

Guang Dong Phoenix Dan Cong, the young married wife from a rich family in the old days. Beautiful hair with gem decorated gold/silver/jade pins, and a Yu Lan flower behind the ear, hand embroidered dress and shoes, slowly wondering among blooming azalea bushes, one hand holding a gaiwan, the other hand playing with the lid, occasionally taking a sniff through the lid, then a sip of Dan Cong. A young maid follows behind gently fanning her, birds chirping, water stream slowly running besides them, perfect harmony! Of course high maintenance too.

How to read a tea leaf

No, it is not fortune telling. :P

In picture below is Zhi Lan Xiang Ping Jai Tou, spent leaves after god knows how many brews. As you can tell, leaves are uneven by shape, color and fermentation. Spent leaves show all the tell tail signs of quality.

A. Does not belong here, a much darker green leaf some how got into this bag. Most likely a Big Dark Leaf from a container next to the Zhi Lan Xiang fell over. It happens and often at tea shops or factories. As long as the ratio is low (usually only a few leaves), it does not make a difference.

B. Bruises, these are not fermentation color change. Bruises are created during fermentation process, tossing leaves too hard breaking leaves in the middle which cause fermentation in the middle of a leaf. A few of these in a cup will cause astringency.

C. Flower fragrance.

D. Light floral aroma.

E. Nectar/honey/fruit juice flavor.

Traditional roast vs "new" light roast

Consumers are leaders of trend in tea, as in everything else in this world, be it fashion or life style. In recent days - less than 20 years, Qing Xiang (light fragrance) oolong has crept up market share to dominate in current market. Many old timer tea drinkers are complaining the new trend is digressing from the traditional. From an industrial point of view, producers will always make anything to meet market needs. You can roast all the tea you want in traditional roasting, and try as hard as you can to push for a sale, but if consumers do not buy, there is nothing you can do but to bend your wills. Tea producers and merchants have to make sales to make profits to put a roof over their head and take some bacon home to feed their wives and children.

So why do most consumers prefer Qing Xiang teas? It has to do with drinking habits of the majority population. Oolong tea did not travel far into inland of China before modern transportation. Out of all the tea producing regions, Fujian and Guang Dong are small and limited with production. Most teas from the 2 regions were sold to foreign countries with seaports right at home. What do the rest of the country drink, even today? Green tea and flower scented teas! Habit is something you grow up accustom to, with little incentive or need to change. When oolong is not known or available, green tea drinking habit is unshakable. However, modern day trading is effective and fast, mobility of tea allows green tea drinkers to have a taste of oolong, pu-erh, liu an and even dajeeling in China. Habit is hard to change for many, green tea drinker will have a hard time adopting the taste of heavy roasted flavors. Facing a large market aim at green tea drinkers, either produce something lighter in flavor resembling green tea or leave that segment of market. As good business men that Chinese are, new products are created to meet the demand. There is nothing wrong with that. There are demands all across the spectrum of the roasting degree during any time space, now, then and later, just the mater of more or less. Even the concept of "new" for qing xiang is not new.

Combing through dozens Qing Xiang oolong to find one traditional roast is a chore I admit. But it's not extincted. Like searching for any good tea, it takes effort. There is always an other way to accomplish your goal, roast your own tea! This is actually much easier to achieve than finding fundamentally good quality tea - good raw materials to process into superior flavorful tea.

Advantage of traditional roast: longer shelf life, more complex flavor and texture, suitable for aging, easy on stomach.

Advantage of light roast: floral fragrance, easy to drink for green tea drinkers, shelf life is shorter but no longer an issue due to new economic power with more disposable income.

200+ yrs vs 50+ yrs Huang Zhi Xiang

Before I continue with "Get to know Phoenix Tea (3) - Naming", I did a side by side tasting of the 2 Huang Zhi Xiang flavor teas: Ao Fu Hou 200+ yrs old mother tree, Huang Zhi Xiang 50+ yrs old (early clone).

Dry leaves: Ao Fu Hou (left), Huang Zhi Xiang (right).
Left (200) is mature, not uniformed, thinner but wider leaves, green with yellow bits.
Right (50) is dark green, uniform in size and color, small strands.
Tea trees reach its prime around 50 - 60 yrs old depending on the living condition, meaning leaves are meatier, more flavorful than younger trees. At sea level, tea tree will decline at 75 yrs old. At high altitude, ideal living condition preserve tea trees longevity beyond prime years. However leaves grown slower, thinner, but ensure full flavor with silky texture, also tannin level is low, hence little to no astringency, hui gan is awesome.
Left AFH is light amber, right HZX is light yellow in color.


Spent leaves: main difference is in shape of leaves.

Taste:
200+ yrs old tea: aroma is subtle and lingering through out the session, even long after drinking. Tea soup is creamy and milky, very smooth and full, the sweetness is quite pronounce, combined with the creamy texture, it's almost like drinking milk tea. After 20+ infusions, flavor is not longer noticeable, but tea soup is still round, full and silky. My body started to respond to the qi shortly after just a couple infusions.

50+ yrs old tea: aroma is definitely more present than 200+ yrs old tea. Sweetness is more honey like, less creamy and smooth than its older counter part. It's very high in caffeine, in case you are sensitive to it. Both of these teas are powerful in qi.

What to look for in Phoenix tea:
Older trees in high altitude: subtle aroma, taste and texture
Younger trees on high altitude: aroma and taste
Young trees below 800 meters: sharp aroma, flat texture

More Dan Cong

My mail man came in to drop off a couple of letters as usual, then he said "I got a box for you, be right back." I replied, a box??? Where did it come from???? I am expecting a few boxes, which one I want the most???? Before I figure out which one I want more, the mail man came back. I saw Chinese on the box, quickly I saw where this box was originated. My heart started pounding!

My friend Mary looked at me: Is that tea?
Me: It is weed!
Mary: I stopped smoking at 19.
Me: I am hooked for life.
Mary: You look high.
Me: Wanna get high now?
We both laughed...

My new order of Dan Cong arrived after a slight delay. Inside this box are some of the oddest Dan Cong you can imagine and some unusual grade but famous DC, of course aged DCs from 90's and 80's that made my heart beats escalate at very rapid rate.

Zei Shi (Thief Stool) 2006 - hmmmm how appetizing!
Ao Fu Hou (Concave Prosperity Queen) 2007 - Huang Zhi Xiang (orange flower) BEAUTIFUL flavor!
Bor Tou (Ginger flower) 2006
86 vintage DC, smooth as red wine
94 vintage DC
96 Wu Dong Da Ping DC, smooth, "experienced" at "prime"

2 more boxes are on the way, including some 97 vintage DC...

Da Hong Pao

WuYi tea is rather confusing to many tea drinkers. 2 main types of Wuyi tea by physical location of the trees: Rock teas and Zhou (Water side) teas. Rock teas are trees grown on cliffs of Wuyi mountain, Zhou teas are grown next to streams - lower altitude.

Here I talk about Rock teas briefly. Rock teas can be roughly divided into the following categories: Ming Cong (famous bush), varietals (produce large crops in tea farms), and Cai Cha (over all grouping of original local tea trees). Both Ming Cong and varietals are selections of good quality trees from Cai Cha. Before cloning was widely used to reproduce young trees, growing from seeds could not stabilize genetic, therefore Ming Congs are single bushes harvested, processed and sold uniquely. Other more stable varietals such as Shui Xian and Rou Gui can be widely sow and grown to produce large quantities.

Notorious names of Rock teas come to mind are: Da Hong Pao, Shui Jin Gui, Bai Ji Guan and so on. More than 800 varieties by name as currently known and documented by WuYi tea research institution. The name of the 800+ varieties can be separated according to myth (DHP), location (Zheng Huang Long), leaf shape (Bai Ji Guan), harvest time (Bu Zhi Chun), fragrance (Yue Gui), leaf color (Xiao Hong Mei), varietal (Shui Xian).

Da Hong Pao, despite its name which is widely known to many tea drinkers, the name is used for different concepts.

1) Ming Cong name - name for the group of 6 bushes. There are 6 single bushes (mother trees) still alive on the cliff of Tian Xin Cliff. These 6 bushes were sow from seeds, surviving centuries with its own individual genetic and flavor, even harvest time is different for each bush. Each bush is harvest individual and gone through a preliminary process, then combined all 6 together for final refined process (roasting), final product is about 1 kg each year. This is a blending technically speaking. 20g of DHP of these leave can be sold for $25k at auctions. The entire process is done by Wuyi tea research institute, we common tea drinkers will not have a chance laying our eyes on these precious leaves. They go straight to Zhong Nan Hai where the big shots are. Part of it is used for political purpose, such as the anual 20g DHP auction. Mao gifted half of his DHP to Nixon during his first visit to China in 1972, Nixon told his men that Mao was petty with such small quantity of tea. Little did he know, that's half of the "country" in Mao's words.

2) Varietal name - clones of the 6 DHP bushes now striving and producing in large quantity. In this case, DHP can be as pure as it can be or blended as well. Clones of one bush can be processed and sold on its own taking on the name DHP, or it can be blended with 2, 3, 4, 5 or all 6 of the clones to produce the end product also taking on the name DHP. In this case, varietal name and commercial product names are the same and legit.

3) Commercial product name - name of the end product on the market containing other than DHP varietal. Due to its famous mothers, demand for DHP increases substantially, to meet the market demand, some merchants blend DHP with other rock tea leaves and sold as DHP, or even without any DHP leaves.

Clones of "mother" trees are not exactly children where genetics can be evolved as sowing from seeds. Therefore, not considered as "generations". Clones contain the exact genetics, same flavor, same shape and same aroma. Ages of these clones are not to be mistaken as generations as well. i.e. clones done in the 80's are not "mothers" of the clones done in the 90's. However the age difference does make a significant contribution to Cha Qi. When shopping for DHP, some one tells you it's the second generation, therefore price is high is misleading.

What is Phoenix Dan Cong?

Phoenix Dan Cong is an Oolong tea, has a long history dates back to Tang dynasty. Chao Zhou Kung Fu Tea is well preserved live chronical history in tea culture. The mountain ranges of Phoenix has long been the nurturing soil of the local tea trees. There are less then 10 thousand old single bushes alive on these mountain ranges today. There were 20 thousand at the turn of the 1900, war and unstable politics were the main cause of ecology decline in the region and the entire country. Wu Dong mountain is the best among the ranges. The oldest bush believe to be about 600 years old, one of the Song Zhong varietal, white leaf type. Although it's the most famous bush world wide, but it's not a tasty tea known by the locals. I have to agree.

Dan Cong is the highest grade among Phoenix tea. Shui Xian being lowest, Lang Chai medium. Dan Cong is a single bush selected for its own distinct aroma and flavor, process separately from other bushes. Hence labor intensive and unique.

Today's commercial grade Dan Cong are cloned using branches from the mother tree, instead of sowing from seeds which flavor can be mutated on its own. Commercial grade Dan Cong contains the exact same aroma and flavor of the mother tree, therefore can be harvested and produce large crops each season unlike the single bush method.

However, old bushes are still processed on its own, one tree at a time today. Farmers are more aware of the plant cycle scientifically, hence better to preserve these old plants by letting them rest for most of the year, harvesting only in the spring.

Phoenix Dan Cong

I got my hands on some rather nice Phoenix Dan Cong recently. They are truly amazing teas that leave you longing time after time. I sell them at my shop Tea Habitat, I feel I should make it available to my fellow tea nerds whom know tea and appreciate excellent rare teas.

1) Chuan Du Lao Ming Cong 07 Spring (sold out temporally) $75 / 1 oz
400+ years old tree from Wu Dong Mountain, 1 of the 10 most famous Dan Cong single bush trees of the mountain, harvested and processed alone. Less than 10 kilos is produced each year. Only harvest during Spring and rest for the rest of the year. Wonderful aroma, extremely substantially thick liquid, sweet orchid taste. 3g per session can yield 20ish brews. After taste lingers 2hr or more, you can breath the orchid aroma in and out while talking. Very strong in Cha Qi, you might feel very relaxed to the point you just want to lay down and take a nap, however your mind can still be very clear and alert. YOU CAN GET DRUNK! Absolutely amazing tea, best I ever had in my life.

2) Da Yu Qi Mu Cong 05 Spring (sold out temporally) $75 / 1 oz
400+ years old tree also from Wu Dong Mountain, another famous single bush tree produces very limited amount each year. The orchid fragrance can be tasted in the liquid more so than on the nose, sweet honey like taste, thick liquid is the sign of an old tree. This tea has 2 yrs on its belt, so it's more mellow, rounded, sweet and hui gan is lovely. Strong but easy on the stomach. Roasting is also heavier than the above dan cong. 2 very different styles of tea compare to the previous. One is powerful and beautiful, like a Hollywood celebrity at her prime. This one is like a legendary actor full of flavor, but not aways in the spot light, however irreplaceable by all means.

3) Zhi Lan Xiang 07 Spring (SOLD OUT) $22 / 1 oz

Over 100 years old trees. This is an excellent tea for the price. The aroma is amazing, high and floaty/drifty, sweet winter honey taste in liquid, very much like drinking diluted orange blossom winter honey, but more intense fragrance. Hui gan is amazing if steeped for longer than 30 second. It will make you light headed. 30% red 70% green, a typical traditional oolong fermentation.

4) Gold Medal Prize winner - Honey Orchid 07 Spring $22 / 1 oz
Over 50 years old trees. Aroma and flavor is up front, clove honey like taste with li-chi flavor. It's more fruity than floral in flavor, however both are present.

5) Yu Lan Xiang - Chinese Magnolia 07 Spring $19 / 1 oz

50+ years old, sweet honey like taste, lovely Yu Lan fragrance. Hui gan is strong and lingering. Yu Lan is used by ladies of any age in China, its fragrance is sweet and clean, but high. Ladies put one in their hair as natural perfume.

6) Huang Zi Xiang - Orange flower 07 Spring $19 / 1 oz
50+ years old, strong orange flower fragrance, light roast, hui gan is fast and strong. It's another tea that can get you drunk.

7) Xing Ren Xiang - Almond 07 Spring $22 / 1 oz

50+ years old. If you ever had Chinese almond tofu, you'll know the kind of almond flavor in this tea, subtle and sweet, more like a juice than the powerful roasted almond nut flavor. Creamy texture, taste like hot milk with almond syrup added in.

8) Bor Tou - Ginger flower 07 Spring $25 / 1 oz (Available again, limited supply)

200 years old tree, light subtle yet strong and lingering. Ginger flower has a light clean aroma that's powerful but not over powering, light yet keeps you chasing after it. One of my favorite fresh flowers. Only a few can fill the whole room with fragrance.

All 8 of these dan cong have long lasting after taste with strong hui gan. Fragrance of each tea are different yet similar in ways how they roam around your mouth for a long period of time, leaving your breathes smell like flowers, some more than the other depending on the age. Due to the age of these tea trees, they are strong in cha qi, more or less will effect your body in some way. I had these tea for more than a week, 1 or 2 some times more in a day, and had been drunk every day. I had to go on a tea diet for a day to "sober" up.

Email me for shipping info at teahabitat at yahoo. Happy sipping! Will have pictures soon.

Nutty and moonlight oolong

I tasted the moonlight before the nutty, for reason of its appearance. It has silver hairy young buds mixed with dark green leaves.

The first brew was a quick 10 s pour, light with floral aroma; the 2nd brew was a 1 minute steep, I tasted sourness, bitterness and wood/compose, sour stiff and cinnamon sweet after taste. 3rd and 4th was a minute each, tasted similar to 2nd but less floral.

Nutty is the least attractive looking leaves among the 3 samples. It's also the reason I saved it for the last, however to my surprise, it tasted the best of the 3.

Quick 1st pour - 10s, clean mouthfeel, very floral, sweet in taste; 2nd was 30 s steep, stronger aroma of floral and fresh mulch, hint of mint, sweet pu-erh like after taste.

Both the Snow and Moonlight oolong resemble sun dried peony. Nutty is high in floral aroma, hence more like a oolong, it's also less oxidized than the other two.

My preference is Nutty, Snow and Moonlight in that order. However I won't replace my TGY and high mountain oolong with the Darjeeling varieties any time soon. They are more of the European afternoon tea choice, the term oolong associates with these tea does not match the Chinese oolong in "spirit", perhaps a imitation of technique, but without the essence.

Snow oolong

T-ching tasting samples: snow, moonlight and nutty oolong. I'm going to be busy for the rest of the week, so I am going to do a quick tasting of Snow oolong before I leave for LAX.

Dry leaves: a lot of white hair young leaves, some what broken, sign of fermentation.

3 g, gaiwan, boiling water

The first brew started off well, floral, smooth with hint of sweetness

Boy that was as far as I could get on Tuesday!

Almost a week later (Sunday night), here I attempted the second tasting.

Same parameters, 10s, 15s, 30s, 60s

Started off with floral, hint of sweetness but not lasting; the second brew was more amber in color, compose and some leather hint, medium to crisp body, reminds me of my orchid barks; 3rd brew, compose taste is getting stronger and bitterness is noticeable; 4th, losing flavor rapidly, after taste is a little sweet mulchy.

This tea resemble Sun dried white peony more so than oolong, both in appearance and flavor.

I am really short on time, so I'll skim on the pictures.

Orchid Dan Cong

I was invited to have dinner (hot pot) at my girlfriend's house in the Monterey Park area yesterday. Since I was in the area, WHF is a must visit. I came home with 3 kinds of tea. The Orchid Dan Cong is my favorite. I can only remember part of the name at the store, and the package is labeled Feng Huang Dan Cong. I rely on the label to give me the full and ACTUAL name!!! Although it's fun to wander around WHF, their operation I can make a few suggestions of. The tea lady is friendly because I am a regular, and I am a sucker of any sales scheme. So I end up with 3 tea and like only 1 of them. The other 2 are Da Hong Pao and Wu Yi Shui Xian, both are over exposed or "older". I should learn to be more firm under sales pressure.

Today as soon as I got up, I couldn't wait to make some of this orchid dan cong. 2 grams in gaiwan and boiling water for the first try. It's full of dan cong flavor and lacking the orchid aroma I remember at the store. I then tried it the 2nd time with 2 grams in a duan ni yixing pot with lobster eye water. The flavor is more intense, that orchid fragrance I remember is all over my mouth, which last for 3 brews, liquid is a little sweet and become more so from the 3rd brew and on. I had a 3rd try with 3 grams in a duan ni pot and crab eye this time. The orchid fragrance is the best at this temperature with more leaves shorter infusions. There is also a cool tingling sensation on top of the mouth. I really like this tea, except I notice a salty after taste in the mouth. I don't know if this is what I had or my body is acting up. I don't assume it's the tea after taste at this point. Best is to try it again in a couple of days.

Phoenix Dan Cong

Feng Huang Dan Cong - $40 per lb from WHF

3g, Gaiwan, boiling water

Dry leaves: dark brown/green, barely noticeable aroma, like a 5 years old potpourri found at the forgotten corner in the garage.

1st brew: 5s, brownish gold, stale nut taste, no aroma

2nd brew: 10s, still stale

3rd brew: 15s, nut flavor, medium smoothness

4th brew: 30s, stringent, a little sweetness

5th brew: 45s, flat with a hint of sweetness

Its flatness is definitely not worth $40, $4 is about as much as it should worth.

Dong Ding oolong spring 2006

Dong Ding ooglong spring 2006

Medium to high fired, $60 per pound, negotiable price, single estate crop from Li Shan, unknown producer. Seller is Lao Zi Hau (Old Brand), small snack shop vendor in every Shun Fat grocery store. This turns out to be a good find at a relatively low price.

3 oz, gaiwan, lobster eye to boiling water

Dry leaves: large pellets, even color and size, long stems are visible, aroma is more like Tie Guan Yin, sweet ripen fruity fragrance

1st brew: 10 sec, I did not wash this tea, turns out it was a wise choice. Very fragrant, lovely floral, liquid is light greenish yellow, no obvious taste, just a lot of aroma

2nd brew: 10 sec, more yellow than previous brew, less fragrant but still a very good smell, sweet and roasty taste, smooth and refreshing, no sign of any astringency or bitterness, nothing unpleasant

3rd brew: 10 sec, similar to 2nd brew, sweeter and roastier

4th brew: 15 sec, still a lot of flavor, less fragrant

5th brew: 30 sec, shrimp eye water, blend, just very blend

6th brew: 30 sec, lobster eye water, sweetness and roasty flavor came out again, fragrance is also detectable

Open leaves: smaller than usual ooglong, might be a small leave varietal, some leaves show red brownish rim, and most of them don't, a sign of uneven fermentation and light fermentation, young and tender leaves, hand picked, stems are too long.

Over all, this is a good tea, especially for the price. It's about the same quality of the $100+ ooglong/tie guan yin from Ten Ren. It can take high boiling temperature, unlike usual ooglong. This kicks it up a notch. My impression is, good tree varietal, if leaves were more carefully picked, evenly fermented, it could have a better result. I made 10 brews out of it.

Unknown high mountain oolong

Unknown ooglong, a friend gave it to me as a present after her trip to Taiwan.

3 grams in zhisa pot, crab to lobster eyes hot water, quick wash

Dry leaves: Dark green/brown, sign of a darker roasting ooglong, heavy bamboo smoky aroma, even size, look and smell are both pleasant

1st brew: leaves are half way open, color is amber as in picture, clear, aroma is sweet smoky English tea like, caramel and a bit milky in taste, texture of soup is somewhat smooth, kinda fresh yet mellow

2nd brew: darker amber, stronger smoky English caramel flavor, the greenness of ooglong is coming out, a slight hint of sourness

3rd brew: still a lot of caramel flavor, texture is more crisp than before

After taste: milky caramel smoky, no sweetness

Open leaves: large leaves with stems, 2 leaves and a stem mostly, no obvious signs of fermentation, hand picked

This looks and tastes like Jin xuan ooglong of Taiwan, it has the same degree of fire roasting, similar characteristic in smell and flavor. It looks better than its taste, it could be the aroma escaped through the box over time. Over all quality is not bad, not on top of my list though. I made 5 brews, it's very weak by then.

Premium Anxi Huang Jin Gui Oolong Tea

Premium Anxi Huang Jin Gui Oolong Tea * 100 grams * 3.5 oz

Light body, light fragrance, slight hint of sweetness, light everything, refreshing and clean. It's pleasant, though not as premium as advertised. At $45 a lb, you get what your pennies worth.

I'll append to this note later after my finger recovers from intense pain and swelling.

Dan Cong Wang from China

This is Dan Chong Wang from China. I mentioned this in previous blog about buying tea in China.

Dried leaves: Long thin free form, dark brown color

2nd brew: light amber color, crisp texture, Lichi flavor and aroma, hint of bitter sweet taste

After taste: crisp, sweet with slight hint of bitterness, similar to bitter melon, the good kind of bitterness, fruity

Opened leaves: young, tender, semi- fermented, reddish brown rim of the leaves show signs of even fermentation

I can easily get 10 to 12 good brews out of this great tea. Judging from the lingering Lichi fruity aroma brew after brew, I'd like to believe it is not artificially scented. It'd be a shame to ruin such good quality hand picked tea with artificial flavoring.

I paid $450 RMB for 500g for this Dan Chong. An excellent find!!!

Guan Yin Wang from Ebay

This is Guan Yin Wang I purchased from Ebay. Claim to be 2nd highest grade from Anxi, AA grade.

Dry leave: Uneven size, uneven color, very green 2nd brew: light green color
Taste: sharp grassy smell and flavor, some floral aroma, semi-smooth, not sweet, little sour and hint of bitterness
Opened leaves: old leaves, no sign of proper fermentation, leaves rim are broken
After taste: sour, floral, raw

This tea is too green/raw, I had 3 brews, my stomach can not handle it, it is very upset right now, I gotta burp!!!!

This tea is about $80 per lb. From my experience buying tea from China , Taiwan, and US, I found the best tea are never under $180 per lb in the US or Taiwan. China is very tricky on the other hand.

I went to the biggest tea market in GuangZhou, immediately I was intimidated and hesitate to walk into the shops. I might look too foreign Chinese, and I have a target on my forehead saying rip me off! Finally I picked a shop that specializes in Dan Chong and walked in. I was looking for a particular type of Dan Chong which my friend's dad brought to the US from Hong Kong. It's a very thin, long, young and tender hand picked leave in free form, dark brown color, taste like Lichi fruit. The shop owner made me tea from 4 or 5 varieties. I finally found something very similar to what I had. The tea was $900 RMB ($125 USD) per 500g, my friend negotiated down to $450 RMB, I bought 1 Kilo as a result and I thought I bought gold and paid the price of silver. I still think so today. Or I am a chump without knowing. HA

Well, I stumbled upon a neighborhood tea shop also in GuangZhou days later. This shop carries quite a few selections of Dan Chong as well. I inquired about the Lichi flavored Dan Chong, the owner started laughing and shaking his head. There is no such thing, it must be scented he said. Wow, I was about to cry! Can I be more foreign in China?! Oiy instead of aiya?!

I am still confused about this Dan Chong at this moment, not knowing whom to believe. However, for the quality of the leave and the flavor, I enjoy it every time. That's the most important thing.

I was told some tea shops in China will let you taste good tea, but you'll take home something different.

So my conclusion is buying tea in US, you get what you pay for. Price is a pretty good indicator of the grade USUALLY. In China, some times you can find bargains if you know your resources, other wise you are just another sucker taking home tea that's not what you thought you paid for.

Life is like tea, some times sweet, some times sour and some times even bitter huh?!