This black tea is made from the shui xian cultivar, which is a cultivar usually used for making oolong. Instead of making an oolong however, this tea was completely oxidized, and then roasted 3 times by tea master Song Lin making a traditional honey orchid oolong into a Honey Orchid Black tea. It was then pressed into small ~5g disks that are convenient for serving.
This tea is sourced from the incredibly remote Wudong Village on the Phoenix Mountains, where tea master Song Lin and his family produce incredible tea.
TASTING NOTES:
Nose- The dry leaf has an incredibly savory and umami aroma, with notes of deep honey and molasses with an almost peat moss like quality reminiscent of Islay scotch and sweet flowers.
Palette- The palette has a deep sweetness, and has a date syrup like quality, which turns into a floral honey as it opens up on the tongue. There are notes of malt and chocolate with a deep umami into a caramel finish.
This tea follows the traditional idea of black teas in China, as it has no bitterness and low astringency while being incredibly refreshing. The mouth feel is incredibly thick and coating, while creating an incredibly relaxing sensation.
BREWING INSTRUCTIONS:
Steep half to one full disc with 250ml of 205F water for 4 minutes. Yields 8oz cup.
Or using the traditional gongfu method, take 1 disc and steep with 100ml of 205F water starting with a 25 second steep. Repeat process adding 5 seconds to each infusion.
FURTHER INFO:
Origin: Wudong Village, Chaozhou City, China
Harvest Date: Spring 2021
Style: Mi lan Xian Hong Cha (“Honey Orchid red”)
Picking Standard: Two or three half-matured tea leaves
Oxidation: Heavy oxidation
Producer: Song Lin
Garden Elevation: 600 meters
Varietal / Cultivar: Shui Xian
Age of Tree: 80 years
Roasting Level: 3 times
