After almost a year’s search and preparation, we are very excited to starting offering our select Feng Huang Dan Cong!

FengHuang DanCong gets its name from the major production area in the Wu Dong mountain plantations, Feng Huang county, Guang Dong. As a generic name, it actually covers at least three production area: Wu Dong of Feng Huang, Lin Tou of Pin Xi, and Da-Zhi mountain of Shi-Gu-Pin village. Because of the difference in microclimate and cultivars in those neighboring plantations, they are have their own unique focus and characters.

Its naming is as complex as the system of Wuyi yen cha, but mostly uses its more focused fragrance as the name. So, when we mention “Mi Lan (Honey Orchid)” dancong, it is not only the tea’s product name but also its cultivar name. Cultivars were naturally originated from sexual propagation (seeds) of parent tea trees, but later was selected and propagated by asexual ways such as cuttings, much like yen cha.

Dancongs share some similar characters as Wuyi yen cha, but there are definitely distinct differences. From its shape, you can rightly guess dancongs, like bao zhong, inherited Wuyi yen cha’s tradition and skills. They are all oxidized to at least 25% to 35%, and undergo lengthy wood roasting process that is quite labor-intensive. But in general the oxidation and roasting degree for dancongs are lighter than yen cha.

The quality of dancongs is majorly determined by the growing conditions (especially elevations), tea tree’s age and surely the producer’s skill. The whole WuDong or LinTou plantation area cover elevation from 450m to more than 1200m height. In general, old bushes produce better dancongs quality as their roots are deeper in the soils and absorb more complete range of nutrients and minerals.

Brewing dancongs is a lot of fun, especially with our select premium dancongs that all have beautiful and complete leaves and the aroma and taste are superbly clean, focused and refined. You will be surprised by the strength and the durability of them: I would recommend using a slightly cooler water temperature (~195 to 200F) than for yen cha, and keep the steeping time less than 45 seconds.

We are glad to offer at least four different dancongs for our dear customers: Mi Lan (Lin Tou dancong), Ba Xian (Wu Dong), Lan Xian (Orchid Fragrance), and unique Huang Jing (Golden). In a near future, a precious 15-year aged dancong will arrive!

Guang

There is no doubt that the Tie Guan Yin cultivar and its processing skills were brought to Taiwan from southern Fujian, China in late Qing dynasty. However, when you look at how its processing skills and its market has been evolved on both sides, you would be surprised by how different they are.

One of the most prominent characters of the “Tie Guan Yin” cultivar is the exuberant and intense fragrance of the leaves after the oxidation step during processing. Few cultivars can compete with Tie Guan Yin on its fragrance at this stage. Interestingly, while this unique character becomes an advantage in its development in China with Anxi as the center, it is regarded as a potential, if not a disadvantage, in its development in Taiwan. How could such an intense fragrance become a disadvantage? And what are the reasons behind the divergence in its fate?

Taiwan’s processing skills of Tie Guan Yin largely preserve the old tradition of southern Fujian. Tie Guan Yin’s intense fragrance is considered as overly exaggerating and less refined. And the fact is, without proper post-processing and roasting, Tie Guan Yin can be harsh to the stomach. I have heard people praising the fragrance of Anxi Tie Gian Yin but at the same complaining the uncomfortable feeling in their stomach after drinking it.

In China’s current tea market, “Nan Cha Bei Zhou” – meaning southern’s tea leaves, and northern’s tea fashion – is becoming the prevailing trend. Not only Anxi’s Tie Guan Yin, but Fo Shou (Budda’s Hand) of Yun Chun, Fujian also moves away from the traditional heavy wood-roasting style to the light-oxidation, light-roasting fashion.

The expression of yun by Taiwan’s Tie Guan Yin is really exceptional. The aroma is rich and vibrant, concentrated, ripely fruity, and enhanced by the solid roasting “fired” feeling. This is a tea that can be not only enjoyed now, but also great for aging for several years (may need re-roasting after to reduce humidity) to enhance mellowness. You can enjoy it day and night without the worry of having a stomach.

Which one is better? The exuberantly fragrant Anxi TGY or the superbly mellow Taiwan TGY? I am sure both have their die-hard followers. But isn’t it a blessing to be able to look through Taiwan’s Tie Guan Yin to find what the old wisdom was and how it is still living?

Guang

In Part I, we tried to demystify Da Hong Pao and gave our tribute to the person whose courage and passion prevented one of the most precious tradition in Chinese tea culture from extinction.

This reminds us the fundamental difference that separate wuyi (in fact, all oolongs) from pu-erhs. For pu-erhs, more precisely for traditional pu-erhs, the “cultivar” has never been a core concern regarding their quality or characters. When tea trees grow wildly, including those in long-abandoned “semi-wild” kinds, they propagate sexually by seeds. Each child plant from the seed bears some characters from the father, and some from the mother.

But for Wuyi, “cultivar” is vitally important. Vast amount of effort in yen-cha’s heritage have been spent on finding and identifying the most promising tea plants from the wild. Yes, originally those plants were also from seeds. But once the plant’s quality and character were proved to be very worthy, it was propagated asexually by cuttings or layerings.

So you may have heard people saying “this is the XX generation of Da Hong Pao”… the saying is meaningless at all. By asexually propagated, the seedlings are identical to the mother plant.

However, the prevailing opinion on the market about “Da Hong Pao”, as reflected by the interview of Hong Kong’s famous tea entrepreneur Mr. Huang Jing-Zhi (Pu-erh Tepot Magazine, No. 19, page 48~54), is that “nowadays, it’s ok to call all premium quality wuyi yen cha as Da Hong Pao”. … hummm ??? If that is true, Mr. Yao might a well spend his spare time on the rice farm reading Chairman Mao’s red book, instead of worrying about those dying whatever tea trees!

I am very glad to know the gentleman who is listed as one of the Heritage Inheritor. Few of China’s tea producer is so willing to spend hours on the phone with a buyer who purchases only several pounds of his teas. I have met too many people who initially was very courteous to me, and once we moved on to business and he realized my order was in the unit of pounds not tons, I was like on the “do not call” list forever!

We are offering two of his 07 Spring yen cha, Rou Gui and Da Hong Pao. Both were done 100% by hands, not using any machine step. And both are 100% as what their name say, no blending. Enjoy!

Guang

Wuyi yen cha is a very tricky tea, and a very worthy one to explore. Even with the same tea, a slight change in water quality or temperature, using a different teapot or just a different tea cup, can result in a quite different taste/aroma, maybe better, maybe worse. But the reward when you make a nice cup of yen cha is totally bewitching.

Da Hong Pao, we all know it. Most of us have tried it. Some of you may have even visited the Tian Xin Yen cliff with the three big red letters “DA HONG PAO” carved on the wall and six “original” Da Hong Pao tea trees standing high and above. So, what if, I mean, if, the six super-protected and pampered tea trees could be not the original Da Hong Pao at all?

The story has to be started with the yen cha Maestro, Mr. Yao Yue-Ming (1931 ~ 2007). I received a book from a person who was elected as one of the twelve “Wuyi Yen Cha Da Hong Pao Heritage Inheritors” by Wuyi Shan City. The book was put together by Yao’s wife Mrs. Jing Tie-feng as a collection of thesis and articles by Mr. Yao.

On page 202 to 203, the book details Mr. Yao’s effort to rescue and identify Da Hong Pao since early 50s. According to Yao, Tien Xing Yen’s “Da Hong Pao” carving was done in 1927 under the request of monks to the local government,

in fear of the real Da Hong Pao trees would be randomly plucked and destroyed by tourists, so they carved Da Hong Pao on a higher cliff against other kind of tea trees. They are in fact “Chi Dan”, by no means the Da Hong Pao.

Yao started to search for the genuine Da Hong Pao since 50s. According to early research, the real Da Hong Pao could be in one of the three locations: (1) Bei Dou Feng (Feng means “peak”), and two sample cuttings were collected here naming Bei Dou #1 and Bei Dou #2, (2) Hou Yian Feng, (3) Tien Xin Yen (at a different location). In 50s, his team collected samples from the three locations. All samples were lost during early stage of the Cultural Revolution, and he was forced to leave his tea research lab. In early 60s, he, then was assigned to be a rice farmer, re-visited the three places. The trees were all nearly dying. He tried to saved some cuttings from the tea trees of the three locations, and grew them secretly at his spare time on the rice farm.

In the same growing environment, he found the tea trees from the cuttings turn out to have the same characters. He named those survived tea trees, following his teacher’s early work in 40s, as Bei Dou #1. From those tea trees more cuttings were propagated and the tradition of Da Hong Pao thus luckily saved by one man’s courage and passion.

There are many “legends” around Da Hong Pao, and most are superstitious or simply exaggerating. The continuing effort by the monks’ request in 1927 to Yao’s courageously effort to identify and rescue the yen cha’s heritage is truly what we can call – a legend.

Guang