Photo Set – 2008 Hung Shui Dong Ding

Handcrafted small batch of traditional Hung Shui Dong Ding

 

2019 New Section - FREE TEA SAMPLES

GET MORE TEAS WITH YOUR ORDER

I am excited to introduce the Tea Samples Catalog to the blog. As a tea lover I have always enjoyed having access to new teas and collecting new experiences to cultivate and improve my understanding of tea. I hope to deliver both under this section and add greater value to tea enthusiasts who make their purchases here. The highlights include tea from Menghai Tea Factory, Wisteria Tea House, Yang Qing Hao, Douji, Essence of Tea and many more.

Starting 2019 I am making available these teas that come from a part of my collection. The list below is an assembly of various teas from my many trips to China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore in addition to online ventures spanning almost 20 years. There is a wide and diverse range of teas to be found. As I bring more out from storage new installments will appear. There are some real gems in the mix. If you have a sharp eye combine with a good sense for spotting good teas you can add considerably more to your tea order. Have fun discovering new teas!

ENTER

2008 Hung Shui Dong Ding (Taiwan Oolong Tea)

The higher level of oxidation and roast imparts a darker color to the resulting tea. On a deeper level the effect of traditional Hung Shui from Dong Ding is considerably more soothing and comfortable, and ideal for those who have a sensitive digestive tract. As someone who is sensitive I am happy to share that I can drink traditional Hung Shui all day without any ill effects. By comparison the nuclear green oolong tea that currently dominates the market in Taiwan is noticeably more acidic and drinking too much leaves me feeling jittery and unwell.

Cleaning & Sorting the Oolong Tea Cabinet

Cleaning and sorting through things is not a particularly fun task so it helps to that there are interesting items that act as motivation for the process. Bringing these oolong teas out from the dark was definitely an incentive.

1980s Ti Kuan Yin

 The appearance of a well age tea is a thing of beauty

Food Pairings – Lotus Seed Mooncake w/ Shui Hsien Tea

The packaging of Chinese mooncake gets more surreal with each passing year as the business becomes more and more competitive and each brand competes to standout. The above is from the Shangri La Restaurant, a remaining pack from last month’s Mooncake Festival.

Age Da Hong Pao

Da Hong Pao is a famous oolong tea that originates from the beautiful and scenic Wuyi Mountains in Fujian Province, China.

In the category of age tea, despite there being many different types of tea there exist similarities that define this unique group of tea. To understand the nature of age tea and how these teas develop with time a tea drinker must drink widely. Having covered age puerh and old versions of Liu An and Fu tea in this entry I present the first age oolong - Da Hong Pao. The heavy roast employed in the production of Da Hong Pao makes this tea a good candidate for aging. I find that time can enhance a young Da Hong Pao by softening the strong elements of the newly roasted tea. The fire elements, astringency and stiffness of the new tea will settle with time and the character of the tea will open up to greater complexity. An age Da Hong Pao can develop smoother and more rounded characters, increasing in sweetness and becoming more viscous when brewed.