Peony Tea S. – Celebrating the contemporary art of tea

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� Oolong tea is a category of tea◦ One of the six major categories of tea- green,

white, yellow, black, dark (often erroneously called Pu-erh which is a type of dark tea) and oolong

� Oolong is basically an earlier form of the

Chinese word 乌龙 which is spelt ‘wu long’ in Hanyu Pinyin

� Popular types of oolong include Tieguanyin, Big Red Robe and Dong Ding Oolong

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� Literally translated- ‘乌’ black ‘龙’ dragon

� Likely named after the shape of the tea leaves

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� Many fables, the tea picking hunter Hu Liang, the sleepy tea picker and the rebels

� Commonality of the tales◦ Accidental discovery- rattling of the leaves which is

crucial to production of oolong

◦ Originates either from Northern Fujian (Minbei) or Southern Fujian (Minnan)

◦ Likely to be sometime in the 17th century since by 1717, there was documented proof that oolong tea is commonly available in Fujian

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Withering

(萎凋)

Rattling or

'Yao Qing'

(摇青)

Shaqing

(杀青）

Rolling

(揉捻)

Drying

(干燥)

Detailed processes vary across regions and producers but basically production of oolong has the following 5 steps:

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� Sub-divided by geographical region◦ Guangdong

◦ Minbei (Northern Fujian)

◦ Minnan (Southern Fujian)

◦ Taiwan

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Guangdong

Province

Guangdong OolongGuangdong OolongGuangdong OolongGuangdong Oolong

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� Famous variants◦ Phoenix Dancong- Phoenix Mountain, Chaozhou

◦ Rao Ling Dancong- Rao Ling, Chaozhou

Pictured is a Phoenix Dancong- Honey Orchid Fragrance (Mi Lan Xiang)

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� Dancong or 单丛 is sometimes translated as ‘single trunk’

� Early dancong were made from same tree but in recent decades dancong come to denote tea made plucked from trees grafted of the same parent plant

� Dancong has different fragrances which gives it its name- Mi Lan Xiang (Honey Orchid Fragrance), Xin Ren Xiang (Almond Fragrance)

� These fragrances are completely natural and no non-tea ingredients are added

� Phoenix Dancong are known for their ‘shan yun’山韵- Mountain Harmony

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Fujian

Province

Minbei OolongMinbei OolongMinbei OolongMinbei Oolong

� Famous variants◦ Wuyi Rock Tea (Yan Cha) including Big Red Robe,

Wuyi Sacred Lily (Shuixian), Cockscomb (Ba Ji Guan), Wuyi Cassia- Wuyishan, Fujian

◦ Minbei Shuixian- Jian Ou Fujian

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Pictured is Wuyi Sacred Lily (Shuixian)

� Oolong tea grown within Wuyishan

� Officially definition tightened to restrict it to teas grown within the core-producing area

known as zheng yan ‘正岩’

� Famous variants include the 4 Famous Bushes- Big Red Robe, White Cockscomb, Iron Arhat and Golden Turtle, Wuyi Sacred Lily and Wuyi Cassia

� Wuyi Rock Tea are known for their ‘yan yun’

岩韵- Rock Harmony

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Fujian

Province

Minnan OolongMinnan OolongMinnan OolongMinnan Oolong

� Famous variants◦ Anxi Iron Goddess (Tieguanyin)

◦ Golden Cassia (Huang Jin Gui)

◦ Yongchun Buddha Hand (Yong Chun Fo Shou)

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Pictured is Anxi Iron Goddess

� One of the most well-known of Chinese tea

� Grown in Anxi, Fujian and is one of the most valued of all oolong

� Can be made in traditional style (charcoal baked), medium roast or the newer ‘green style’

� Iron Goddess are known for their ‘yin yun’ (音韵) – Goddess Harmony

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Taiwan

Taiwan OolongTaiwan OolongTaiwan OolongTaiwan Oolong

� Famous variants◦ Dong Ding Oolong

◦ Wenshan Baozhong

◦ Taiwanese High Mountain Oolong (Gaoshan Cha) such as San Lin Xi, Alishan, Lishan, Da Yu Lin

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Pictured is Dong Ding Oolong

� Grown in Lugu, Taiwan, Dong Ding literally means ‘frozen summit’

� The seedlings were believed to have originated from Wuyishan

� Dong Ding Oolong are known for their ‘hou

yun’ (喉韵) – Throat Harmony

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� Recommended Brewing Utensil

� Recommended size- 90 ml- 200 ml

� Recommend to serve with small cups

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Gaiwan (盖碗) Yixing Pot (宜兴壶)

GuangdongGuangdongGuangdongGuangdong MinbeiMinbeiMinbeiMinbei MinnanMinnanMinnanMinnan TaiwanTaiwanTaiwanTaiwan

Water temperature

85ºC 90-95ºC 95-100ºC 95-100ºC

Infusion time 30 sec 45-60 sec 60 sec 30-45 sec

Quantity 1/3 of utensil

1/3 of utensil

1/5 of utensil

1/5 of utensil

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Just a guide- depends on personal preference, type of tea and utensil used

1. Warm the pot with hot water

2. Add tea leaves

3. Add hot water and decant within 5 seconds

4. Discard the water

5. Add hot water again

6. Infuse for the recommended time

7. Decant into a serving pitcher

8. Serve and enjoy

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TypeTypeTypeType ShelfShelfShelfShelf lifelifelifelife Storage MethodStorage MethodStorage MethodStorage Method

‘Green style’ 6-12mths

Double seal in air-tight opaque containerand store in a fridge at circa 4-10ºCWhen removing from fridge, wait half an hour for leaves to ‘warm’ to room temperature before removing from container

MediumRoast

18-24mths

Store in cool, dark, dry, air-tight, odor free container

Dark Roast Improves with age

Store in cool, dark, dry, air-tight, odor free container

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� To be discussed in a later post on www.peonyts.com

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