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Karigane Gyokuro, a very special kukicha, 120 g
Cold Energy, Green teas, Japan, Lighter Aromas, Milder Tastes, TeaUS$23.8雁が音 - 白折玉露
When the umami, round and refreshing taste of a good Japanese green tea is desired for a party, or for a casual whole day drink, a good quality kukicha is a popular alternative. Like all other kukicha, or shiraore (another popular name of this tea variety), or karigane, Tea Hong’s Karigane Gyokuro is also produced from leaf stems. There is, however, a significant difference. It is produced as a by product of top quality gyokuro, making it sweeter, softer, a lot more savoury, and as refreshing. Like almost all petiole teas, it is more tolerant of infusion discrepancies, making it a great choice for both green tea beginners and as a daily or party drink. It is a great value alternative to gyokuro. Since a large portion of the leaves are replaced with the leaf petioles, this tea is relatively lower in caffeine too.* Net weight: 120g (4.2oz) in Kraft-alu pack
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GABA Bouquet, a special white tea, 40 g
Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Neutral-Cool Energy, Organic teas, Taiwan, Tea, White teasUS$20.4天然培育 伽瑪芳香白茶
A very rare white tea
Mr Yu rarely wears shoes and walks in his little tea fields barefooted. He loves the contact with the soil that he keeps so naturally fertile, and uncontaminated. So much so that we smell the sweetness walking into his garden. He brews his own fertilisers and devises various ways of natural pest control. He is so into natural farming that a national university has setup quite a few joint projects with him. He totally worships Nature but his hobby is mechanical engineering. He proudly showed me the GABA deoxygenation tank that he modified and explained to me how it is better in processing the tea. Tea Hong’s GABA Bouquet is an invention by him. I have yet to find another tea with this kind of fruity bouquet, smoothness and even a good umami tone. He tried quite a few times before arriving at this distinctive taste quality. This is a rare batch and we can only restock when everything will work the same in the next production. It’s all dependent on Nature after all.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Wide kraft-alu pack -
North Peak, deep baked Taiwan oolong, 70 g
Fuller Bodies, Lighter Aromas, Neutral-Warm Energy, Oolongs, Organic teas, Taiwan, TeaUS$25.1天然培育 深焙北山武夷烏龍
A Wuyi reborn in Taiwan
In Taiwan, besides the famous tea mountain of Dong Ding (Cold Peak), there are actually many other areas where the horticultural conditions are good for finer tea production. Such as the Bei Shan (i.e. North Peak) area that is has an 1,100m altitude and near the centre of the whole Taiwan Island, in Nantou County. The Tsai family does not have the resources to get an international organic certification, but they run the farm according to organic practices with the help of the local university, much like Master Yu who makes our GABA teas. Tea Hong’s North Peak is an oolong optimally deep baked for aroma and caramelisation. It is produced by the Tsai family using a Wuyi Shuixian cultivar that is localised and quite different from any Wuyi oolongs from Wuyi. You will find it softer and slightly sweeter. Interestingly, that is very much a Taiwan style, gentler in every way.
Net weight: 70 g (2.5 oz) in Kraft-alu pillow pack -
Phoenix Petioles 1988, matured leaf stalk oolong, 40 g
Fenghuang | Phoenix, Fuller Bodies, Neutral Energy, Oolongs, TeaUS$20.1私藏 陳年鳳凰莖茶
Phoenix tea farmers’ tea
In Phoenix, before a tea goes through the last round of baking to be ready for consumption, it is sorted manually to get rid of the leaf stalks (i.e. petioles), broken leaves, and other leaves that are not as nicely rolled or processed as the others (aka Yu Ye). The producer retains such “refuse”, rebakes it and keep it for personal use or give it out to their neighbours and relatives. They call it cha tou or thê-tao in the local language, as in “Tea Head”*. Provided the right quality, the taste of thê-tao, despite their irregularity in appearance, is actually sweeter and softer than the leaf tea from the same plant and a lot more flexible and tolerant with brewing mistakes. Presenting Tea Hong’s Phoenix Petioles 1988, a thê-tao collected between 1985 to 1988 by our top Phoenix producer. Because of the decades long maturity given onto the tea, it exhibits a post-fermentation characteristics somewhat alike those of finer shu cha Pu’ers — earthy, woodsy, herbal and pacifyingly herbal sweet, combined with an underlying and unmistakable matured Phoenix undertone. A unique taste experience unlike anything else.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
Huangshan Maofeng Supreme, traditional green tea, 40 g / 70 g
Cool Energy, Green teas, Huangshan & Anhui, Lighter Aromas, Milder Tastes, TeaPrice range: US$23.9 through US$32.1黃山毛峰 明前嫰芽
Pre-Qingming Maofeng:
Huangshan (translate: Yellow Mountain) is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and a China national conservation. Besides beautiful sceneries, it is also the origin for many a fine teas, such as Huangshan Maofeng. The tender young leaf shoot to make Tea Hong's Huangshan Maofeng Supreme is always plucked with one or two tiny immediate leaves before Spring Equinoix, and always before Qing Ming. Always from the few small family tea farms in the high mountains that we buy from. It is a rare quality even in the market in Huangshan, and if you ever found it, would be at a much higher price. Working directly with producers is a principal at Tea Hong. While offering quality at a reasonable price is one immediate benefit that you as a consumer can enjoy, there are more important reasons and not so immediate results that we aim at. Your patronage means great support for our cause.
Two pack options available, 40g or 70g net weight, please choose at below:
