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Leo KwanMother of All Green Teas
Read moreTaiping Houkui is produced from this special cultivar called Shidaye ( shi-da-yeh ). The name can be roughly translated as Persimmon Large Leaf. ( It has nothing to do with the fruit, though. ) It is the most visible commercial crop in the hilly landscape of Taiping, an hour and a half from Huangshan.
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Leo KwanThe Difference of Tea Hong’s Honey Pearl Pekoe
Read moreThere are plenty of selections for jasmine scented green tea in the market, but if you are in for a…
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Leo KwanImperial Topaz: Another Fine Gem from the Himalayas
Read moreTo answer the demand for Himalayan black teas that are oxidised more deeply, we could have just bought straight away…
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Leo KwanThe Fragrance of Taiwan
Read moreRed Jade: rare gem of a tea For those who think Red Jade is just another marketing name, “Hong Yu”…
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Leo KwanAnchoring the Elusive Iron Buddha
Read moreMisrepresented Iron Buddha An often misrepresented big name of Wuyi oolong — Tie Luohan — Iron Buddha, is one of…
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Leo KwanSmell of Matured Tea
Read moreDifferent variety for different preference Some tealeaves smell floral, some sweet, some like baked goods, some musky, some earthy, some…
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Leo KwanSnow Orchid, Peaceful Christmas & Prosperous New Year
Read moreOxidation room An European importer recently asked me: how do they get such wonderful aroma in the leaves? Referring to…
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Leo KwanThe Little Bug that Created a Tea
Read moreTea Green Leafhopper is a small pest in the tea field. Yet without it a most beautiful tea cannot be produced. It is the chain biochemistry reaction in one particular tea plant after the leaf has been bitten by this tiny creature that results in the unique Beauty of the Orient…
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Leo KwanA Premodern White Peony?
Read moreBefore the modern white tea cultivars Before there were the Dai Bai cultivars for making the different white teas as we know…
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Leo KwanPoor Men’s Song Cultivar
Read moreSmall white There actually isn’t a Small White in Fenghuang Dancong, but a cultivar named Fenghuang Baiye — i.e. Phoenix…
