Aroma, Palatial Experience, Aftertaste
To describe each tea for you, we have tried to structure the writing of its taste profile with a logical sequence: the aroma, the palatial experience and the aftertaste. The same flow of experience as the tea is enjoyed, i.e. the nose, the palate and the finish.
Since there is not yet a set of vocabulary universally adapted for describing the taste of tea as it has been for wine, we have improvised by creating our own. Hopefully some standard will come about with this effort for the good of everyone.
As much an art as Infusion itself
All notes as represented in the taste profile of each selection in this website is the subjective observation of our tasters. While accuracy of the taste of each tea is not only a result of the condition of the tea in concerned, but also that in which it is infused and tasted.
Tasting itself is as much an art as the process of preparing the very tea for tasting, particularly in the realm of fine teas, as those we are offering.
Acuteness and discipline of the gastronomic senses
Like the training in concepts, disciplines and sensibilities for the arts, tasting demands as much from the taster.
For the tea hobbyist and everyday drinker, the more sensitive olfactory and gustatory give a huge difference.
In plain English, the more sensitive you are, the easier it is for you to taste the difference.
Basic setup
Fundamentally, the tealeaves to water ratio; the size, material and shape of the infusing utensil; the water temperature and the very quality of water itself are crucial factors. The sensitivity of the taster, the subjective association of certain stimulations, and also the very perception of the use of words themselves are all elements that make up the observation as represented.
Tea Tasting Step by Step
Leo has described the basic steps of tasting in the Tea Guardian <please click here to read it>. It would be instrumental to become fluent in the art if you’d like to experience deeper into the various subtleties of a finer tea.
Please do refer to the tea infusion tips provided in each product description and share with us your experience in tasting our teas.
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Snow Orchid, bouquet Phoenix dancong oolong
Cold Energy, Fenghuang | Phoenix, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Oolongs, Tea$ 21.40Xuepian Ya-shi Xiang:
Finer winter Phoenix oolongs have always been sought after for their unforgettable natural bouquet fragrances. To us, an aroma of a premium tea has to be complete with a winning taste profile. It has taken us over a decade to fine tune the mastery of the processing of the choicest harvest to attain a result we can be proud of. Presenting Tea Hong’s very own Snow Orchid, the roundest, smoothest, and by far the most seductively fragrant oolong ever known. It is our luscious indulgence secretly from Nature.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
Honey Orchid Supreme, classic Phoenix dancong oolong
Fenghuang | Phoenix, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Neutral Energy, Oolongs, Tea$ 35.80Old Bush Milan Xiang:
For real aficionados who would not be satisfied until they have discovered a deeper depth, a rounder fullness and a more lingering sweetness, we’d go overboard to offer the extreme. Rarest small batches of leaves from special bushes individually processed only by top masters. Such as this supreme quality Milan Xiang Dancong. For those who demand more potential from the leaves for fulfilling their infusion skills. For thirsty souls seeking a moment of tranquility in the depth of the tinkling after-sweetness of Honey Orchid Supreme.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
Tieguanyin Classic, deep baked oolong
Denser Aromas, Minnan/ Mindong, Fujian, Neutral-Warm Energy, Oolongs, Stronger Tastes, Tea$ 23.00Bamboo basket charcoal rebaked
We have matured this special batch of tieguanyin for long enough before double baking it the traditional way in a bamboo basket with charcoal ash. To attain an ideal result from this traditional practice requires proper conditioning and in-depth know how. Tieguanyin Classic is one of Tea Hong's best value oolongs. Enjoy the warm, soothing aroma as hot water touches the leaves. Then the characteristic tastes of a classic tieguanyin delivered in a round, smooth body with a unique sweetness. This tea is also available in a small portion as a part of Tea Taster’s Box: Nine Oolong Samplers.
Net weight: 120 g (4.2 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
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Eight Immortals Wudong, Phoenix dancong oolong
Cool Energy, Fenghuang | Phoenix, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Oolongs, Tea$ 29.50Baxian Supreme:
This Fenghuang Dancong is rare in many ways. It is the best Eight Immortals we have tasted, including award winning ones. Not only is it mild but flavorful like a good Baxian should be, but also gently and yet persistently fragrant. The baked finish is optimise for depth in taste. This gives side benefits for friendliness to the weaker stomach as well as the potential for maturity. Not an easy task for making a bouquet style Phoenix oolong. Master Lin who grows this is a shy and mild person and an old friend. We could not be offering it at such great value otherwise.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
Tieguanyin Traditional, bouquet oolong
Cool Energy, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Minnan/ Mindong, Fujian, Oolongs, Tea$ 26.90Original Tieguanyin Cultivar
To old time aficionados, tieguanyin is not just about floral aroma. They seek yun-wei, which can be roughly translated as “lingering taste of various tones and accents”. For the right yun-wei, we went to the origin of tieguanyin for a fourth generation farm high in altitude. Tea Hong’s Tieguanyin Traditional is produced from a particular patch where only matured shrubs of the thorough-breed cultivar grow and are harvested only once year. This is to ensure maximum amount of taste and salutary substances are stored in the young leaves for subsequent mastery processing for the wonderful lingering taste of various tones and accents. Like a fine old style tieguanyin should be.
Net weight: 100 g (3.5 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
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Longjing Traditional Supreme, hand-roasted green tea
Denser Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Green teas, Neutral-Cool Energy, Tea, Zhejiang$ 40.80Mastery in wok-roasted green tea
The special taste profile of a classic Longjing demands not only a fine harvest from a genuine pedigree, but also the mastery of hand-roasting the leaves. To attain such a skill takes the willingness to endure years of hard practice*. On top of that, a fine Longjing is perhaps the most sought after tea in its native market that is China, and there are people there that are willing to pay thousands for half a kilo of this tea. As a result, good roasting masters are in high demand. A good master producing with top quality harvests is even more rare. To secure a genuinely high quality is therefore a very challenging task. More so at the accessible price we are offering at. Tea Hong's Longjing Traditional Supreme is a proud representation of the best quality of this precious craft, a taste that would have won nobles and mandarins in their tea competition, and when the Qing Emperor Qianlong was still young and flamboyant, and crazy about this tea. Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pillow -
Sacred Lily, Wuyi yancha oolong
Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Neutral-Cool Energy, Oolongs, Tea, Wuyi-shan$ 27.10Prime of Wuyi Pedigrees:
Through years of researches a fine cultivar carrying the best traits of all the finest Wuyi natural cultivars is now mature and producing. Introducing Tea Hong’s Sacred Lily. Perhaps the most beautiful of all Wuyi oolongs. Grown deep in the steep mountains away from the touristy spots and masterfully processed for subtlety, complexity, and smoothness in taste. A tea that no true oolong connoisseur should miss.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack -
Iron Buddha Supreme, Wuyi yancha oolong
Denser Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Oolongs, Tea, Warm Energy, Wuyi-shan$ 29.10Bamboo Forest Tiě Luohan:
Overshadowed by the more promoted Red Cloak, Iron Buddha ( Tiě Luohan ) is actually as taste-worthy, if not more, than any of the so-called “famous” Wuyi oolongs. It is not proven that whether it is the oldest oolong cultivar in Wuyi as they say, but it is certainly one that is not the easiest to cultivate and to produce from. Finding a farmer to process it to the taste profile that befits its legend and our quality demand has been a challenge. It took us 15 years. Presenting Tea Hong’s Iron Buddha Supreme, with that complex charcoal finish yet sweet floral aroma, stout yet lingering “rock tea” taste, delivered gently in a well-balanced infusion in a civilised way. This could very well be the only traditional style Wuyi that any connoisseur would fall in love with.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack
