Alishan Guanyin, deep baked Taiwan oolong
$ 28.80
Slow Baked Tieguanyin:
Over a century of development since transplanting to Taiwan, tieguanyin produced in the emerald island is quite different from its cousin in Mainland China. Not only has the cultivar evolved differently, but also the more authentic technique with which it is produced. Tea Hong’s Alishan Guanyin has a fuller and smoother taste profile. Its distinction is possible through the finesse in its slow baking. Master Chen, who bakes also our Cold Peak, has elevated the processing into an art of leaves and fire.
Net weight: 70 g (2.5 oz) in Kraft-alu pillow
In stock
阿里山 細火慢焙 正欉觀音
Taste profile
Nose: Warm, buttery aroma with distinct accents of honey carried in an overtone of roasted rice. Hints of peppery and sweet woodsy spices on fresh salad. Palate: Silky tactility. Soft, sweet and malty body accented with the same spices. Slight ting of lime zest and a touch of the bitterness of plum peel. Finish: Persistent warm overtone of roasted grain and nectary aftertaste embellished with notes of cinnamon and liquorice.
Infusion tips
Alishan Guanyin is a great tea for infusion with various techniques and styles, including gongfu, cold infusion, and conventional ones. This is a tightly rolled oolong. As such take note of how much leaves you will use by measuring the weight, not volume. Measuring different tea varieties by weight is actually the better way to manage your infusion quality. Begin exploring this tea with infusion at around 90°C wether you are using gongfu or conventional styles. Raise or lower the temperature according to your personal taste for the subsequent infusion effect. This is also a tea suitable for cold infusion.
Additional information
| Weight | 120 g |
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| Dimensions | 18 × 9 × 5 cm |
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Reviews(4)
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Red Cloak Grande, Wuyi yancha oolong
Tea, Oolongs, Wuyi-shan, Denser Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Warm EnergyCentenary Bush Dahong Pao:
The most revered amongst all Wuyi oolongs, Da Hongpao (translate: Big Red Cloak) from the pure pedigree grown in better horticultural environment mean significant difference and are most sought after. Tea Hong’s Red Cloak Grande is an extremely limited production (10 kg/year) harvested from two second generation noble breed that are over 100 yrs old in the heights of Wuyi. Masterfully processed to best deliver the taste this name represents.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack 
Black Leaf Special, Phoenix dancong oolong
Cool Energy, Fenghuang | Phoenix, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Oolongs, TeaFenghuang Da Wuye:
If classic Phoenix oolongs are too sweet, and bouquet ones too florally aromatic for you, Tea Hong’s Black Leaf Special maybe your cup of tea. It is produced from a new cultivar developed for maltiness and complexity in taste. A very different oolong from the rest. Our special selection is harvested from higher altitudes near the oolong mecca that is Wudong.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack 
April Mist, traditional green tea
Cool Energy, Green teas, Lighter Aromas, Milder Tastes, Tea, ZhejiangWild Bush Yunwu:
For those who prefer a little more strength in their green tea, April Mist is a pleasant choice. Harvested from scattered wild tea bushes in late March or early April, depending on the conditions that year and pre Qing Ming nevertheless, in the misty days of the mountainous region for a deeper taste. Lightly roasted for a balance of warmth, aroma and refreshing brightness, this Yunwu (translate: cloud and mist) makes a distinct difference from its counterparts that may look similar.
Net weight: 80 g (2.8 oz) in Kraft-alu pack 
Honey Orchid, Phoenix dancong oolong
Fenghuang | Phoenix, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Neutral Energy, Oolongs, TeaMilan Xiang Dancong:
The fine mastery that produces Tea Hong’s Honey Orchid has to be coupled with select first flush harvests from high grown tea bushes in order to deliver the kind of quality only a restricted circle of tea aficionados have known and kept to their secret. The overall production volume for such quality in the whole Phoenix region is only a few thousand kilos after all. Most will go to local elites, and the rest to the few hardcore Phoenix oolong fans that are also tea merchants, like us. This tea is also available in a small portion as a part of Tea Taster’s Box: Nine Oolong Samplers.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack
This is the best Tie Guan Yin I’ve ever had, made even better by the fact it’s from Alishan.
I searched high and low for another vendor that sold anything similar to this and all of them were over roasted/baked. It was like drinking an ashtray.
This stuff however? Amazing. If I had to pick a tea to drink every day for the rest of my life it would have to be this.
Really glad you enjoy this tea. This would be a great example for us to tell the tea baking master that her work is appreciated not only by us as a trader, but by the tea connoisseur community as well. She has some downturns in her personal life lately and hopefully this will help to cheer her up a bit.
If I had to pick only one roasted oolong to drink for the rest of my life, this would be it. Its qualities are ethereal and timeless. It has depth, nuance, well-defined layers of flavor, a fantastic texture, and lingering sensations coupled with a sweet and smooth aftertaste… and it’s incredibly easy to brew.
One of the reviewers below stated that this guanyin reminds him of what he drank with his father when he was a young boy. When you can drink a tea and it brings you back to your childhood, you know it’s special.
Even in the modern day, this Alishan Guanyin is a refreshing (and welcome) pivot away from the green and floral-style oolongs that seem to dominate the market. Not that there’s anything wrong with them, in fact there are quite a few offered by Tea Hong that are exquisite, it’s just that there’s something really special about a properly fired and deeply-baked oolong.
This really hugs the heart and embraces the soul. It doesn’t matter if this will be your first-ever loose leaf tea, or you’re a seasoned pro who knows all the famous mountains – you should definitely try this oolong.
Indeed the baking work done onto the tea is masterful, like that in the good old days when I started to develop my humble hobby of tea drinking when I began my earlier career in teaching in the early 1980’s. It was a time when mastery in tea baking was already a fading craft as the market was beginning to push for the dominance of green style oolongs. I was too young and too much an outsider to know whether it’s the decrease of good baking that cause the rise of green oolongs or whether it’s the push for green oolongs that dwindled the market for master tea bakers. As you said, green style oolongs are a fantastic category in itself, but a properly baked and fine oolong is something special to cherish, a sip that is like a hug in the soul.
Like return to old days
This guanyin like I drank with father when I was a boy. Sweet memories total recalled. I search east and I search west, until I found this. Very delicious good taste
Ask Yourself
When seeking evenness of mind and a better disposition, ask yourself which tea might help you face the day with strength and calm. No tea may be more suited to the task than Alishan Guanyin.
Nine grams of this beaded beauty produce a liquor the color of an orange-amber sunrise. The vessel lid offers the smell of warm vanilla and a refined perfume of iris, oak moss and cedar wood – a scent worthy of dabbing onto the skin.
This tea whispers balance; its gentle steam patiently waiting to be inhaled. Ask, and Alishan will deliver perfectly even doses of quiet insight to both nostrils. A fresh morning breeze wafts over with subtle, smoldering hints of a distant bonfire.
Next is a fleeting mouthful of sweet summer peaches dissolving into a slightly smoky, spicy-clean aftertaste balanced on the tip of the tongue, mid-palate and throat.
Notice the transformation of the tiny, toasty tadpoles as they make a magical metamorphosis in your mug. They swell into wild, squiggly creatures of dark slate green. Balance gives way to spontaneity as these friendly, appealing leaf-beings inspire your free spirit. If you don’t believe me, ask them yourself.