Aura of the Night, bouquet Phoenix oolong
USD 31.20
Yelai Xiang Dancong
The complex, yet bright and lively floral aroma of this tea is associated with a native flower, yelai xiang, aka Chinese violet. It is a vine yielding light yellow small flowers that are especially fragrant at night, hence the name, yelai xiang — the fragrance that comes in the night, from which we have derived our product name. The plant is native in Guangdong province and neighbouring areas. It is the province where the Phoenix region situates.
It has taken us some work to get to Lion Head Peak ( see below for more about the origin ) to acquire this best quality representation of the variety. Please enjoy.
Net weight: 40 g (1.4 oz) in Kraft-alu pack
In stock
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Telosma cordata – flowers of Chinese violet, aka ye-lai-xiang, send out their fragrance more prominently upon nightfall, hence the Chinese name, which translates to Aura of the Night. Their aroma is akin to that of this tea. The flower buds are edible, and a seasonal cooking ingredient in the Guangdong area and neighbouring regions.
鳳凰單欉 獅頭 夜來香
Taste Profile
Refreshing blooms of fresh flowers with an undertone of nectar and hints of mints. Accents of magnolia alba and Chinese liquorice. Clear, gold colour liquor. Smooth, yet vibrant body that is florally sweet with accents of mint and chrysanthemum. Hints of honey and sugar cane, with touches of almond. Quenching and cooling sensations. Aftertaste comes slowly with touches of almond, Chinese liquorice and mint. Floral after-aroma.
Infusion Tip
Like any other Phoenix Dancong, Aura of the Night has to be treated with respect. A poorly executed infusion may distort the full spectrum of this rare selection. Under brewed, some of the floral wonders maybe revealed but missing some of the full taste profile. Over brewed, the tea is simply destroyed. When in doubt, always use a weight scale, a thermometer and know the capacity of the infusion vessel.
To begin understanding this tea, start with a smaller infusion vessel, between 100 to 300 ml. For novices or those who prefer lighter taste, use 1.5 g to 100 ml of water at 95°C, brew for 5 minutes and always drain the liquor when time is up. Otherwise use 2 g to 100 ml as in the international tasting standard. Once you have acquired the profile, you can then have a baseline to interpret the tea in other infusion conditions. As always with a great floral Fenghuang Dancong, using the gaiwan, a lot of leaves in shorter infusion time gives wonderful experiences.
Origin of this selection
The mother tree of this Yelai Xiang cultivar originates in Shi Tou ( Lion Head ), which is a mount next to Wudong. While Wudong has been known as the mecca of Phoenix oolongs, Fenghuang dancongs from Shi Tou has been known to diehard aficionados for their prominent and unique taste profiles. Two of the most sought after teas from this area are Huangzhi Xiang and this one, Yelai Xiang. We are happy to be able to offer this top quality first flush from the origin.
Medium baked for maturity
Although rumour has it that bouquet style oolongs do not store well. Indeed some don’t. They have to be cold stored. Some do. Some actually mature to become better. This one is rested for almost 9 months before release. We do so for teas that we have baked deeper to extend the tea’s taste profile. For bouquet style teas it is a highly skilled art that hopefully will be revived for more people to enjoy.
Additional information
| Weight | 150 g |
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| Dimensions | 18 × 9 × 5 cm |
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Reviews(2)
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Red Jade, Taiwan TTES#18 black tea
Tea, Black teas, Taiwan, Floral Aromas, Fuller Bodies, Neutral EnergyFragrance of Taiwan:
Deep in the mountains away from the tourist infested Sun Moon Lake, small tea bushes tidily populate small patches of rectangles between wild forrest and various orchards. A cross between Burma and a native wild tea, this Hong Yu cultivar, born right here in 1999, shines with a vibrant young green. It dominates the ambience with a smell that is both fresh and spicy. Farmers here still process black tea in small batches in the old fashioned way, though with the aid of a few new technologies for monitoring. Red Jade — the Fragrance of Taiwan — has to be so processed to that distinctive floral yet spicy aroma, minty and complex taste on a smooth body to be worthy of name.
Net weight: 50 g (1.8 oz) in Kraft-alu pack 
Tieguanyin Floral, bouquet oolong
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While some people like their Tieguanyin subtle and long like it used to be traditionally, some others want it to be more floral. So we give you Tieguanyin Floral, a very bouquet version of this popular oolong. The cultivar is Jin Guanyin ( aka Golden Tieguanyin ), a child between the traditional Tieguanyin plant and a relatively newer bleed, Huangjin Gui *. While the latter is widely used as a substitute for the genuine Tieguanyin for its pleasing nose, it lacks the body and length of the real thing. The resultant hybrid, however, has the best of both parents. The terroir is in Xianghua, a mountainous area in the Anxi county in the subtropical southern part of Fujian, where the best Tieguanyin is produced.
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Wudong Cassia, Phoenix dancong oolong
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Although the name rougui is the same as that variety from Wuyi, this tea is from a pure breed Fenghuang Dancong Shuixian cultivar. Sexual propagation of tea trees does give happy surprises and this is an example of it. Discovered and isolated in 1970 by a horticulturalist Mr Wei and has maintained a low profile to avoid unneeded trouble during the height of Cultural Revolution, the cultivar Fenghuang Rougui Xiang Dancong is only gradually picking up attention recently. Not all farmers are doing it right. It is a slow growing tea and only one harvest per year. We think every leaf is worth the search.
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Lapsang Souchong Pristine, gongfu black tea
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Presenting the original, authentic and prime quality Lapsang Souchong. Small, tightly rolled whole leaves with a black sheen. Non-smoked. 100% hand-plucked first flush. For a pure, fruity sweet and warmly aromatic cup of untainted black tea. Just like how they used to have it in the captain’s cabin in an East Indian Trading clipper two centuries ago, when they had just loaded the ship with the year’s fresh tea to race home for the eagerly awaiting tea merchants all over Europe.
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This tea is like medicine for the soul. It’s a very complex and intriguing experience, worthy of having a focused session where you can really pay attention to the intricacies that would otherwise get lost in the midst of a busy mind.
This is a very powerful dancong, with an incredibly thick and sappy flavor profile that is reminiscent of blooming jasmine and fresh-cut chrysanthemum flowers, drenched in eucalyptus, Chinese liquorice, and wintergreen oils, then rolled in pine needles and left on top of a wet rock to bake in the heat of a hot summer day before being soaked in mint-infused pear blossom honey.
That may sound like a strange description, but this is such a complex tea. It marries powerful, resinous, and sappy textures together with bright, lively, and crisp florals into a harmonized experience that perfectly balances the yin and yang found only within the top tiers of dancong.
Tea Hong’s Ye Lai has a powerful mouthfeel with a graceful presence, and a strong minerality with a lingering sweetness that is persistent, seemingly emanating from the gums and coating the entire throat.
Everything about this tea is superb and should not be missed. I am careful to not even drink plain water for at least an hour after my session; the sensation on the palate is divine.
When I read this comment the first thing that came to my mind was, “gee this person can really feel my tea, and can put this feelings in such poetic words”. Your imaginary processing of the tea is actually an accurate description of the layers of the taste experience. Much more powerful than the technical framework that I have to abide by in writing the taste profile. And a lot more descriptive than I could using words. I am honoured to be able to connect with such a sensitive being on the other side of the planet, through this humble looking batch of dried leaves. Your presence is a blessing. Thank you.
This tea became one of my favorite floral Dan Congs. Most of the mostly floral Dan Congs from other vendors that I’ve tried have the tendency to taste quite one-dimensional. So after a few infusions their taste becomes less complex and less interesting. This tea is quite different because its taste becomes more complex in the later infusions. It starts with a very strong floral aroma and in the second or third infusion some slightly fruity and honey-like undertones add more interesting dimensions to the taste that still don’t distract from its elegant and calming floral aroma. The aroma is very clear with lots of high notes that give it a quite noble taste.
I prefer to brew it in Chaozhou clay to preserve the high aromatic notes while giving the tea a thicker more honey-like texture in the mouth feel.
It is a great tea to relax and calm the mind. It is quite easy to brew, doesn’t turn bitter when brewed too hot or too long. This makes it a great tea to have during philosophical conversations with friends.
I am so happy that you have discovered that the tea has good dimensions besides its alluring beautiful first impression. It is indeed a very nice and rare batch.