Phoenix oolong Xingren Xiang Dancong, aka Juduozai, Ju Duo Zai, Orchid Gratus. A neutral TCM character typical oolong tea
A few people have requested me whether or not or not there are totally different conventional kind Phoenix oolong in addition to the favored Milan Xiang — larger recognized to some inside the English determine I gave it 20 years prior to now, Honey Orchid.
Definitely there are pretty quite a lot of Fenghuang Dancongs which are speculated to be baked to a deeper diploma than bouquet kind ones. Honey Orchid is solely a status made larger recognized attributable to quite a few industrial circumstances. Let’s check out one different choice that is far rarer in manufacturing quantity and much a lot much less usually recognized, nonetheless as extraordinarily regarded on this planet of Phoenix connoisseurs.
Juduozai — tooth of a bit of bit seen blade
Juduozai, the cultivar that yields Xingren Xiang, truly means tooth of a bit of bit seen blade. Methods during which Chinese language language farmers talk to their world under no circumstances stops to amaze me.
To me, the plant appears almost much like the additional dominant choice Bai-ye. I wished to be confirmed by the native farmer. They’re saying even the current leaf smells that almond aroma. They talk to the Chinese language language almond, popularly used as an herb for soups. Xingren Xiang interprets as a result of the Fragrance of Almond. I am pretty conversant within the TCM ingredient nonetheless cannot truly agree. It does odor good though.
New flush on a Juduozai tea bush after one among many worst frost bites in memory in Wudong, residence of Fenghuang Dancong Phoenix oolong. We now have beforehand used the image to make proper right into a poster to share all through Chinese language language New 12 months
Primarily based on Huang Bozi, the pioneer and most revered specialist inside the taxonomy of Fenghuang cultivars, the oldest residing Juduozai was a chopping made in 1966 from a 300 year-old tree. The mother tree died in 1970, nonetheless her off-springs are literally one among many important cultivars in Wudong, the place residence has always been for them.
Wudong, the mecca of Fenghuang Dancong
As talked about in numerous articles, most farmers in Wudong do only one harvest a 12 months. They are not lazy. For many who see how they work in Spring, laying once more is basically probably the most distant idea. Many do not even sleep for days in a row. They need the vegetation to retailer up the amount of vitamin for max model and aroma substances inside the leaves, the pure means.
Fully totally different cultivars bud at fully totally different time in Phoenix. Xingren Xiang is amongst the earlier ones, together with Honey Orchid and some others.
Plucking on the fallacious dimension is a sin. The month of April is crazy in Wudong. Farmers compete to lease pickers lest the leaves will overgrow to vary right into a lesser prime quality, or wasted altogether.
( be taught manufacturing of Phoenix oolong )
Then there could also be rivals for home to unfold and photo voltaic the leaves sooner than exact processing. With out appropriate photograph voltaic enter, a Phoenix which will ranking 10 can grow to be 6, at best. That is the rationale local weather is vital all through harvest for these typical farmers.
Key to all conventional kind oolongs
Along with the usual processing of Fenghuang Dancong, conventional sorts require the additional step of deep baking. For any oolongs to endure deep bake, timing is important.
Tea farmer taking a sieve of leaves to wither inside the afternoon photo voltaic. The Yau’s family yard, Wudong, Fenghuang
To those generations who’ve been brainwashed by concepts born of industrialisation, temperature, interval, and pile thickness probably the one parts when considering how a tea is to be baked. That is the means they’ve designed the processing for black tea and that for a lot of inexperienced teas. Typical oolong is further sophisticated. There could also be nonetheless inside the leaves energetic enzymes. Drying the ground totally too shortly merely traps the molecules to suffocate them. Turning what could have contributed to prime quality to at least one factor unhealthy. This is not an understanding shared by all Phoenix producers though. Humorous smells, coarseness in texture, inconsistent physique inside the model profile won’t be uncommon in merchandise of this label, regardless of the worth.
Harmful money drives out good
Popularisation of the poor observe of terribly transient infusion time ( inside the determine of gongfu cha ) helps to disguise poor prime quality. This coupled with the flooding of the market with under-trained tasters, over-certified so-called tea sommeliers, and the selection actuality manufactured via the online, it is unsure how large a proportion of Xingren Xiang obtainable available in the market is poorly baked. Nonetheless, it is merely observable inside the provide and pretty predominant in important wholesale markets in Mainland China.
Harmful money drives out good.
Right ending of this conventional Phoenix oolong requires endurance not solely inside the baking course of, however as well as a wait till the maocha has rested enough. However in a world of fast income, Gresham’s Laws applies, tragically.
There are even so-called bouquet kind ( aka qingxiang xing ) Juduozai. To me it is principally semi-raw supplies purchased as product.
To not level out mis-labelling.
The appears to be like of infused leaves tells one factor in regards to the nature of the tea: Xingren Xiang Dancong (杏仁香單欉)
Model profile of Xingren Xiang
The infusion of an excellent prime quality Xingren Xiang must have a snug, straightforward and deep aroma of sun-dried sweet date in an overtone of raw honey with hints of woodsy spices on accents of butter. The liquor itself, when accurately prepared, has a silky texture and a fragile full physique comprising kumquat peel, apple, anise seed, malt, cream with a sweet contact of Chinese language language liquorice.
There is a regular misunderstanding that typical oolongs must solely be prepared inside the gongfu cha kind of infusion. That’s untrue. I shall deal with further in regards to the distinction between the “gongfu” kind and customary “5-minute” methodology in a single different article, nonetheless for now, I shall state that accurately infusing a Juduozai conventional Phoenix oolong for enough time is the one technique to experience its shock.
If the tea that you have has that exact same label nonetheless however cannot pretty stand longer infusion, each you make tea poorly or these leaves aren’t an excellent prime quality Xingren Xiang the least bit.