Notes of white peach, bay leaf, and burrata.

Oolong from Taiwan・April 2022・蘭花香烏龍・Unsprayed

Qing xin is not an uncommon cultivar in our collection. Over the years you’ll have seen it in variations of our Dragon Phoenix green oolongs, and as a base for Nantou Dark. What sets this tea apart from the rest is the unusual use of twists in the crafting of the tea.

In appearance, Twisted Leaf Orchid looks more like a modern Wenshan Baozhong, but unlike Baozhong teas, these leaves are hand-tossed throughout the drying process. This additional, manual agitation further bruises and oxidizes the leaves, creating the persistent orchid aroma for which this tea is named.

These particular leaves were acquired from a novice tea grower who, despite a lack of tea knowledge, has a particularly good grove of tea trees near Lugu, in Nantou County. We took his harvest to our trusted producer of our Nantou Dark, who has decades of experience with the qing xin cultivar. With his expertise, we were able to coax classic qing xin qualities from the leaves, highlighting the tea's sweet, creamy liquor and rich aromatics. Brewed, Twisted Leaf Orchid is an easy, carefree tea, but no less exquisite for its insouciance.

Brew: 6 grams・150 ml・205° F・2 min

We’ve brewed these leaves range of temperatures, from 195F to 208F. Lower temperatures display a grassy creaminess, while higher temperatures give richness to the mouthfeel. The sweet spot is somewhere in between, where notes of white peach, burrata, and bay linger on the palate.