Notes of orchid, spruce, and cherimoya.

Oolong from Taiwan・2020・龍鳳峽青心・EU standard conventional

This is our second year offering high mountain oolongs from The Zhang family. Their hillside farm, located at 1600m atop the Dragon Phoenix Gorge in Taiwan’s Shan Lin Xi mountain range, is cool and mist-shrouded. The garden’s unique combination of climate and elevation produces tea with clarity, aromatics, and texture.

Last season, we carried the Zhang family’s Tender Heart, crafted from an older variety of tea called ruan zhi. You’ll find that this year’s version, Qing Xin “green heart” oolong, brews lighter and creamier, without sacrificing complexity and depth.

Two generations work together during the harvest, the older generation influencing the new to produce rich, bold teas using traditional methods. Our batch of oolong was crafted using traditional “cloth globes”, a process of rolling oolongs that takes more time than modern techniques but develops deeper flavor and character.

This tea was air shipped to us almost immediately after production. We then finished the maocha, or unbaked tea, in-house by lightly roasting it at our studio in San Francisco to remove excess moisture, and further concentrate the tea’s floral notes.

Dragon Phoenix Green Heart perfectly balances the bright aromatics of light oxidized Taiwanese oolongs with a richness and complexity that can only come from its specific terroir.

Brew: 6 grams・150 ml・203° F・2 min

This tea accommodates a range of brew styles. Our brewing guide highlights this tea’s long, structured finish. Decreasing steep time will result in a sweeter, milder tea.