I am super happy to have found a Xing Ren (Almond) Dan Cong Oolong. It has taken a while because I usually find Xing Ren to have a mouthfeel which is too thin despite its alluring taste. This one hits a great balance between a substantial mouthfeel with all of those uplifting aromatics.
Sourced from Phoenix village (Fenghuang). This Dan Cong has been twice charcoal roasted to settle the taste and accentuate the warmth of the Almond taste.
Learn more about Dan Congs
Join us in Wudong mountain to learn about the making of Dan Cong tea.
Dan Cong means 'Single Bush'. But not all Phoenix Oolong is actually a Dan Cong, in fact most tea buyers will buy garden bush tea which is being sold as single bush. Similarly, any tea tree that is grown from a seed could be called Dan Cong so this name is a bit erroneous.
Whatever the details of the name, one thing is for sure, the flavour difference between garden Phoenix Oolong and true Dan Cong Phoenix Oolong is remarkable. This is because of a few factors:
1. Garden tea is younger
The best tea comes from leaves that have high mineral content. The younger the tea bush the smaller the roots which means that they cannot absorb many minerals from the soil. Because the garden tea is cultivated together, each plant is competing with many neighbouring tea plants for the same minerals so they just can't get as much.
2. Variety of vegetation
Garden tea has almost no variety of vegetation. Semi wild Dan Cong, however, has plenty of vegetation and rocks around it. As the plant leaves fall or the rain filters through the rocks the soil is enriched with more variety of nutrients for the tea to absorb.
3. Harsher environment
The semi-wild Dan Cong Phoenix Oolong grows on steep and rocky mountains. This puts the plant under stress which means that the tea grows slowly. The slower the growth the richer the mineral content in the leaves making a more powerful and fragrant drink.
