A uniquely fragrant Snowflake Duck Sh*t Dancong Oolong made from the last pickings before Winter. One to experience for any Oolong lover.
This is an unusual opportunity for you to experience two batches of the same tea style, picked at the same time but from different villages and producers.
This tea will be supplied as 2x 15g packs (30g total) or 2x 50g pouches (100g total).
You can taste the batches separately to understand the nuanced differences between them and then combine the teas in a pinnacle blend that is the perfect Snow Phoenix to my tastes.
These Winter picked teas have a wholly different character compared with Spring picked tea with brighter, higher aromatics similar to a top-quality Taiwanese Baozhong. It is remarkable how different the character is compared with Spring picked Duck Sh*t Oolong and well worth comparing back to back.
The difference between Snowflake and Spring Dancong starts with the fact that they are picked in the cold (sometimes snowy) climate of Fenghuang mountain in late October This late picking lends itself to a more fragrant tea and the producers must be careful to process the tea to accentuate these Qing Xiang (high/fresh aromatics). Therefore, the tea goes through a reduced fermentation/oxidation process and less baking
The problem with this approach is that, while the tea expresses the distinctive fresh, snowy character and milky florals that we look for in a Snowflake tea, the brew can also taste a bit too raw, lacking smooth sweetness.
When searching for the perfect Snow Phoenix in the winter of 2025, I was going through the same struggles as previous years.
On the one hand, I wanted a tea that reminded me of a snowy mountain with icy streams and winter fruits, milky raw nuts, and creamy florals.
But, I also craved a tea which had less rawness, more development of sweetness, softness and thickness. A tea which accentuated the fruits, florals and honeyed notes that these Dancong teas can express.
And so, this year I have sourced two batches of tea which showcase the nuances that I am looking for in my tea sourcing.
Snow Phoenix from Aunty is a bright, invigorating Oolong with persimmon, coconut, milk, raw almonds and gardenia. It has the bright ionised airiness of a snowy mountain with the minerality of melted snow and pebbles. This is the epitome of the Snowflake tea.
Snow Phoenix from Mr Cheng has been picked earlier, withered and allowed to oxidise longer and given a longer baking. This adds warmth, roundness and sweetness. It brings out the honeyed notes and adds more dimension to the fruits and flowers so that we seem to return to warmer times - cherries and physalis with a vine twang. This batch still has a snowy taste but the extra processing takes it away from the typical Snowflake character.
Drinking these teas separately is a real education into the differences that small changes in production make to a tea. Which is why you will receive the batches in two separate pouches.
But combining them together makes the perfect Snow Phoenix - blending the wintery freshness with the honeyed warmth.
In fact, I think that the textural, aromatic and taste expereince of this blend would be impossible to achieve in a single batch of tea and maybe this is the start of a new approcah to sourcing Snowflake tea moving forwards!
To blend the teas you can either brew separately and then combine the liquor or just mix equal qquantities of dry leaf in one brewing pot or gaiwan.
