Taiwanese Tieguanyin Oolong Tea 台湾正枞铁观音乌龙茶 2020

Hsieh Jiang Lin Tea Company

Season: Winter 2020
Elevation: 1800m
Origin: Nantou, Taiwan
Tree Variety: Tieguanyin Variety / 红芯歪尾桃
Oxidation: 80%
Roasting: 20%

This tea was grown at an elevation of 1800m (high mountain) and is from the Tieguanyin Tea Tree 红芯歪尾桃 variety, which is a different variety from that used for our Taiwanese High Mountain Oolong. This variety of tea tree was brought to Taiwan from Anxi, Fujian province, over 125 years ago.

This tea is a highly oxidized and lightly roasted tieguanyin, with a resulting darker brew. The tea has a rich mouthfeel with fruity notes, little acidity, and a nice orchid aroma that is typical of a good tieguanyin. The sweet aftertaste lingers long after the last sip has been taken. The tea was harvested in winter 2020, roasted that season and has been kept in vacuum sealed storage since then.

BREWING METHODS

Kung Fu Brewing
Warm the teapot or gaiwan by adding hot water and then pouring it out.
Add around 5g of tea for every 150ml of water. Begin by adding the loose tea to the teapot or gaiwan.
We recommend using water between 95-100C. As soon as the water has come to a boil and settled, it can be added to the teapot.
Tea can be rinsed quickly with hot water. This first rinse helps to open up the tea for its first brew. This first rinse is optional.
The tea can be steeped multiple times (at least 5-6 times). We recommend the following steep times per brew, but we also recommend extending or shortening the brewing time depending on preference for a stronger or weaker brew.
Steep Times:
1st :40s　→　2nd: 35s　→　3rd：50s　→　4th：50s　→　5th：60s
 
Western Method
We recommend using a large coffee mug and a tea strainer or a thermos with a tea strainer for this method. Add 1 tsp of tea to the strainer and place it into the thermos or mug.
Pour hot water into the vessel. We recommend using water between 95-100C. As soon as the water has come to a boil and settled, it can be added to the mug or thermos.
The tea can be steeped 2-3 times. We recommend beginning by steeping for 2-3 minutes and then extending steeping time if desired.

Cold Brewing Method
Add 1 tsp for a 500ml thermos.
Add cold or room temperature water to the thermos.
Seal the lid and place the thermos in a refrigerator. We recommend leaving the thermos for at
least 4 hours. Thermos can be put into the refrigerator to steep overnight.
If refilling, we recommend topping up the water before the volume falls
half-way to keep the tea flavourful.