Yixing Xuan Teahouse

Yixing Xuan is one of my favourite teahouses in Singapore. I love meeting friends there to introduce them to the wonders of gongfu cha, and the dim sum snacks they sell at the store are delicious.

Bought 50g of this on one of my tea outings there with my mother, for the eyewatering price of S$47 (US$35) for 50g. For this price I would expect pretty top-notch Oriental Beauty.

At Yixing Xuan we tasted both this Bai Hao Oolong (the famous Taiwanese Oriental Beauty 东方美人) as well as their “house 东方美人 Beauty of the East” (which was half the price) and we both found the Bai Hao Oolong more complex and were impressed at how many rounds we were able to steep it.

I bought this in a tin and the tea inside was placed in an open plastic bag. After two years, it’s taken on an aged aroma like what I suppose I should be aiming for with my pu-erhs. I don’t normally rinse my oolongs, especially small-leaf ones that aren’t ball-form but this smells a bit too funky for me.

Brewed 5g in 150ml Chaozhou Hongni pot. Rinsed, then 90-92˚C for 30 sec.
- First infusion: A mouthwatering woody bitterness, mellow sweetness, and fruity tannins like apricot skins. There’s probably some floral in here too but I’m rubbish at identifying flowers. Long sweet (honeyed persimmon apricot pear) yet astringent, mildly medicinal aftertaste in the throat.
- Rating: 89

- Second infusion: 93˚C for 40 sec
Wet leaves smell like parsley / cucumber along with some fruit. Liquor I get a nose full of woody florals like a cherry blossom tree or rosewood furniture, red plum fruit, and faint herbs.
Woodiness is still pleasantly present but has mellowed out. Fruitiness and sweetness are fainter now but still a lovely full-bodied brew.
- Rating: 89

Verdict: it’s a pretty good Oriental Beauty, and I might consider repurchasing if I crave such an expensive tea again. Maybe I’d seal it up in ziplock next time because I don’t really want it aged (feels like I’m wasting the first rinse).

I’ve got nothing to say about his tea beside the obvious : it’s quite good :-)

This review is actually to describe the awesome moment I had in Singapore when buying it. I entered this shop and started to browse through the items. The owner came and we started to talk about chinese tea and how he actually have been in my country.
Then he said : “A friend of mine is coming to have tea with me, sit down with us”. He took some nice old Pu-Erh and here we were there drinking tea like old friends. We didn’t know each other, actually his friend only speak chinese and I don’t speak a word of chinese but there’s something I understand quite well : after the first cup, he tapped on the table with his two fingers and here we all agreed, despite the distance, the different cultures, age and language enjoying the same tea.

The same thing happened to me multiple times in other countries. So thanks to all the people willing to share their time, tea and experiences.
I hope the people reading this will all live through similar experiences because this is what tea is all about : sharing.