“My sample from Chicago Tea Garden just arrived – now I get to try the tea that so many have raved about here. The smell of the dry leaves is really vegetal and fresh, which is a good start. 1st...” Read full tasting note
“Ok, yeah, I am friends with the owners of Chicago Tea Garden. I am also a Tie Guan Yin FIEND. And this is the best I’ve tasted. One of the best teas I’ve ever tasted. Oh my stars! Tastes like a...” Read full tasting note
“Thanks to Autumn Hearth for this! I was in such an oolong mood today. I don’t know why. But I remembered I had this in my drawer! It’s just what I want in an oolong: buttery, floral, a little...” Read full tasting note
“Thanks to Ellen for sending me some of this tea in our recent swap! It’s sad that Chicago Tea Garden is no more because they had a lot of nice teas. Upon steeping, this tea smelled amazingly...” Read full tasting note
This tea was sourced by David Lee Hoffman from one of the organizers of the Chinese National Tea Competition. This tea is named after the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara (Guan Yin in Mandarin), also known as the “Iron Goddess of Mercy.” Tie Guan Yin was first used only as a tribute tea to the Royal Court. The tea leaves from Anxi County in China are known for their overwhelming floral fragrance. They are lightly oxidized and rolled into very tight balls using a technique known as “baorou.” They slowly open up while steeping, releasing their flavor and floral aroma, eventually revealing whole leaves. Through his relationship with the organizers of China’s National Tea Competition, David Lee Hoffman has gained unprecedented access to some of the most special Tie Guan Yin Oolongs being made today — this is one of them.
This tea has several spellings, most popularly Tie Guan Yin and Ti Kuan yin.
Chicago Tea Garden is an online tea shop committed to providing extraordinary teas and tea education to tea lovers and those new to the leaf. Chicago Tea Garden's co-owner Tony Gebely also runs the World of Tea Blog [http://www.worldoftea.org] and Tweets at @WorldofTea.