Wild Da Hong Pao from Wu Yi Shan Rock Oolong Tea

This is really, really good. Probably a top three oolong for me, as it brings together most of the elements of oolong that I enjoy. First of all, it exists between sweet and roast. This multi-faceted flavor is far more complex than many the cheaper oolongs I’ve had, which I’ve enjoyed but this definitely brings new levels to the table. The roast reminds me of the dong ding from What-Cha, which I liked but did not love due to the one-dimensional taste that grew a tad boring as the steeps went on. This Da Hong Pao evolves as the sweetness and roast interact. Also, the energy it gives is really satisfying! It’s super soothing as well as warming.

I used around 4 grams in my 120ml gaiwan and used 195 degree water, steeping for random amounts of time (I’d wager around 30ish a steep after shorter beginning steepings).
Highly recommended!!

Now that I got my ability to taste back, reaching for a favorite. Ahhhh… Roasted nuts, fruity, umami, mineral :). So comforting. I felt like I needed the instant calm this tea gives me.

Cha Qi heaven.

I got the bananas this time too, derk, woohoo lol.

Yixing teapot, 5g, 110ml, 212°F, rinse, 8 steeps: rinse, 25s, 35s, 45s(I’m here at the moment), 55s, 65s, 75s, 85s, 120s

Dry leaf has a very complex smell with notes of fennel, celery, roasted nuts and peach, at least as far as I could tell.

After the rinse, the fruity aromas seem to be amplified, although not totally dominating. It’s a beautiful smell in any case. Another note that I picked up is that of fried plantain. Later on also some more green and floral notes of rose and cactus.

The first thing I noticed when I started drinking the tea is the incredible softness of the liquor. I would say this is a full bodied tea without a dominant flavour. There are some vegetal notes, it has some fruit sweetness and sourness in the finish. A lot of complexity and a lot of associations are brought, but few persist or are strong enough to be of note. The taste profile is somewhat reminiscent of a Baozhong Oolong with a tiny bit of background roastiness adding some more depth to it. Not much astringency is present and virtually no bitterness unless pushed a lot. At least in early steeps that is. Later, there is a light celery bitterness present.

The cha qi is warming and makes me quite relaxed and easy to enter a dream-like state.

Woah, what a complex and pleasant tea. I feel like the 25g I have will not be nearly enough for me to figure this tea out, but I will surely enjoy drinking it whenever I feel like exploring and/or relaxing. It’s the kind of tea that’s really not suitable for doing something else while drinking, because it just takes all my attention.

Wanted something tasty and easy to drink yesterday afternoon, so started some of this. Roasty, sweet, smooth, comforting. Good, affordable oolong to enjoy any day.

Nice to see Steepster working again. Time to start posting some of my backlogged tasting notes.

I was glad to finally get my hands on this tea again. I first tried it a few years ago and have not found a better yancha since. What’s even better is this is the 2019 version so its had time to age and the roast has mellowed out.

Upon opening the pouch, a powerful aroma of flowers, cinnamon, and peaches greets the nose. This turns into browned butter and chocolate chip cookies when the leaves are dropped into a heated vessel. I brewed this grandpa style steeping 1g in 8z of water just under boiling. The taste of the tea is outstanding – familiar wet rocks and clean mineral wuyi notes, along with rich cocoa and pecan. Some spice and wood as it settles. A very satisfying cup.

My recent sessions with this tea haven’t been quite as good but I blame that on me being rushed and unfocused, not the tea.

I’m drinking the 2016 Spring version. I really like this tea. It has a wild flavor to it. It is sturdy and can be brewed multiple times. Hard to describe the flavor, it is not too roasty, kind of wild and mildly sweet. An excellent everyday oolong.

Bought this from the international site.

Strong. I get a big vanilla note and a big roasty note with some floral aroma. The minerality is subtle.

I did this Western style in yixing 87C, 1 tblesp, 150ml for 2min, 3min, 3min, 4min, 5min. Strength carries through the first four infusions.

5th steep is getting lighter with a soft fruit note and slight woodsiness.

I’m a little wary of brewing this in the same yixing that I use for Whispering Pines’ Wildcrafted Da Hong Pao. I wonder if the medium-strong roasty note in this tea will overwhelm the fruity flavour of the clay absorbed from the WP version. Or is that getting a little pedantic? It’s not like I can afford the WP version on a continuous basis anyway.

Can’t feel any qi with this one but I do feel rather relaxed.

Still on the hunt for a fruity DHP. I really enjoyed it though and it’s at such a great price point. If I had the budget, I honestly would order one of every DHP listed on the Yunnan Sourcing website.

nice daily drinking dahongpao. familiar notes of wood and forest, cooked celery, roasted almonds (bordering on some marzapan sweetness) and minerality.

There seem to be two alternating flavors in this tea. One I would describe as a sweet flavor, not sure how to better describe it, the other is roasted barley. The roasted barley flavor is not too intense, but mild. The roasted barley flavor also got less intense as I drank my cup. Once this flavor got less intense, a third flavor was noticed. This third flavor I would describe as mildly fruity, but just barely.

I steeped this one time in an 18oz teapot with 3 tsp leaf and 190 degree water for 3 min. Overall this is excellent tea. I give it a high mark.