Phoenix Eastern Red (Gushu 150+ Old Tree Dong Fang Hong)

Tea Type: Oolong Tea

Tea Region: Da'an Village, Wu Dong Shan, Guangdong Province, China

Tasting Notes

• Appearance: Transluscent, amber orange coloured liquor.  
• Aroma: Honey, floral (tuberose), ripe fruits (cherry, red berry compote), faint smokiness at the back.
• Flavour:  Fruity (cherry, raspberry), floral (rose), woody (cedarwood), honey sweetness with a slight touch of firewood and rocky minerality in the finish.
• Mouthfeel: Velvety, smooth, full-bodied but complex liquor. Incredibly long lasting honey sweetness in the finish. 

Made from tea leaves from the rare and precious, Dong Fang Hong cultivar, which are older than 150 years old, it has been meticulously hand-rolled and painstakingly charcoal-roasted, to yield a complex liquor that brings out incredible, honey fruity (peach, nectarine) sweetness and elegant, prominent floral notes (tuberose, neroli blossoms), with a very delicate touch of rosewood.

Brewing Guidance

• Measure 1g of tea per 100ml water. Boil water to 90℃. Steep for 4-5 minutes. 

Reference: Op. 158

Tips for Tea Connoisseurs

"Dancong", translated into "single shrub" or "single bush" in Chinese, refers to an individual tea plant cultivated from a variety of Shui Xian cultivar. As the sub-varietals of Shui Xian cultivars grown on the region have very different characteristics in terms of leaf and tree shape, teas made from different individual shrubs happened to develop very distinctive aroma and flavour profile from one to the other, which explains why the oolong teas produced in the region are called as "Dancong Oolong". 

Our Phoenix Eastern Red (aka. Dong Fang Hong,  东方红) comes from Da'an Village, Wudong Mountain, 1100m above sea level, which forms the Phoenix Mountain Range (Feng Huang Shan) in eastern Guangdong Province.  Made from tea leaves from the rare and precious, Dong Fang Hong cultivar, which are older than 150 years old, it has been meticulously hand-rolled and painstakingly charcoal-roasted, to yield a complex liquor that brings out incredible, honey fruity (peach, nectarine) sweetness and elegant, prominent floral notes (tuberose, neroli blossoms), with a very delicate touch of rosewood.

In the 1960s, tea farmers in Wudong mountain sent most fragrant and aromatic phoenix dancong oolong made from a rare, ancient tea tree to Chairman Mao Zedong, who then really appreciated this tea and named the rare tea varietal as Dong Fang Hong, literally meaning " Eastern Red", with the red color symbolizing the revolutionary communist era led by Mao Zedong. 

Since then, Phoenix Eastern Red oolong is one of the top quality oolong tea presented among all the Phoenix oolongs and it is always made from tea leaves of old, gushu tea trees. 

Its complexity, depth and incredibly long floral sweet finish makes this tea comparable to a grand vin - you will understand this statement when you taste and experience this sublime tea! An absolute must try for Chinese tea connoisseurs, oolong tea lovers and fine wine aficionados, this will be also a great addition to your tea repertoire. 

All our phoenix oolong teas come from the 8th generation tea master, Mr. Huang, who has his tea farm in Da'an village in Wu dong Mountain. Mr. Huang's tea garden is a real diversity of old tea trees (gushu) with their age up to 600 years old. Made from rare and precious gushu tea trees, his phoenix oolongs offer the very finest, caliber quality. Also, his oolong teas are all organic, as old gushu tea trees are strictly protected by the Chinese government, any pesticide and fertiliser is prohibited in his tea garden. We were really impressed by the diversity of tea cultivars in their tea garden and the quality of their phoenix oolongs during our visit in 2018. 

If you're serious about Phoenix oolong teas, try our incredible phoenix oolong teas made from gushu tea trees older than 100 years old - Phoenix Laocong Shui Xian, Phoenix Laocong Duck Shit Dancong, Phoenix Laocong Honey Orchid, Phoenix Laocong Eight Immortals.

As with all the teas, oolong tea also offers us health benefits to increase our sense of well-being. Several studies indicate that oolong tea is a rich source of antioxidant polyphenols and it may well be just as beneficial as green tea to promote weight loss and cardiovascular health by reducing high blood pressure and cholesterol. 

If you like this product you may also like Phoenix Laocong Shui Xian, Phoenix Honey Orchid and  Qi Lai Mountain Concubine Oolong.