Tie Kuan Yin Jasmine Oolong

Brew & Taste

Oolong Tie Kuan Yin with jasmine flowers is only partially fermented tea, so it has a sweet, earthy flavor with traces of nuts. The addition of jasmine flowers gives it a new floral dimension. Its infusion has a yellow-to-orange color.

Origins

If you indulge in Oolong Tie Kuan Yin at a tea shop or want to get it straight from China, you might find it under the name of Iron Goddess of Mercy. Legend has it that she was the guardian of a semi-dilapidated temple who appeared one night to a poor farmer named Wei. He tried to restore the building to its former glory, but all he had was the strength and means to clean it regularly. Still, in return for his devotion, Kuan Yin showed him in a dream where to find treasure. The poor man had found it in a cave, along with a tea bush. He shared the wealth with his neighbours, repaired the temple, and planted the bush in his garden. He harvested the leaves from it and named it after Kuan Yin. His descendants perhaps provided the basis for today's widespread variety of Chinese tea trees.

How Wei processed the leaves is no longer a part of this legend, but if it was oolong, he must have used what is known as partial fermentation. The whole process looks like this: the harvested leaves are left to wilt briefly in the sun. They are then put into bags and shaken repeatedly at clearly defined intervals, which starts the carefully controlled fermentation process. Once the aroma of the green tea is ''just right'', the harvest is heated and then rapidly cooled. Finally, the leaves are rolled using fine vegetable oils or waxes and dried.

If you read our introduction, you know that in the case of Oolong Tie Kuan Yin with Jasmine flowers the buds of jasmine were sprinkled into the harvest during the fermentation process.

Oolong Tie Kuan Yin is 20-40% fermented. Chinese oolongs are among the most popular in the world, with around 300 types and combinations, and China has probably been producing them for more than 400 years.

Tea packaging preview

We pack our teas in a strong, zip-lock aluminum packet which allows you to easily re-seal its contents. This container protects the quality of the tea against humidity, light or foreign odors, all of which could noticeably affect the quality of the brew.