Charcoal Heavy Roast Dong Ding Oolong
The 'cigar' of the Taiwanese tea world, this tea is something special. Masterly charcoal roasted at 140C, four times, for eight hours at a time, this tea is the most heavily roasted tea we have ever had on the site. It boasts a profile of rich, smooth roast hickory wood, high-quality cigar smoke and toasted marshmallow sweetness, great those brave enough to try this dark, dark tea. It is rare to find a heavily roasted tea with this complexity, but thanks to our friends in Dong Ding we are getting used to finding these rare types of tea!
The roaster of this tea is the nephew of the Old Master who makes our Old Master Dong Ding, and he deserves the name Master as well. 360 days a year he roasts tea at his home on the Dong Ding plateau, checking the temperature and profile of his teas every 15 minutes, 8+ hours a day. It is an amazing sight to see, smell, and taste, and one that we will be happy to share with you once our Mountain Stream Tea Tours begin again.
The Dong Ding area is steeped in tradition and has rather rigid agricultural practices. We have looked for years for an agrochemical-free authentic Dong Ding Oolong but haven't found one. Yet. This tea is conventionally grown and we have chosen to include this tea for its authenticity. For more information, see here.
Other teas from this garden: Unroasted Traditional Dong Ding Oolong, Tradtional Dong Ding Oolong, Charcoal Mid-Roast Traditional Dong Ding Oolong
Elevation: 900m
Status: Conventional
Cultivar: Qin Xin Oolong
Season: Winter, 2020
Oxidization: 40%, Heavy Charcoal Roast, 140C for four 8 hours sessions
Method: Hand picked, processed on site, small batch
Region: Dong Ding, Nantou
Recommend Brewing Style:
Gong Fu Style: 3-5g per 100ml, ~100C water, 30, 45, 60 then add 5-10 seconds steeps in gaiwan. Lasts 4-5 steeps.
Western Style: 3g per 100ml, ~100c water for 2 minutes. Lasts 2-3 steeps. Very suited to western style brewing!
**This tea is traditional, and strong. It is not a beginners tea. The Old Master Dongding series of teas is much more accessible for most tea drinkers. There are a few who will love this tea, but many whowill not. By all means try it! But perhaps, buy a sample before you buy a lot of it ;)