The Chens' New Garden, Medium Roast

Tea type
Oolong Tea
Ingredients
Not available
Flavors
Banana, Brisk, Burlap, Caramelized Sugar, Chestnut, Cinnamon, Coconut, Drying, Earthy, Floral, Fruity, Ginger, Honeysuckle, Mango, Perfume, Pine, Plumeria, Rice, Sweet, Tannin, Viscous, Walnut
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Loose Leaf
Caffeine
Not available
Certification
Not available
Edit tea info Last updated by derk
Average preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 0 min, 15 sec 5 g 4 oz / 110 ml

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2 Tasting Notes View all

  • “Still some prominent floweriness despite the roast. Viscous and sweet, complex chestnut-flavor soup with a brisk tannic quality. Extra-strong aftertaste lingers though sometimes it can lean a...” Read full tasting note

From Song Tea & Ceramics

Notes of tadiq, galangal, and mango

Oolong from Taiwan・April 2021・陳家新茶園烏龍, 中火・Unsprayed / Semi-wild

We find ourselves increasingly drawn to the traditional craft of charcoal roasting and the sheer breadth of flavor and character it can coax from tea leaves under the right hands. Mr. Li is one of the last charcoal roasters remaining in Taiwan as makers move on to newer, more efficient methods of production. Yet the quality of charcoal roasting cannot be denied. For the 2021 harvest of Mr. and Mrs. Chen’s New Garden, we opted for a medium roast from Mr. Li to highlight the innate sweetness of these wild leaves.

This New Garden tea grows unattended across the dizzyingly steep slopes of Zhushan, in Nantou county, Taiwan. The plants are truly ye fang, grown with almost no human intervention. The grove is not irrigated, fertilized, or manicured, relying entirely on the natural resources of the mountain for its success. Here the roots are free to burrow deep into the soil, leaves are peppered with bug bites (a surprisingly positive quality for a tea tree, the plant sends additional sugars to the bitten leaves to form calluses on the bites, increasing the sweetness of the harvested leaves), and fertilization, sunlight, and climate are controlled by the canopy of larger trees that shade the grove, and create natural mulch for the soil below.

The rustic nature of this tea lends perfectly to traditional crafting. The temperature of the roast concentrates the sweetness of the leaves, lending it light caramel notes and a bouquet of fruit. Tadiq, galangal, and mango notes add depth and intrigue across multiple steepings.

For a more comprehensive picture of charcoal roasting’s range, check out The Chens’ New Garden, Light Roast.

Brew: 6 grams・150 ml・208° F・2 min

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2 Tasting Notes

1482 tasting notes

Still some prominent floweriness despite the roast. Viscous and sweet, complex chestnut-flavor soup with a brisk tannic quality. Extra-strong aftertaste lingers though sometimes it can lean a little too drying like a greenish banana. Returning sweetness develops from the throat, like the Maillard reaction and sugary toasted coconut chips. I feel my ears and sinuses open up with cooling sensation. Seamless.

I chuckled a little at Song Tea’s galangal descriptor. After sitting here a while with the aftertaste, I think it’s apt. Not the sharp heat and pungency of ginger, but something more mellow and earthy, piney. I will say I don’t enjoy the tea as much with their recommended parameters, so I’m glad there is versatility with this leaf.

Flavors: Banana, Brisk, Burlap, Caramelized Sugar, Chestnut, Cinnamon, Coconut, Drying, Earthy, Floral, Fruity, Ginger, Honeysuckle, Mango, Perfume, Pine, Plumeria, Rice, Sweet, Tannin, Viscous, Walnut

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 0 min, 15 sec 5 g 4 OZ / 110 ML
Leafhopper

I’ve been meaning to get to these Song teas. Would you suggest bowl steeping or gongfu? I feel bad putting all my leaves in one teapot, so to speak. :)

derk

Gongfu for sure.

Leafhopper

Good to know. I’ve been eyeing that Different Ruby 18 for a while.

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