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2023 Spring Anxi Jin Suo Shi

2023 Spring Anxi Jin Suo Shi

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Rare varietal
Wuyi transplant
Master Zhang cultivates a tiny grove of Jin Suo Shi, brought from Wuyishan, and finishes it to bring out ginger, gardenia, green apple, pastry, and tulsi notes with a juicy aftertaste.
Spring 2023 ♦ Greener Finish
Rare varietal
Wuyi transplant
Master Zhang cultivates a tiny grove of Jin Suo Shi, brought from Wuyishan, and finishes it to bring out ginger, gardenia, green apple, pastry, and tulsi notes with a juicy aftertaste.
Spring 2023 ♦ Greener Finish
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Crafted by Master Zhang

Environmentalist and award-winning craftsman, Master Zhang is committed to pioneering low-impact tea farming that replenishes natural forests on his high elevation Anxi mountain plot.
 
Master Zhang devotes his energy to introducing rare varietals of tea to increase biodiversity and researching ancient finishing techniques to make rich, aromatic oolong unlike anything else in the world.
    • DATE OF PICKINGSpring 2023
    • Daping VillageAnxi, Fujian
    • ELEVATION1000 m
    • Jin Suo ShiTea Varietal

    Jin Suo Shi or "Golden Key" has been cultivated in Wuyishan on a small scale for almost one hundred years. In the last few decades Jin Suo Shi has been the subject of substantial research for its natural cold and drought resistance. Master Zhang cultivates a small grove of Jin Suo Shi, planted from seedlings picked up during his years of research on Wuyishan's growing and finishing techniques. The terroir of Daping and Master Zhang’s expert finishing bring out fruity notes in this uncommon cultivar, along with a building intense sweetness.

  • true
    75
    green apple
    true
    65
    gardenia
    true
    65
    camphor, eucalyptus
    true
    75
    camphor, eucalyptus
    true
    75
    tulsi, eucalyptus
    true
    juicy, creamy

    Tasting Profile

    • fruit - green apple
    • floral - gardenia
    • spice - camphor, eucalyptus
    • savory - camphor, eucalyptus
    • vegetal - tulsi, eucalyptus
    • texture - juicy, creamy


Zhang Rongde also recommends:

  1. 2005 Aged Wulong Revival
    2005 Aged Wulong Revival
    The “Dragonfly” style was the most traditional oolong finishing technique in Anxi before the rolled ball became popular. Master Zhang has been experimenting with this style for years as part of his work as a teacher and community leader for other farmers in Daping. Every year Master Zhang sets aside any interesting standouts for long term aging, which requires re-roasting every year to keep the moisture level as low as possible. The slow process of change brings out deep complexity and dark sweet undertones over many years. Master Zhang is sharing a portion of his personal reserve from early experiments for his revival project, giving us the chance to taste the first truly aged Revival Style Anxi oolong from Daping.
  2. 2023 Spring Anxi Rou Gui
    2023 Spring Anxi Rou Gui

    Rou Gui is better known as a roasted oolong from Wuyi, famous in Wuyi for its intense and aromatic cinnamon flavor. Master Zhang's Rou Gui varietal bushes grow among Tieguanyin fields and wildflowers, and benefit from sweet mountain spring water. Master Zhang's careful finish on this unique rolled Anxi Rou Gui brings out not just rich cinnamon spice, but also dessert-like complexity and aftertaste.

  3. 2023 Original Wulong Revival
    2023 Original Wulong Revival

    Master Zhang is a true innovator. He doesn’t make tea to follow trends. He experiments and takes risks to make tea better for the generations to come. This Original Wulong Revival uses the older Ben Shan varietal leaf and undergoes three times more careful hand turning and fluffing than modern Anxi oolong. For finishing, it is loosely rolled in the oldest style of oolong making that is half strip style and half ball, with many of the leaves more strip-style than rolled. Master Zhang describes the shape as a dragonfly. This hand processing and shaping yields a different tea - a genre of its own outside of Wuyi style, Guangdong style or Anxi style. The light roast is rewarding and brings out a unique savory sweet complexity we don’t see in other teas from Master Zhang.

  • 'The process of making oolong is bringing the tea back and forth between withered and alive... the process of bringing it back from the brink eliminates bitterness and astringency.'

  • 5
    6-8
    212
    30 seconds
    15-30
    5
    5
    212
    10 seconds
    3
    5
    12
    212
    8 hours

    Steeping Instructions

    Western

    5 g.6-8
    oz.
    use 212° watersteep 30 secondsresteep many times
    add 15-30 sec. each infusion

    Gongfu

    5 g.5 ozuse 212° watersteep 10 seconds
    add 3 sec. per steeping
    enjoy many steepings

    Iced/Cold

    5 g.12
    oz.
    use room temp. waterrefrigerate overnight
    8 hours
    add ice & enjoy

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