Description
Da Hong Pao (Big Red Robe) is a prestigious Wuyi oolong tea, one of the four oolongs (and varieties of tea bush), from which the selection of all other oolongs started. It is a premium variety of the Wu Yi Yan Cha (Mount Wuyi Tea) group of oolong.
According to legend, the mother of a Ming Dynasty emperor was cured of an illness by a certain tea, and that emperor sent great red robes to clothe the four bushes from which that tea originated.
Three of these original bushes, growing on a rock on Mount Wuyi and reportedly dating back to the Song Dynasty, still survive today and are highly venerated. The few kilograms of tea collected from them are sold each year at auctions for tens of thousands of pounds.
All other varieties of Da Hong Pao bushes were obtained by cloning (vegetative reproduction) of these four original bushes, and many are still cultivated on Mount Wuyi.
Da Hong Pao is carefully made with exquisite handicraft. The finished tea looks tight and greenish brown. When brewed, it is bright orange and clear. It has mellow and rich taste with a striking charm of rock, leaving an enduring fragrant aftertaste.
Best brewed at 95°C up to 9 times.
PaulFiennes –
An excellent tea for either a hot or a cold evening. Very subtle notes. Very much recommended!