2015 Traditional Iron Buddha Supreme (JING)
What with my December tea tasting talk and the pre-Christmas bustle, I thought I’d save my review of this lovely chop from Jing until January.
There are three main types of top quality Wu Long (乌龙) tea, the Dong Ding (冻顶） Wu Long from Taiwan; the Dan Cong (单枞) from Chaozhou in Guangdong and the most renown, the Tie Guan Yin, commonly known as “Iron Buddha” (铁观音), from Anxi in Fujian. The subtropical climate and rich deep soil of Fujian are ideal for growing tea, especially its Wuyi massif where the Tie Guan Yin comes from.
Having Chaozhou blood in my veins and growing up in an environment of household Gong Fu tea ceremonies, Wu Long tea is a personal favourite of mine.
Not least because it’s got an Akira Toriyama character, a shape shifting pig demon, named after it! Or because of an ancient method of picking the Da Hong Pao (大红袍）variety, used by the monks of Tianxin Temple, involving monkeys and drums!
Posted in Commentary and tagged blue tea, china, Chinese, culture, Da Hong Pao, Dragon Ball, monkeys, Oolong, review, tea, Tie Guan Yin, Wu Long