Tie Guan Yin is a well-known oolong tea commonly served in many restaurants.
This Tie Guan Yin offers a refreshing floral character. Harvested in spring and unroasted, it delivers a naturally sweet, orchid-like floral aroma with a smooth and gentle mouthfeel.
The tea is produced in Xiang Hua Fu Xin Village (祥华福新村), located in Anxi, Fujian Province, China, and is made from the genuine Tie Guan Yin cultivar.
About Tie Guan Yin as a Cultivar
Tie Guan Yin originally refers to an oolong tea made from a specific tea cultivar known as Tie Guan Yin. Anxi is recognised as the core production area of authentic Tie Guan Yin.
Besides Tie Guan Yin, Anxi is also home to many other tea cultivars such as Mao Xie, Rou Gui, Ben Shan, and Huang Jin Gui. It is quite common for oolong teas made from these other cultivars to be sold under the name “Tie Guan Yin”. However, authentic Tie Guan Yin made from the true cultivar has a distinctive flavour profile that sets it apart.
Tea produced from the genuine Tie Guan Yin cultivar is known for its rich body, depth of flavour, and long, satisfying finish. When well processed, it also reveals a natural sweetness and elegant orchid-like floral notes—hallmarks of true Tie Guan Yin.
Elevation and Tea Quality in Anxi
Elevation is one of the key factors influencing the quality of Tie Guan Yin in Anxi. Generally, the higher the tea garden, the richer and more concentrated the flavour and body of the tea. For this reason, teas grown at higher elevations often command a higher value.
Our Tie Guan Yin Qin Xiang is harvested from a tea garden situated at an elevation of 1,100 to 1,200 metres. HOJO carefully selects this Tie Guan Yin from the spring harvest. Spring tea is known for its soft, smooth character and offers a refined and elegant drinking experience.
Fertiliser use also plays an important role in tea quality. When little or no fertiliser is applied, tea plants grow more slowly. This slower growth allows the tea leaves to accumulate greater amounts of minerals and natural compounds, resulting in richer flavour, stronger body, and a deeper, more lingering aftertaste.
A Floral Character That Redefines Oolong Tea
Tie Guan Yin is often associated with bottled oolong tea, leading many people to assume it is always a roasted oolong. While roasted Tie Guan Yin is indeed popular, it represents only one style of this tea.
The Qing Xiang (Light Fragrance) style is entirely different from the roasted type. It is known for its elegant, orchid-like floral aroma and natural sweetness. The taste is clean, transparent, and leaves a long-lasting, gently sweet finish on the palate. For many first-time drinkers, Qing Xiang Tie Guan Yin comes as a pleasant surprise, challenging common preconceptions about oolong tea.
Why Tie Guan Yin Leaves Have Broken Edges
Because Qing Xiang Tie Guan Yin expresses such a pronounced floral character, it is often mistaken for a lightly fermented oolong. In reality, it is a heavily fermented oolong tea.
Compared to many Taiwanese oolong teas, Tie Guan Yin is made using more mature tea leaves. These mature leaves are better able to withstand stronger fermentation. During processing, vigorous tossing is used to initiate fermentation, causing greater friction along the edges of the leaves. As a result, the leaf edges ferment more deeply and turn a reddish-brown colour, while the centre of the leaf remains green.
The fermented brown edges contribute fruity notes, while the green centre preserves floral aromas. To emphasise the elegant floral character, producers carefully remove much of the brown edge, leaving primarily the green portion of the leaf. This additional handwork gives Tie Guan Yin leaves their slightly rough, uneven appearance, often resembling small “wormholes” along the edges.
It is precisely this meticulous process that enhances the refined floral aroma and distinctive character of high-quality Tie Guan Yin.
Directly Sourced from Tea Producers with Their Own Gardens
HOJO maintains close, long-term relationships with tea producers who own and manage their own tea gardens. By sourcing directly from these primary producers, we avoid intermediaries and local wholesalers. This allows our teas to come straight from the tea gardens, ensuring better quality control, traceability, and a more faithful expression of each tea’s origin.