ROCK TEA - DA HONG PAO

DA HONG PAO

Dear Readers,

I have tried "Da Hong Pao" teas several times, but I can't recall which type they  belong to. I ONLY begin to realise lately that there are two main types, that is either from Upton or TeaSource. However, there are other couples Wuyi Rock teas from Jing [drums fingers impatiently]. To have a better understanding of the potential of these teas, I'd really like to hear from some of you how you feel in terms of quintessential example of a Big Red Robe or other Wuyi rock tea.

Any other recommendations?  I must admit that price is a consideration factor, but I willing to try even fairly pricey teas like the "Exquisite" or "Tribute" DHPs. Thanks in advance!

I have tried one of the rock tea, tasting like wine. I can feel the heat all over my body and my faces too turn into red as well. That was my first experience which my contact had told me that it is a rare tea, which found only in a very old trees at one of moutains in China. May some of you share out your experience on rock tea.

I also made to understand lately that there are 4 famous wuyi teas, namely Si Da Ming Cong, Da Hong Pao, Tie Luo Han, Shui Jin Gui and Bei Ji Guan. Especially Bai Ji Guan, rarest of them and very unique flavor. Whereas Rou Gui and Shui Xian which are reminiscent of Da Hong Pao somehow. Can anyone tells us more.

For your easy reading, append below, please find a short briefing from Wikipedia

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Dà Hóng Páo (大红袍) is an important Wuyi Oolong tea. Legend has it that 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 dates back to the Song Dynasty, still survive today and are highly venerated. At one point, less than one kilogram of tea was harvested from these plants each year, of which a portion was retained by the Chinese government. In 2005, the remainder of this original and real Da Hong Pao was auctioned, with an initial asking price of 4000 RMB/100 g, but often reaching tens of thousands to millions of dollars per kilogram^[1][2]

In recent years, a number of companies have invested in preserving the interest in this tea and other so-called "artisan" teas, which typically are of very high quality and have rich histories as is true with Da Hong Pao. These have an initially high cost of production (and typically are only considered authentic when grown in their place of origin), but, as they have quickly become popular in Western countries, prized selections of the tea are available each year, with quality being consistent due to the increased popularity of tea.

Cuttings taken from the original plants have been used to produce similar grades of tea from genetically identical plants. Taste variations produced by processing, differences in the soil, and location of these later generation plants is used to grade the quality of various Da Hong Pao teas. Some online tea shops have marketed Da Hong Pao as an oolong—it is unclear whether their varieties are not fully fermented as traditional Da Hong Pao tea is or they have errors on their sites.

Xiao Hong Pao, or Small Red Robe refers to Da Hong Pao grown from plants of fourth or greater generation, but the term is rarely used. In some cases Xiao Hong Pao is simply sold as Hong Pao, presumably for marketing purposes.

Due to its high quality, Da Hong Pao tea is usually reserved for honored guests in China.

James Oh

Skype me at james.oh18