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“Hong Kong Style” High-Fired 鐵觀音茶王 Tiěguānyīn Chá Wáng “Iron Bodhisattva Tea King” by Fukien Tea Co – Limited Release
Ok. This is a guilty pleasure. In 1952, 福建茶行 Fukien Tea Company (Fukien Cha Hong) opened its doors, sourcing tea from 安溪 Ānxī county in 福建 Fújiàn province, and roasting the tea in their tiny shop, located on Mercer Street, just a short walk from Victoria Harbor in Hong Kong. Little has changed since and today they remain as one of the very few tea roasters left in the city.
Their signature Tiěguānyīn (Titgūnyām in Cantonese) “Tea King” is a traditional dark roasted oolong produced on site at the now famed location. The process takes over 70 hours, and the final product is dark, almost coffee-like, warming to the core tea that brews strong and offers a complex array of flavors ranging from dark stone fruit, layered notes of charcoal, bittersweet dark chocolate, roasted cacao nibs, molasses, and faint hints of menthol and gingerbread.
While this style of tea is timeless (I even remember drinking this tea in San Francisco as a kid in the early 90s), sadly its production seems to dwindle with each passing year. I’m offering up a limited amount of this tea for the Winter 2024 Tea Collection. Orders of 150g grams will receive the tea in its original paper and foil packaging emblazoned with the classic red and white “flying horse brand” (飛馬牌) imagery! Get it while my supply lasts!
Brewing Suggestions
This tea is a bit of a workhorse. As a dark roasted Tiěguānyīn, the focus here will be on allowing the complex array of florals, fruit and vanilla notes, marzipan, and black sugar tones to emerge from the overlay of a dark charcoal-like roast profile. There are two schools of thought for this. Either one brews the tea at a very high temperature for a quick to “flash brew” the tea, or, if your goal is to produce a heavier body and mouthfeel, the tea should be pushed.
To flash brew this tea, a suggested 4-6 grams for a 120-180 ml (~4-6 oz) teapot or gàiwǎn, with the first steeping going into the pre-warmed vessel at ~98C (120F), with a steep time at about 30-40 seconds. Subsequent steepings should increase only marginally in time to achieve similar lighter body results. Alternatively, if you’re looking for more a more robust brew (a Cháozhōu-style, although I’ve seen this approach also done in Hong Kong), consider increasing the amount of tea to 6-9 grams, keeping the temperature right off the boil, and brewing for 2-4 minutes. This increase in time will transform the tea, preserving the molasses-like sweetness, but revealing additional layers of complexity, along with bittersweet qualities akin to dark chocolate and cacao nibs.
Admittedly, there is a rough edge to this tea. It is part of its style and charm. It can be avoided through practice and experience brewing this tea. However, it is also an enjoyable aspect of this tea, something that is sought after by those who like the signature roast profile found at the Fukien Tea Co.
Ok. This is a guilty pleasure. In 1952, 福建茶行 Fukien Tea Company (Fukien Cha Hong) opened its doors, sourcing tea from 安溪 Ānxī county in 福建 Fújiàn province, and roasting the tea in their tiny shop, located on Mercer Street, just a short walk from Victoria Harbor in Hong Kong. Little has changed since and today they remain as one of the very few tea roasters left in the city.
Their signature Tiěguānyīn (Titgūnyām in Cantonese) “Tea King” is a traditional dark roasted oolong produced on site at the now famed location. The process takes over 70 hours, and the final product is dark, almost coffee-like, warming to the core tea that brews strong and offers a complex array of flavors ranging from dark stone fruit, layered notes of charcoal, bittersweet dark chocolate, roasted cacao nibs, molasses, and faint hints of menthol and gingerbread.
While this style of tea is timeless (I even remember drinking this tea in San Francisco as a kid in the early 90s), sadly its production seems to dwindle with each passing year. I’m offering up a limited amount of this tea for the Winter 2024 Tea Collection. Orders of 150g grams will receive the tea in its original paper and foil packaging emblazoned with the classic red and white “flying horse brand” (飛馬牌) imagery! Get it while my supply lasts!
Brewing Suggestions
This tea is a bit of a workhorse. As a dark roasted Tiěguānyīn, the focus here will be on allowing the complex array of florals, fruit and vanilla notes, marzipan, and black sugar tones to emerge from the overlay of a dark charcoal-like roast profile. There are two schools of thought for this. Either one brews the tea at a very high temperature for a quick to “flash brew” the tea, or, if your goal is to produce a heavier body and mouthfeel, the tea should be pushed.
To flash brew this tea, a suggested 4-6 grams for a 120-180 ml (~4-6 oz) teapot or gàiwǎn, with the first steeping going into the pre-warmed vessel at ~98C (120F), with a steep time at about 30-40 seconds. Subsequent steepings should increase only marginally in time to achieve similar lighter body results. Alternatively, if you’re looking for more a more robust brew (a Cháozhōu-style, although I’ve seen this approach also done in Hong Kong), consider increasing the amount of tea to 6-9 grams, keeping the temperature right off the boil, and brewing for 2-4 minutes. This increase in time will transform the tea, preserving the molasses-like sweetness, but revealing additional layers of complexity, along with bittersweet qualities akin to dark chocolate and cacao nibs.
Admittedly, there is a rough edge to this tea. It is part of its style and charm. It can be avoided through practice and experience brewing this tea. However, it is also an enjoyable aspect of this tea, something that is sought after by those who like the signature roast profile found at the Fukien Tea Co.