This tea was naturally grown on Wudong Peak, the most prized tea-growing region in the Phoenix Mountains. The wulongs produced in this region tend to be bold, floral, fruity, and foresty. The Red Emperor is rich, chocolatey, and robust, with flavors of the deep forest, and is less prone to overbrewing than other Phoenix wulongs.
Dry, the leaves of this tea are black with a reddish tint and a central yellow vein. They carry a rich, chocolatey, nutty, earthy, deep aroma. Once brewed, its mottled leaves are a blend of army green ang rusty reddish brown that are wulong's characteristic. They impart a rich, deep, sweet, earthy, slightly fruity aroma, with elements of citrus, woodsmoke, plum, mahogany, dried cherries, and currants. They produce a golden brew, with a sweet, rich, robust, earthy flavor that has been described as a "sweet melody in the mouth." This roasted chocolate elements of its profile blend with the rich flavors of the deep forest, grounded by a hint of earthy burdock. Its aftertaste is clean, smooth, and chocolatey, and its qi is warm and dry.
Phoenix wulongs, while delicious, are notorious for being tricky to brew. The Red Emperor is a marvelous exception. Its robust, forgiving nature makes it able to withstand long brews with hot water, or careless, laissez faire brewing without getting bitter.
Lasts ~9 brews.
Nomenclature: The Chinese name of this tea is 紅帝單叢/红帝单丛 - Hóng Dì Dān Cóng.
紅/红 - Hóng - Red.
帝/帝 - Dì - Emperor.
單/单 - Dān - Single.
叢/丛 - Cóng - Bush, shrub. This is often used in contrast to 喬/乔 (qiáo), which is used to refer to the arboreal tea varietals.
The teas of the Phoenix Mountains are referred to as *Dāncóng (單叢/单丛), meaning "single bush." This is because, traditionally, the leaves from each of tea bush would be kept separate, allowing one to taste the flavor produced by one particular bush. While this is no longer standard practice in the Phoenix Mountains, the teas of this region have retained the name.
*(The "c" in Chinese is pronounced "ts.")
Price is per 50 grams/1.76 ounces