2025 Organic Ming Jian Charcoal Roasted Tie Guan Yin Oolong

This is the tea you may have tried as part of the Taiwanese TheTea Club offered in December 2025. You loved this oolong, so we’ve imported over a dozen kilograms of it for you!

There is a certain divide among Taiwanese experts on what we can call Tie Guan Yin tea. For some, it is exclusively tea produced from the Tie Guan Yin (Hong Xin Wai Wei Tao) variety (cultivar), while for others it is a certain style of tea with a specific flavour profile, regardless of the variety from which the leaves were picked. We belong to the second group, especially since today in Muzha – the Taiwanese capital of Tie Guan Yin – most teas are made from Qing Xin or Jin Xuan varieties.

Before importing the tea, we commissioned a test to be carried out by SGS, a body accredited by the European Union – out of 503 pesticides and herbicides, the test did not detect any residues of these substances, not even trace amounts.

The Chens, whom I met in December of 2025, run an organic tea production in Ming Jian, a region famous for its intensive, almost industrial tea production. They break away from the mainstream and all their agricultural activities, including not only tea bushes, but also osmanthus trees and jasmine bushes, are completely organic. The tea fields scattered around the owners’ house are surrounded by 3-4 meter high Ruby 18 tea bushes (you can see them on the photo). They protect the fields from pesticides drifting in from the surrounding fields where pineapples, ginger and, of course, tea are grown.

The material used to produce this tea comes from Si Ji Chun bush, a popular but underrated cultivar that allows frequent and abundant harvests. Interestingly, this oolong is roasted over charcoal to create a flavor profile similar to the traditional Tie Guan Yin grown in northern Taiwan in the Muzha area.

When I tried this tea during a blind tasting in Taiwan, I was convinced that it was the real Tie Guan Yin. You will find aromas of burnt jam, roasted sesame seeds, brown sugar, crème brûlée, as well as hints of yellow flowers and herbs (cannabis and more).

A wonderful Tie Guan Yin… or Si Ji Chun – it doesn’t matter! This tea brings comfort and warmth.

The tea is originally packaged in vacuum-sealed packs with a net weight of 100 grams. If you buy the 30 g or 50 g variant, you will receive it in our typical zip-lock bag.