Tea Cultivar · Camellia sinensis var. sinensis
Tieguanyin
- Origin
- China - Fujian (Anxi)
- Primary use
- oolong
Overview
Tieguanyin is both the name of a famous oolong tea and the cultivar from which it is made - a foundational Chinese oolong cultivar native to the Anxi region of southern Fujian. It is one of China's ten famous teas and the defining cultivar of the Minnan ('southern Fujian') oolong style, producing the rolled, jade-green oolongs that have become globally recognized.
Characteristics
A medium-leafed sinensis with thick, glossy, slightly twisted leaves that have a distinctive crimson stem and a characteristic 'horsetail' tip. The bush is moderately vigorous but agronomically demanding - Tieguanyin is famously difficult to grow well, with modest yields and a tendency to lose its signature aroma when planted outside its traditional terroir. It buds in mid-spring and is most often harvested in spring and autumn, with autumn flushes considered the most aromatic.
Flavor profile
Classic green-style Tieguanyin (qingxiang) shows a heady orchid and lilac aroma, a creamy mouthfeel, and a sweet, mineral finish with notes of fresh-cut grass and stone fruit. Traditional roasted (nongxiang) versions develop deeper notes of roasted nuts, dark caramel, dried fruit, and a long warming finish. Aged Tieguanyin can take on plummy, medicinal, and woody complexity.
History
Two competing legends in Anxi claim the origin of the cultivar. The 'Wei version' tells of a poor farmer named Wei Yin who tended a neglected shrine to Guanyin and was rewarded in a dream with the location of a special tea plant. The 'Wang version' credits a scholar named Wang Shirang who discovered the bush under a rock and presented tea made from it to the Qianlong Emperor in 1736; the emperor reportedly named it 'Iron Guanyin' because the leaves were 'heavy as iron' and resembled the goddess. Both legends agree the original mother bush grew in Xiping Town, Anxi, in the early 18th century.
Where it grows
Fujian (Anxi) · Taiwan (smaller plantings)