Oolong · BaguaShan, Taiwan
Organic Bug Bitten Wuyi "Golden Nectar" Oolong Tea
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Tasting notes
About these tasting notes
These are the tasting notes we and others pick up most often. Palates vary, so you may catch some, all, or different ones — flavor is personal and subjective. Nothing is added: there are no added flavorings in this tea. Any notes you find developed naturally in the tea plant through rediscovered artisanal processing techniques.
About these tasting notes
These are the tasting notes we and others pick up most often. Palates vary, so you may catch some, all, or different ones — flavor is personal and subjective. Nothing is added: there are no added flavorings in this tea. Any notes you find developed naturally in the tea plant through rediscovered artisanal processing techniques.
Effects
About these effects
These are the effects people most often report from this tea. Bodies differ, so treat them as a common guide rather than a promise — most people notice at least one, but what you feel is personal.
About these effects
These are the effects people most often report from this tea. Bodies differ, so treat them as a common guide rather than a promise — most people notice at least one, but what you feel is personal.
Wuyi Varietal - Heirloom Cultivar transplanted from Fujian Province
Wuyi Oolongs are certainly not uncommon, but this however is not any tea! Originally a Fujian specialty this cultivar was brought over to Taiwan many centuries ago, but finding authentic Taiwanese Wuyi tea cultivars these days is almost impossible. Fortunately, this exquisite tea is available in small quantities this year - medium bug bitten and charcoal roast also add additional layers of flavor, making this a tea you can age for a lifetime.
Notes from Staff: Easily a favorite oolong tea, you will be surprised by how these Taiwan Wuyi differ from regular Wuyi oolongs like Da Hong Pao. Trading the up-front mineral tastes for a more sustained sweetness and lingering mineral aftertaste, this is a tea you'll never want to stop drinking or thinking about!
Why charcoal roasting costs more
Most tea today is roasted using an electric method, because it is faster, cheaper, and requires less skill, thus making it more consistent. This tea was roasted the traditional way: by an artisan's hand, over charcoal embers, using low heat over the course of many days under careful supervision. It takes far more knowledge, fuel, and time than electric roasting, but it rewards the tea with deeper flavor and the ability to age gracefully for decades.
Why bug-bitten tea costs more
This tea's honeyed, fruit-forward character isn't an additive — it comes from insects. Leafhoppers feed only on gardens grown without pesticides, and their bites trigger the plant to release aromatic compounds no processing technique can fake. The tradeoff: bitten leaves are smaller and far less abundant, so gardens that allow this yield a fraction of a normal harvest.
Old Mountain Tea Guarantee
Our teas are guaranteed free from harmful chemicals. We source directly from small, clean family farms that take real pride in their work — no middlemen, no anonymous blends. Many of these teas are bug-bitten, and leafhoppers only feed on gardens grown without pesticides, so the leaf itself is living proof the garden is clean. Every tea is grown to organic standards and traceable to the farm that made it.
Origin & Terroir
- Cultivar
About this cultivar
Before The Taiwan Tea Research and Extension Station (TRES) was even established, and Taiwan tea became categorized formally, tea plants had been transported from Fujian Province to Taiwan in the 1850's during the Qing Dynasty for local tea consumption. As a result, these Wuyi cultivar (武夷) tea plants have no formal identification "Tai Cha" number as other Taiwanese teas often do.
Interestingly, it has had centuries to develop unique characteristics from its Fujian Wuyi Mountain tea plant cousins, making it familiar but still very different from Traditional Wuyi Rock Tea (岩茶, YanCha). Most Wuyi (武夷) Cultivar tea never leaves Taiwan for international markets, making this a rare and fortunate acquisition.
- Taiwanese Heirloom Wuyi(武夷)
- Status
- Extremely Rare Cultivar
- Processing method
- Medium Oxidized Oolong
- Charcoal roast level
Why charcoal roasting costs more
Roasted by hand over low charcoal embers across multiple sessions and days, far slower than electric roasting. It deepens flavor and lets the tea age well, which is why charcoal-roasted teas cost more.
- Region
- Puzhong Village, Mingjian Township, Nantou County, Taiwan
- Harvest
- Summer 2026(Organic)
- Elevation
- 428 meters
- Climate
- Humid, Tropical
- Oxidation level
What oxidation level means
Oxidation is what turns green tea into oolong or black tea — as leaves are bruised and rested, enzymes react with oxygen and deepen their color and flavor. Green tea sees almost none; oolong ranges widely; black tea is oxidized fully.
- Picking style
Why picking style matters
Hand-plucking means workers select each bud and leaf by touch, one at a time — far slower and more expensive than machine harvesting, but gentler on the leaf. As labor costs rise, fewer gardens still pick this way, making hand-plucked tea increasingly rare.
- Hand Plucked
- Bug-bitten level
Why bug-bitten tea costs more
These leaves were bitten by tiny leafhoppers, which only feed on pesticide-free gardens. Their bites trigger the plant's natural defenses, producing honeyed, fruity notes — but damaged leaves mean a much smaller harvest.
How to brew it
Leaf · 5 g
Water · purified soft water, freshly boiled
First infusion · 20 seconds
Each infusion after · add 15 sec
Up to 12 infusions
Leaf · 5 g
Water · purified soft water, freshly boiled
First infusion · 2 minutes
Second infusion · 5 minutes
Third infusion · 10 minutes
