Organic Yu Shan "Immortal Goddess" Tie Guan Yin
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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.
Tie Guan Yin - The Supreme Goddess
Tieguanyin (红心歪尾桃) cultivar is one of the most revered teas of all time, dating back to 19th-century Qing Dynasty. Named after Guan Yin, the Buddhist bodhisattva of compassion, legend says a Fujian farmer discovered the unique tea bushes after she appeared in a dream. The tea itself reflects her grace in the dense, iron-like weight of the leaves, and the signature mineral finish.
While "Tieguanyin" can refer either to the plant or simply to a roasting style, true perfection requires both. Today, less than 12% of Taiwan’s oolongs are exported, and of those, under 15% are made using this genuine Fujian heirloom cultivar. Cultivated on Yu Shan—Taiwan’s highest mountain at 3,952 meters—this exclusive single batch blends an extraordinary high-altitude terroir with traditional processing, making it an extraordinarily rare offering at Old Mountain Teas.
Notes from Staff: There is really no way to fully capture this tea through words, it must be experienced. First few steeps yield a fruity, punchy roasted taste, with an exceptional mineral aftertaste, reminiscent of a Fujian Wuyi Rock Oolong from where this cultivar originates.
This tea is something you can age like a luxury vintage wine, making this not only an experience that can be revisited years later, but also an investment in a tea that cannot be found anywhere else.
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
Tieguanyin (紅心歪尾桃) is an old heirloom cultivar from Anxi, Fujian, brought to Taiwan in the late Qing period and planted in Muzha, where it became the foundation of Taiwan’s traditional Tieguanyin. Its purple-red buds and slightly crooked leaf tips give 紅心歪尾桃 its name, while the cultivar itself is prized for its distinctive orchid fragrance, rich body, and lingering “Guanyin Yun” character.
Today, authentic 正欉鐵觀音 made from this original cultivar is increasingly rare, even in Taiwan. The plants grow slowly and produce relatively low yields, while the traditional processing is labor-intensive, making genuine old-clone Tieguanyin much harder to find than teas made from substitute cultivars. Its limited production and deep Fujian-to-Taiwan heritage make 紅心歪尾桃 a true heirloom tea—and an especially rare find on the international market.
- Tieguanyin(红心歪尾桃) (Hong Xin Wai Wei Tao) (literally, "Red-Heart Crooked-Tail Peach")
- Status
- Extremely Rare
- Processing method
- Medium Oxidized - TieGuanYin
- 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
- Tongfu Village, Taiwan
- Harvest
- Spring 2026
- 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.
