2026 Zhulan Dafang

Tasting Notes ：3 g · 60 ml Jingdezhen porcelain gaiwan · Water at approximately 85°C.

 The dry leaves open with gentle sweetness. Zhulan flowers sit somewhere between orchid and osmanthus, resting above the familiar roasted chestnut notes of Dinggu Dafang. There are also hints of peanut cream and toasted nuts.

Warming the gaiwan brings forward the tea's own character. The aroma of pan-fired green tea comes first, followed by the fine down of the leaves and the warm, protein-rich scent of roasted nuts.

After the first infusion, the flowers step back. The wet leaves carry the aroma of freshly boiled reed grass, reminiscent of the long grasses traditionally used to tie *zongzi*. Beneath this are faint pectin-like acidity and the warmth of roasted nuts. The floral notes are scarcely noticeable.

The liquor is smooth and lightly oily, moving easily across the palate. It has substance without heaviness, sweetness without a trace of astringency.

What distinguishes this tea is not the strength of its floral fragrance, but where the fragrance exists. It exists within the liquor, not above it.

The Zhulan fragrance is fully absorbed into the tea. It does not sit above the cup, nor does it compete with the character of Dinggu Dafang. Tea and flower are no longer experienced separately.

There is no obvious point at which the fragrance arrives. Looking for it directly seldom helps. One moment it seems impossible to locate; the next, it has already spread across the palate. The tea never overwhelms the flowers, and the flowers never disguise the tea. Each leaves room for the other. What remains is a cup that feels measured, warm and complete. This is not a tea built on intensity. It is built on proportion.