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A closer look at big red robe teas
Seven Da Hong Paos
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Seven Da Hong Paos.
To be able to tell how Da Hong Pao (DHP) tastes, you need to have access to the original.
To do so, you have to officially visit China as a head of state or a VIP invited to China's Diaoyutai State Guest House. And yet, this does not mean you will get the tea from the mother plants. Even the Guest House's Da Hong Pao comes from a tea garden said to be closest to the original bushes.
If you are not a state official, you can still buy the Diaoyutai State Guest House Da Hong Pao in Wuyi Star Tea House in Hong Kong (wuyistar.com.hk) or you can be a tourist and go to the tea house situated across from the mother plants in the Wuyi Mountain area and order one of the five different grades of Da Hong Pao priced from US$40 to $120 per pot (tynan.com/oolong). You can also buy the tea via reputable resellers and online suppliers.
Like any other luxury item, if you cannot afford or access the original, you can still have its replicas, made from mother plant cuttings or made by using a special technique to 'taste like the original', at varying qualities and different price points as well as its bootlegs.
Unlike champagne, which must come from the Champagne region to legally bear the name, there seems to be no such rule in China in regards to tea. I have found a Da Hong Pao produced by Taiwan, perhaps using leaves sourced from Wuyishan.
In Jakarta, first and second-grade Da Hong Paos can be purchased at Siang Ming Tea House (in Bungur Besar, Mangga Dua Square, Kelapa Gading Mall and Gandaria City Mall). The tea can also be had at Cawan Tea House (in Muara Karang) and via a network of Chinese tea connoisseurs across the city or through the Jakarta-based Pecinta Teh (tea lovers) community.
The seven Da Hong Pao replicas I managed to get all taste differently and yet, there are similarities. The liquor ranges from light yellow, copper-like to dark amber.
Siang Ming tea connoisseur customers told me that lighter liquor indicated a higher grade. 'Although this type of tea is fired at high temperature, the good ones are not over-fired,' Suwarni said.
Darker liquor might indicate over-firing intended to create pronounced roasted coffee-like aroma/flavors, which are useful to mask poorer-quality leaves and make the drinker happy.
Proper firing, however, creates hints of roasted coffee and elegant smoky notes reminiscent of those of top French wine or Scottish whisky as in Suwarni's first grade or elegant dark-chocolate flavors as in the Da Hong Pao Suwarni obtained from the Chinese Embassy in Jakarta.
Proper firing also brings out floral fragrance typical for top oolong (that the Chinese usually call orchid fragrance), nuttiness and sweet undertones thanks to the Maillard reaction (and caramelization respectively), which take place when tea is fired at 300-330 degrees Fahrenheit (149-166 Celsius).
As for minerality, an experiment I conducted with local demineralized water (Rivero) to steep Suwarni's first and second grade in a glass tea infuser (not in a porous purple sand teapot which may impart its minerality/ earthiness) did not bring out any noticeable mineral flavors like in wine (such as flint, slate, etc.) The mineral-void water, despite revealing the teas' purer taste, appeared to have reduced their liveliness.
So, a good Da Hong Pao facsimile should have appetizing smoky/roasted notes, mild coffee and dark chocolate flavors, oolong floral fragrance deeply reflected in the taste, and vibrancy both in taste and aroma, and complexity, meaning that the tea introduces new/different flavors in each steeping although it will noticeably start to lose its flavors after three steepings.
It should preferably be steeped using a purple stand teapot with, ideally, good spring water or natural mineral water.
Lesser quality copies of the tea can still be enjoyed if you steep it properly, preferably with mineral water as it is tastier than demineralized water.
If you do not appreciate tea as it is and love fancy teas (with fruit/ flower flavors/ spices/ sugar/ milk/ cream/ ice) or have a strong penchant for a certain type of tea, this tea may not appeal to you as it may taste old-fashioned.
Open packets should be tightly closed and stored at room temperature. Sealed tea packets will be good for 2 years. As the tea is highly (85 percent) oxidized like black tea, its tannic acid and caffeine contents are quite high, and may cause an upset stomach. So, don't drink it on empty stomach or eat some sweet snacks before drinking it.
