Qi Lan

qí lán

奇兰

“Rare orchid” — a Fujian oolong of two faces. South-Fujian Bai Ya Qi Lan is fresh and floral; the Wuyi rock version adds mineral depth and the famous “rock rhyme”. Both carry a pure, unmistakable orchid bouquet.

Region: Pinghe (south Fujian) and Wuyi (north Fujian)
Harvest: Spring; rolled or made as rock tea
Oxidation: Semi-oxidised; Wuyi version roasted
Cultivar: Qi Lan (rare orchid) bush

In the cup

Pure orchid over walnut and chestnut honey — in the Wuyi style, a full, oily body on a mineral base with a long, slowly returning sweetness.

What it gives

A relaxing, aromatic oolong — its high essential-oil content makes it almost a tea aromatherapy, settling and refreshing at once.

Qi Lan — rare orchid — takes its name from the clearest, brightest orchid fragrance of any oolong, and the cultivar carries an unusually high load of aromatic oils: even the fresh leaf smells when crushed on the bush. It is made in two quite different places and styles.

In Pinghe in southern Fujian, as Bai Ya Qi Lan, it is worked light and fresh, all flowers and clean sweetness — one of the “three green treasures” of the county. In the Wuyi mountains in the north it becomes a roasted rock tea, the orchid now set over a mineral base and the yányùn, the rock rhyme. One cultivar, the locals say, played by a rock band and a chamber orchestra.

In the cup

Brew either gongfu, near boiling and short. The Pinghe style wants a gaiwan and quick pours to keep its lift; the Wuyi rock style rewards a clay pot and a touch more time, opening walnut, chestnut honey and that slow mineral return.

How to brew