# Oriental Beauty (東方美人)

*Dōng Fāng Měi Rén · Oolong · Fire*

**archetype:** Maiden in a honey-coloured gown

A maiden in a dress the colour of ripe honey: leaves bitten by a leafhopper give a honeyed veil and a thin feminine spice.

## History

Dong Fang Mei Ren, or 'Oriental Beauty' (also Bai Hao Oolong, 'silver-tipped oolong'), is the most oxidised of Taiwanese oolongs: 60–80 %, no roast. Its peculiarity lies in the raw material — the leaf is bitten by the leafhopper Jacobiasca formosana. The plant's reaction to the bite triggers protective monoterpenes, and a characteristic honeyed-muscat note appears. The bushes are not treated with pesticides — otherwise the leafhoppers go away and the magic is lost.

> A tea merchant who brought this tea to England in the second half of the 19th century gave a small box to Queen Victoria. The Queen brewed the leaf, saw the fluffy edges floating in the cup and said: 'It looks like an Oriental beauty dancing with loose sleeves.' That is how the tea got its name.

## Terroir

200–500 m — relatively low gardens, near the plain. red clay with quartz, well drained. warm humid summers, a long season of cicada activity. The best harvest is the summer one, at the peak of leafhopper activity (June). The benchmark is the gardens of Beipu village.

## Leaf

- **dry leaf:** mottled twisted strands in many colours — white, green, copper, dark brown; clearly visible silver tips
- **warmed:** the warmed leaf — honey, ripe peach, muscat, a thin note of white grape
- **after pour:** after the infusion — a honeyed veil, peach, muscat, raisin, a faint spice
- **taste:** honey, ripe peach, muscat, raisin; in long infusions — warm silk and a floral trail
- **finish:** long, silken, leaving a honey note in the throat that holds 30–40 minutes

## Properties

- **TCM:** neutral-warm; nourishes blood and yin, moves qi, supports the stomach and the skin
- **Modern:** rich in defensive-reaction monoterpenes (linalool, geraniol) and theaflavins; gentle stimulation, good for mood and skin
- **Cha qi:** warm, silken; felt as an embrace in the upper chest
- **Caffeine:** moderate (30–45 mg), gentle

## Brewing ritual

a thin gaiwan, 110 ml; 85 °C, soft; 6 g / 110 ml. 15s — a honeyed veil, warm peach; 12s — the peak: muscat, ripe grape, honey; 15s — a floral trail, a faint spice; 25s — a long honey note; 40s — a thin echo of raisin; 60s — the finale — warm silk in the throat.

## When to drink

day and early evening. summer and early autumn. when you want tenderness; after long work; for feminine rest; with dessert. honey, ripe peach, muscat grape, white chocolate, white cheeses, raisins. two over a dessert; a women's conversation; a 'tender' morning alone

## Tea meditation

1. This tea is a wound that became beauty.
2. Don't hurry to drink — let the honey come through.
3. Let the dress unfurl all the way.

## Questions and answers

### How do you brew Oriental Beauty?

a thin gaiwan, 110 ml; 85 °C, soft; 6 g / 110 ml. 15s — a honeyed veil, warm peach; 12s — the peak: muscat, ripe grape, honey; 15s — a floral trail, a faint spice; 25s — a long honey note; 40s — a thin echo of raisin; 60s — the finale — warm silk in the throat.

### What does Oriental Beauty taste like?

honey, ripe peach, muscat, raisin; in long infusions — warm silk and a floral trail

### How much caffeine is in Oriental Beauty?

moderate (30–45 mg), gentle

### What are the effects of Oriental Beauty?

rich in defensive-reaction monoterpenes (linalool, geraniol) and theaflavins; gentle stimulation, good for mood and skin

## Related teas

- [Dong Ding](https://www.dao-cha.info/en/tea/dun-ding)
- [Tieguanyin](https://www.dao-cha.info/en/tea/tie-guan-yin)
- [Jin Jun Mei](https://www.dao-cha.info/en/tea/jin-jun-mei)
- [Oolong](https://www.dao-cha.info/en/class/oolong)