Dong Ding Traditional A

Tea type
Oolong Tea
Ingredients
Not available
Flavors
Char, Charcoal, Roasted, Bread, Butter, Cream, Floral, Graham Cracker, Grass, Hazelnut, Honey, Mineral, Narcissus, Nutty, Orchid, Pine, Vegetal, Walnut, Wood
Sold in
Loose Leaf
Caffeine
Not available
Certification
Not available
Edit tea info Last updated by Leafhopper
Average preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 oz / 123 ml

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3 Tasting Notes View all

  • “Sipdown 24 – 2024 This was very kindly given to me as a sample in a recent Floating Leaves order. Sadly I don’t care for it. Another poor tea victim of charcoal roasting, it just overwhelms the tea.” Read full tasting note
  • “Leafhopper sent me this tea, so thank you! Kind of sipdown, but it wasn’t in my Steepster cupboard and also it’s single session tea. My first impression after putting the leaves to gaiwan was...” Read full tasting note
    82
  • “I made a big Floating Leaves order over the Black Friday weekend, so the least I can do is finish a few of the teas from my last order in 2021 before my haul arrives. This Dong Ding is from either...” Read full tasting note
    83

From Floating Leaves Tea

Our long time friends Mr. and Mrs. Su are very specific about their tea. They have maintained a traditional tea making style over the years because they believe in the tea of their ancestors.

The bushes that this tea is harvested from are essentially left to grow wild. They are old, with lichen and moss growing on the thick trunks of these shrubs. By not interfering with the natural process, the bushes that survive become strong and resilient. Tea harvested from these bushes has a depth of character that isn’t possible with large production tea. It makes us happy!

This tea is “Traditional” in the sense that it was processed the way Dong Ding has been processed for decades. It has a deeper, more full feeling broth than many modern oolongs (high mountain or baozhong for exmample) because it has gone through a longer “lang qing” process to evenly distribute natural enzymes throughout the leaf. It’s also withered in natural sunlight — never in big air conditioned facilities of bigger tea factories — which affords the tea a very clean, natural profile.

The focus of this tea is the broth, which is juicy and thick. Sensation from the broth can be felt in the throat, which develops into a long, sweet aftertaste.

This is a soulful oolong. It can be pleasant grandpa style, and it can be stretched for more meditative sessions. If you are interested in learning more deeply about tea, and anything about this description seems novel to you, please try it for yourself. This tea is a great teacher. Alternatively, if you like a good tasting, strong, clean oolong tea that grand-daddy would be happy to sip, you, too, should do yourself a favor and try this tea.

Description
First infusion reveals a fruit forward aroma, and subsequent infusions bring out more woodiness and rich broth.

Tacky, grippy texture gives the broth weight and leaves a long lasting impression. Lively on the tongue and palate, with a warm throaty aftertaste. Melting into the body, this tea provides a potent buzz.

About Floating Leaves Tea View company

Company description not available.

3 Tasting Notes

1789 tasting notes

Sipdown 24 – 2024

This was very kindly given to me as a sample in a recent Floating Leaves order. Sadly I don’t care for it. Another poor tea victim of charcoal roasting, it just overwhelms the tea.

Flavors: Char, Charcoal, Roasted

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82
1837 tasting notes

Leafhopper sent me this tea, so thank you! Kind of sipdown, but it wasn’t in my Steepster cupboard and also it’s single session tea.

My first impression after putting the leaves to gaiwan was popcorn. Yep, that. Also some roasty notes and flowers in the background.

Did a quite long rinse, and about 5 minutes of rest under the gaiwan lid. After that the aromas changed rapidly. It is indeed roasted oolong by aroma, some pine there, sweet and bready notes too.

First steep, 25 seconds long (I am following Leafhopper steeping method); was smooth and surprisingly floral with nuts, very thick body, long mouthfeel. Second sip was bready for me.

Second steep, was more bready, but florals were still strong enough to play the major part. Again very smooth and thick mouthfeel. Not that long this time, but also very nice, nevertheless. In the aftertaste there is some pine. Not able to recognize the flowers.

Third steep, 25 seconds and floral notes and roasty notes are fifty-fifty in this steep. The dark notes of roast and nuts are here, but very fast they are tackled by the florals making great round mouthfeel which seems very memorable for this tea. Sadly, flavours not that much.

Fourth steep, 30 seconds is about stronger roasted notes, florals translated a bit into more boring — grassy and vegetal notes. Also there are nutty flavors, closely followed with that popcorn impressions from dry leaf.

Another 30 seconds long steep is actually the same as previous one. Maybe a bit rounder.

Another 30 seconds long steep generally brings same flavour profile.

Afterwards I went to long, uncounted steeps. They were all pleasant.

Song pairing: various instrumental music and a few Finnish songs I don’t understand, but I think they are good;
Besides: writing a several postcards for postcrossing;
Mood: Much better now.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 125 ML
ashmanra

That sounds like a lovely evening!

Martin Bednář

It indeed was :)

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83
413 tasting notes

I made a big Floating Leaves order over the Black Friday weekend, so the least I can do is finish a few of the teas from my last order in 2021 before my haul arrives. This Dong Ding is from either spring 2021 or winter 2020. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot at 195F for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus some long, uncounted steeps.

The dry aroma is of walnuts, hazelnuts, roast, and flowers. The first steep has notes of nuts, cream, banana bread, honey, minerals, grass, and char. The next steep has more banana and nuts, plus honey and narcissus/orchid florals. The roast is on the lighter side, and the body of the tea is thick. The next couple steeps feature nuts, graham cracker, roast, pine, florals, and grass. Steeps five and six are a little more grassy and vegetal, though they still have a nice, round honey and roasty flavour. Subsequent steeps are a bit more nutty and roasty, with floral and grassy undertones. The final long steeps have notes of graham cracker, roast, nuts, butter, minerals, and wood.

I want to like Dong Dings more than I actually do, as I find most of them too roasty. This one was on the lighter side, however, and I thought it had more character than some others. The florals and banana bread were a nice break from the roast, and it never started tasting like overbrewed coffee, as some other roasted teas can. I’m glad I tried this tea, but don’t regret leaving it out of my 2022 order.

Flavors: Bread, Butter, Char, Cream, Floral, Graham Cracker, Grass, Hazelnut, Honey, Mineral, Narcissus, Nutty, Orchid, Pine, Roasted, Vegetal, Walnut, Wood

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML
Nattie

I love roasted oolongs, this is one I think I would really enjoy!

Leafhopper

Yes, this is nice. It doesn’t taste like a charcoal briquette as some roasted oolongs do. The Sweet Scented Dong Ding from Tillerman Tea is another pleasant lightly roasted oolong that’s a bit more affordable.

Nattie

That sounds promising, I’ll check it out! (:

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