Sitting at the table on this lazy Friday afternoon wondering which tea to drink. Some thing interesting perhaps? Reaching into my over spewing sample box I take a rummage from somewhere near to the bottom. ‘Song Varietal autumn 2018’ why haven’t I tried this one yet?? It must have escaped me! This Dan Cong is a super interesting tea with a great backstory. In the Phoenix Mountains of Guangdong is Phoenix Village which is home to 4 original tea bushes of this varietal from the ‘Song Dynasty’ (have you heard this kind of story before?). Well, usually in the tea world a great story comes at a great price! I’m not even going to contemplate on how much 10g of genuine Song leafs will cost ? even if one could manage to acquire some. This Oolong comes from a bush that has its ancestral-trail directly back to those very bushes! The taste is roasty, similar to an Wuyi oolong and for good reason, the Song varietal is actually a naturally occurring hybrid of ‘Shui Xian’ a Wu Yi Oolong. Classic Perfume like Dan Cong notes with long aftertaste, smooth texture and highly aromatic . Early steeps really do remind you of a laid back version of Da Hong Pao…with a DC twist! I’d say on the whole it’s a great version of Dan Cong and worth a spin from anyone wanting to explore this genre of tea. ‘Price wise’ a Song Varietal Dan Cong is still on the expensive side but no way near the wallet walloping cost that the original bushes will hit you for. Expect around £22.50 / £27.50 per 100g from us for something like this from us. I’m a bit late for the bus on this particular batch ? and other Spring versions of Song we have tried haven’t been hard hitting enough for us. When we come across a worthy enough candidate for the store we will be grabbing some! Watch this space ?