Many people may not know what Wuyi cliff tea is, but almost everyone has heard the name Da Hong Pao (大紅袍). During the reign of Ming Hongwu Yongle (1385-1416 AD), Ding Xian (丁顯), a student, who was rushing to Beijing to take the Imperial exam, fell ill while passing through the Wuyi Mountains, but fortunately met the old abbot of Tianxin Yongle Temple (天心永樂禪寺) who gave him tea as medicine. Ding Xian was hence saved and passed the exam in first place.
In order to repay the grace of the Buddha, Ding Xian covered the tea tree with a red robe, and this is when the tea became first known as the "big red robe" (pronounced “Da Hong Pao” in Chinese).
During the historic visit of U.S. President Richard Nixon to China in 1972, Chairman Mao Zedong selected this Da Hong Pao tea as part of the official state gifts presented to the American delegation, a symbolic gesture that has become one of the most memorable stories in the history of Chinese tea diplomacy.
The original Da Hong Pao mother trees grow on the dramatic cliffs ofJiulongke (九龍窠) in the heart of the Wuyi Mountains. The name Jiulongke literally means "The Valley of Nine Dragons." There, nine ridges rise around the valley, almost like dragons resting among the cliffs. The Chinese character "Ke" (窠) means a nest or sheltered hollow, describing a naturally enclosed valley embraced by the surrounding mountains. This remarkable landscape is not merely poetic; it creates one of the most extraordinary tea terroirs in the world.
Our Jiulongke tea is harvested from tea trees growing in this legendary valley. Carefully cultivated by generations of tea farmers, its rich character and exceptional quality make it the perfect foundation for our Agarwood Cliff Tea.
As this harvest was exceptionally rare and precious, we approached every step with extraordinary patience and care. In 2025, the tea underwent two rounds of charcoal roasting with agarwood from Brunei. During this stage, an elegant orchid fragrance gradually emerged, revealing a new layer of refinement within the tea.
In 2026, we completed the final roasting with rare TARAKAN agarwood. What followed exceeded even our own expectations. The tea began to develop an extraordinarily delicate note of ripe white peach, a fragrance so elusive that it is found only in a handful of truly exceptional teas blessed with remarkable vitality. It is not an aroma created by added fragrance or technique alone, but one awakened from deep within the leaves and agarwood themselves through time and nature working in harmony.
Without question, this is the most breathtaking tea we have ever crafted. The moment boiling water touches the leaves, the aroma rises with astonishing vitality. It is as though the Nine Dragons of Jiulongke awaken once more, ascending through the valley and into the heavens.
In ancient Chinese philosophy, the finest fragrances, especially agarwood, were believed to transcend the earthly realm, carrying offerings to the Nine Heavens (九重天). The human body, too, was understood as a miniature universe. The head was regarded as Heaven itself, divided into nine sacred chambers known as the Jiugong (Nine Palaces, 九宮), where the Yuanshen (元神), our original spirit resides.
As I sat quietly with this tea, its fragrance unfolded in layers of delicate florals, ripe fruits, warm woods and the heavenly beauty of agarwood, filling every corner of that inner landscape. It was as if nine dragons were moving freely through the Nine Palaces of my head, each breath becoming deeper, clearer, and more expansive than the last. For a brief moment, the boundary between the mortal world and the celestial one seemed to dissolve. Experiences like this are unimaginably rare. They cannot be designed or manufactured. They are simply gifts that appear when extraordinary tea and patient craftsmanship come together at the right moment. It is our greatest pleasure to share this exceptional creation with you.
