Yi Yi Rice

二米凤凰单丛

Harvest
April 2024

Origin
Chaozhou, Guangdong

Yiyi Rice is a Phoenix oolong that is almost exclusively enjoyed by the local people of the Phoenix Mountain Range. In Chinese, its name is Er Mi, which translates roughly as “Two Rice.” We call this tea YiYi Rice because “Yi” is one, and the Chinese character for “Er” consists of two“Yi,” almost like two grains of rice standing next to one another. 

In the Phoenix Mountain Range it is tradition that all of the oolong tea crafted each season is sorted by hand at the finishing stage. Any leaves that appear slightly brown in color are picked out and set aside.

Leaves discolour for 2 reasons, they are either slightly older when they were harvested, or they were bruised and oxidized ever so slightly more than the other leaves. These leaves are the YiYi Rice leaves. There are usually not many of them removed from each batch of Phoenix Oolong, so they are blended together for locals to enjoy as an everyday-tea year-round. 

Our YiYi Rice Oolong comes from core producing villages, Wudong, Da’an, and Daping, which are all renowned for their higher elevation tea farms and older tea trees. For this reason, Yiyi Rice is a great introduction to higher-end Phoenix Oolong, offering us an experience of tea from older trees at a great value. It is a blend of many well known varietals from the region, including Milanxiang (honey orchid), Baxian, Songzhong, 

This is a tea we would like to sip on while we are working away or hanging out with a friend. It is deep, sweet, and chill, and it doesn’t require our full attention to be enjoyed. It presents a relaxed version of the hallmarks of all of the high-end Phoenix Oolongs we love. 

YiYi Rice has a carmelized and floral aroma that, combined with its weighty mouthfeel, seeps deep into the palate. The tea is very well crafted, so the leaves are full and open evenly in the gaiwan, revealing their mottled surface from the bruising process. Their liquor has a clean taste, with charcoal notes threaded evenly through its earthy sweetness and uplifted finish. This is a great oolong for daily drinking, at a truly incredible value! 

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Brewing guide

The key to brewing this tea is to use boiling water, and quick infusions, starting at 10 seconds.