Visiting Mr. Chen in the Rui Fong sector of the greater Alishan terroir is always a delight. Not only do we bring back highly expensive teas but he insist that we take some other delights from his vegetable patch and bee hives. Once you've tasted high mountain wild honey, there's no turning back. We keep that for ourselves but are more than happy to share his skilfully made teas. Judging from the growing popularity of this Rui Fong Jin Xuan, the depth and generous aromatics of this new selection will convince you that we've made the right choice to work with this new bi-generational father and son team. Despite the overall good weather – meaning without disasters – of the past winter, the lack of rain during the critical spring growth period has left gardens with much lower yields than expected. TTC customers are not to be concerned by this lack of tea as we reserved our needs last year. Nevertheless, the quality is there with a lush picking of slightly smaller leaves which will not disappoint its fans. It has the typical green, crisp pastoral notes with hints of mountain flowers that charms the nose. The palate will immediately be pleased by the ample milky texture and taste that evokes fresh buttered green vegetables with hints of sweetness. All in all, it is a very satisfying cup that bears the characteristic generous qualities of high mountain teas at an affordable price. This is a good benchmark tea to be introduced to high-mountain Jin Xuan teas. The name Jin Xuan TTES No. 12 refers to a specific tea varietal developed by the Taiwan Research and Experiment Station (TRES) dedicated to the improvement of the tea industry of Taiwan. Jin Xuan teas are satisfying teas to drink as they offer good amplitude in texture and taste. With mild floral notes, they have the greatest potential for sweetness with hints of exotic fruit. Teas elaborated with Jin Xuan leaves has a particularly creamy texture with a distinctive milky smoothness and sweetness. Our Alishan Jin Xuan is a very good example of how this strand has contributed to the characteristic high mountain oolong taste.