Wuyi Mountain, renowned as "the most beautiful in Southeast China", hides a treasure of the tea world among its red cliffs and clear waters. This magnificent land, boasting 36 peaks, 72 caves and 99 rocks, has created the unique "rock bone and flower fragrance" of rock tea with its distinctive Danxia landform, making Wuyi rock tea famous at home and abroad. Among the more than 280 recorded varieties in the rock tea family, besides the well-known entry-level varieties such as Da Hong Pao, Shui Xian and Rou Gui, countless niche treasures have amazed tea lovers with their unique charm. The Mantuo Peak Huangjingui launched by Tongxin She Teahouse in 2025 is a leader among these rare gems.
The world of rock tea has always been "a myriad of varieties, with mountain gardens determining the flavor". There are no less than a hundred varieties of rock tea circulating in the market—some have similar names but distinct qualities, while others have similar flavors but their own styles. Most of these varieties, bred by the Tea Research Institute of Fujian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, have also derived "codes" for easy memory, adding elegance to the tea world. What truly determines the soul of rock tea is always the spiritual energy of Wuyi's mountain gardens—rock depressions and crevices on steep cliffs, fertile soil nourished by dead leaves and moss, and a humid climate with constant temperature all year round, allowing tea trees to absorb the essence of heaven and earth in poverty and nurture a more mellow taste and lingering charm than those grown in warm and thick soil.
The rarity of Huangjingui starts with its inherent variety. As a well-known early-sprouting variety among oolong teas, it is famous for "one early and two wonders": it takes the lead in sprouting and picking in early April, more than 20 days earlier than ordinary varieties; moreover, because its green leaves are emerald yellow, its tea soup is golden yellow, and it exudes a strange fragrance like osmanthus, it is named "Huangjingui" (Golden Osmanthus). Also, due to its strong penetrating fragrance, it has won the reputation of "Toutian Xiang" (Fragrance Penetrating Heaven). This famous variety, originally produced in Anxi, has encountered an excellent mountain garden after being introduced to Wuyi—Mantuo Peak. Located between Niulan Keng and Huiyuan Keng, the core production area of Zheng Yan (true rock), this peak has long been praised as "whoever obtains Mantuo Peak obtains the world of rock tea". The short sunshine, suitable temperature environment and mountain spring nourishment have made Huangjingui lose the sweet taste of southern Fujian oolong and take on the thick rock rhyme of Wuyi Zheng Yan, becoming a rare treasure among niche rock tea varieties.
Good tea is made by nature and refined by craftsmanship. This 2025 Huangjingui from Tongxin She is carefully crafted by tea master Gao Peng using traditional carbon roasting technology. Considering the characteristics of Huangjingui's thin leaves and low water content, Master Gao Peng accurately controls the fire intensity, not only retaining the essence of its variety—"fragrance, strangeness and freshness", but also endowing the tea soup with richer layers through moderate carbon roasting. The dry tea has tight, thin and uniform strips, brown with gold, moist and bright; when brewed with boiling water, the sweet fragrance of osmanthus mixed with the warm mellow fragrance of carbon roasting rushes to the nose, the fragrance is long but not overwhelming; the tea soup is golden and clear, like amber flowing; at the moment of entrance, the mellow, sweet and fresh taste spreads on the tip of the tongue, the freshness of tea and the fragrance of roasted fire blend and coexist, and after a slight astringency, there is a full sweet aftertaste, with rock rhyme lingering between the teeth and cheeks, fully showing the true meaning of "rock bone and flower fragrance". The tea leaves at the bottom are soft, bright and uniform, yellowish green in the center and vermilion on the edges, which is the classic symbol of Wuyi rock tea—"green leaves with red edges".
On the tea table of Tongxin She Teahouse, this cup of Mantuo Peak Huangjingui carries too many rarities—the scarce mountain garden in the core production area of Zheng Yan, the unique charm of the niche variety, the carbon roasting temperature of craftsman's handwork, and the fresh spiritual energy of spring tea in 2025. It is not only a vivid footnote to the blooming of the rock tea family, but also a perfect combination of the natural gift of Wuyi Mountain and the humanistic craftsmanship. Taking a sip gently, you can taste both the sweet and strange fragrance of Huangjingui, the thick rock rhyme of Mantuo Peak, and the warm aftertaste endowed by the carbon roasting technology, allowing every tea lover to understand the diverse customs and rare value of Wuyi rock tea between cups.