Ya Shi Xiang Dancong Oolong Tea - Wudong

What's so special about this tea?

Ya Shi Xiang Dancong (鸭屎香), also known as Duck Shit Oolong, is one of the newer aroma types within the Fenghuang Dancong family, with its mother tree first identified in the 1920s in Pingkengtou Village, Fenghuang Shan. Despite its peculiar name, this tea has risen to become one of the most beloved Dancong varieties, prized for its high-pitched floral fragrance and multidimensional profile — from milky to fruity, with a lingering nutty sweetness.

This batch of Ya Shi Xiang is produced by the Wei family of Wudong Village, a family who has been growing and making Dancong for generations. The master personally selected leaves from their 40-year-old Ya Shi Xiang trees, choosing this harvest for its potential, knowing it would respond well to his roasting style. The tea was charcoal-fired over three light passes, with the final firing completed in December 2025. Between each pass, the tea was rested, a step the master considers as important as the firing itself.

Of the many harvests we have tasted, this one stood out. The floral character came through the fire completely intact — and what sits beneath it rewards the patient drinker.

From the first infusion, the liquor comes through smooth and dense, opening with gentle warm toast and a light nutty aroma. On the palate, the profile begins restrained, showing soft floral tones, biscuit-like warmth, and a subtle mineral structure.
As the session develops, the honeysuckle aroma emerges with growing presence, accompanied by a tropical fruit character. On the palate, a delicate note of rock sugar settles in, alongside a fruit note suggestive of mangosteen that adds brightness and complexity.

With each infusion, the tea’s structure becomes more apparent and its profile progression increasingly defined. As the liquor enters the mouth, the initial impression leans into rock sugar sweetness with a subtle milky note, carried by a smooth, buttery body. Once swallowed, the profile shifts and unfolds again: delicate floral and fruit tones return first, followed by a faint red-fruit accent reminiscent of cranberry, while the sweetness continues to linger.

At its peak, the fragrance grows fully expressive, rising from the throat into the nasal passage and filling the mouth and cheeks with lingering aroma and depth. The aftertaste is long and elegant, with the liquor passing smoothly through the throat.