TeaHQ

Tong Tian Xiang

A Fenghuang Dan Cong type whose name — roughly, fragrance that reaches the heavens — is a claim about intensity rather than about a particular flower, which makes it the exception in a system that otherwise names aromas after things. It is associated with a specific hillside within the Phoenix mountains and with a small number of old trees, and material sold under the name substantially exceeds what those trees can produce.

通天香Camellia sinensis var. sinensisChinaAlso called reaching heaven fragrance

Where it sits in the botany

Tong Tian Xiang is recorded under Camellia sinensis var. sinensis, the variety group one level above cultivar. It is associated with China, which is where it was selected or is most widely planted rather than the only place it grows.

Also transliterated as: tong tian xiang, tongtianxiang.

Where it came from

Associated with particular old trees in the Phoenix mountains and propagated from them, with the name subsequently applied to the wider aroma group.

How firm this is: Inferred rather than taken from a primary breeding or registration record. Claims about the founding trees, their age and their location are made locally and were not verified against a primary source.

What the plant is like

High, penetrating aroma and a long finish, which is what the name is about. One of the Dan Cong names most heavily used beyond the material that justifies it.

What it is usually made into

The categories this cultivar is typically processed into. It is a statement about common practice, not a limit — processing decides the category, and a cultivar can be taken down more than one route.

  • Oolong — Partially oxidised teas, bruised deliberately and often roasted — the widest-ranging category in tea.

Other cultivars in Camellia sinensis var. sinensis

Sources

  • TeaHQ editorial synthesis — TeaHQ

This page is TeaHQ’s own synthesis throughout. No breeding register or institutional record stands behind the account above, which is why the origin note carries its confidence in the open rather than reading as a citation.

How TeaHQ handles sources