Mao Xie
An Anxi cultivar named for the fine hairs on its leaf edges, giving a brisk, green, sharply floral oolong. It is the most vegetal of the Anxi family and the least like Tie Guan Yin, which makes it the easiest of the substitutes to identify in the cup.
Character
Greener and brisker than the rest of the Anxi family, with a vegetal edge that sits closer to green tea than to oolong. Inexpensive and honest when sold under its own name.
- Flavour
- Floral, Grassy, Vegetal
- Aroma
- Fresh, Jasmine like
- Mouthfeel
- Astringent, Drying, Light
- Complexity
- Moderate
- Notes
- gardenia, green bean, fresh grass
- Aftertaste
- Brisk and green, with a floral top.
Moderate intensity: noticeable weight or grip, but neither dominates the cup.
Provenance and production
- Origin
- China
- Region
- Anxi
- Oxidation
- Lightly oxidised
- Harvest
- Spring
- Processing
- Withering → Bruising (shaking) → Kill-green (fixation) → Rolling and shaping → Drying
Brewing
Gongfu brewing (gaiwan)
5–7 g/100 ml · 90–95 °C · 6 authored infusions
Western brewing (teapot or mug)
1.5–2.5 g/100 ml · 90–95 °C · 2 authored infusions
No caffeine estimate is authored for this tea. TeaHQ does not infer one from its category, because category predicts caffeine poorly — matcha and gyokuro carry more than many black teas.
If you like this
Grouped by why they were suggested, strongest reason first. Nothing here is a blended score — a suggestion appears under the best reason that exists for it, and never under a weaker one as well.
Editorially linked
Someone wrote down why these two belong together. The note below is theirs.
- Mao Xie
The same Anxi cultivar recorded under two naming conventions, which is exactly the duplication the catalogue tries to avoid — kept as separate records only because sellers use both.
Similar sensory profile
Shares controlled flavour, aroma and mouthfeel descriptors. A looser match — two teas can share descriptors and still taste nothing alike.
- Duyun Mao Jian
Shares 6 descriptors with Mao Xie: floral, vegetal, light, drying, astringent and fresh.
- Darjeeling first flush
Shares 5 descriptors with Mao Xie: floral, vegetal, light, drying and fresh.
- Nuwara Eliya
Shares 5 descriptors with Mao Xie: floral, light, drying, astringent and fresh.
- Sencha
Shares 5 descriptors with Mao Xie: grassy, vegetal, drying, astringent and fresh.
- Vietnamese green tea
Shares 5 descriptors with Mao Xie: grassy, vegetal, astringent, drying and fresh.
- Aracha
Shares 4 descriptors with Mao Xie: grassy, vegetal, astringent and fresh.
- Asamushi sencha
Shares 4 descriptors with Mao Xie: grassy, vegetal, light and fresh.