Yi Hong
A Hubei black tea from the Yichang area, historically shipped down the Yangtze for export and now little known outside China. It is a straightforward, well-made tea with a clean malt-and-honey profile and no unusual claims attached to it.
Character
Honest and unspectacular in the best sense — sweet, clean and easy, with none of the pine or smoke of its better-known neighbours.
- Flavour
- Sweet, Woody
- Aroma
- Honeyed, Malty
- Mouthfeel
- Medium, Smooth
- Complexity
- Straightforward
- Notes
- honey, light malt, dry wood
- Aftertaste
- Clean and short.
Moderate intensity: noticeable weight or grip, but neither dominates the cup.
Provenance and production
- Origin
- China
- Region
- Enshi
- Oxidation
- Fully oxidised
- Harvest
- Spring
- Processing
- Withering → Strip rolling → Oxidation → Drying
Brewing
Western brewing (teapot or mug)
1–1.5 g/100 ml · 95–100 °C · 1 authored infusion
Gongfu brewing (gaiwan)
4–5 g/100 ml · 90–95 °C · 5 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.
- Chuan Hong Gongfu
Two mid-century Chinese export black teas that are difficult to distinguish blind. Both were state-programme products rather than inherited local traditions.
- Tanyang Gongfu
Two Chinese gongfu black teas from neighbouring export traditions, both sweet and lightly fruity with no smoke.
Similar sensory profile
Shares controlled flavour, aroma and mouthfeel descriptors. A looser match — two teas can share descriptors and still taste nothing alike.
- Anamalai tea
Shares 5 descriptors with Yi Hong: sweet, woody, medium, smooth and malty.
- Balhyocha
Shares 5 descriptors with Yi Hong: sweet, woody, smooth, medium and honeyed.
- Darjeeling muscatel
Shares 5 descriptors with Yi Hong: sweet, woody, medium, smooth and honeyed.
- Golden Monkey
Shares 5 descriptors with Yi Hong: sweet, smooth, medium, honeyed and malty.
- Jingmai sheng pu-erh
Shares 5 descriptors with Yi Hong: sweet, woody, medium, smooth and honeyed.
- Shou Mei
Shares 5 descriptors with Yi Hong: woody, sweet, medium, smooth and honeyed.