Compare two teas
Side by side across seven dimensions. There is no verdict and no winner — the purpose is to understand the difference, not to be told which to buy.
TeaHQ has written about this pair
Anxi grows several rolled oolongs and one of them commands the price. The other three are legitimate teas in their own right and are also, routinely, what is in a cheap bag labelled Tie Guan Yin.
- The cultivar
- Mao Xie: Mao Xie, named for the fine hairs on its leaf edges.Tie Guan Yin: Tie Guan Yin.
- How hard it is to tell apart
- Mao Xie: Easiest. Markedly green and brisk, with a sharp floral top.Tie Guan Yin: The reference.
- Aroma
- Mao Xie: Gardenia over green bean and fresh grass.Tie Guan Yin: Lilac, orchid, butter, fresh cream — long and sweet with a cooling return.
- Where the aroma comes from
- Mao Xie: The plant, and it reads as vegetal rather than floral in a way the others do not.Tie Guan Yin: Cultivar and processing together.
- Body and finish
- Mao Xie: Light and drying, the most astringent of the four.Tie Guan Yin: Silky and layered, with a long sweet return.
- Price
- Mao Xie: Cheapest, and the least likely to pass as it.Tie Guan Yin: The highest.
- Worth buying on its own terms
- Mao Xie: Yes, if you want a green, brisk oolong. Not if you want cream and orchid.Tie Guan Yin: Yes.
In summary: Three of these are good teas mis-sold, not bad teas. The practical move is to buy them by name — Huang Jin Gui asked for deliberately is a better purchase than Huang Jin Gui bought accidentally at the Tie Guan Yin price — and to read a very cheap Tie Guan Yin as a probable Ben Shan and judge it on that basis.
Point by point
| Dimension | Mao Xie | Tie Guan Yin |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Oolong · lightly oxidised | Oolong · lightly oxidised |
| Production | In order: Withering → Bruising (shaking) → Oxidation → Kill-green (fixation) → Rolling and shaping → Drying. bud and three plus and spring harvest. | In order: Withering → Bruising (shaking) → Kill-green (fixation) → Rolling and shaping → Drying. bud and three plus and spring harvest. |
| Origin | China — Anxi | China — Anxi |
| Flavour | floral, grassy and vegetal. astringent, drying and light in the mouth. Aroma: gardenia, green bean, fresh grass. Moderate in character. Moderate in intensity. | floral, creamy and sweet. silky, smooth and medium in the mouth. Aroma: lilac, orchid, butter, fresh cream. Layered in character. Moderate in intensity. |
| Brewing | Gongfu brewing (gaiwan): 5–7 g/100 ml at 90–95 °C, first steep 25s of 6 authored. Western brewing (teapot or mug): 1.5–2.5 g/100 ml at 90–95 °C, first steep 180s of 2 authored. Cold brew tea: 1.5–2.5 g/100 ml at 4–10 °C, first steep 43200s. | Gongfu brewing (gaiwan): 5–7 g/100 ml at 90–95 °C, first steep 20s of 7 authored. Western brewing (teapot or mug): 1–1.5 g/100 ml at 90–95 °C, first steep 180s. Cold brew tea: 1–2 g/100 ml at 4–10 °C, first steep 21600s. Flash-chilled iced tea: 2–3 g/100 ml at 90–95 °C, first steep 90s. |
| Cultural context | Not recorded for this tea. | Used in Gongfu cha, Chinese tea house culture, Taiwanese bubble tea culture, Yum cha, Jing cha — serving tea as an act of respect and The Chinese tea table and its tea pet. Two quite different teas share the name. Jade or qing xiang style is light, green and floral; traditional nong xiang style is more oxidised and charcoal-roasted, giving a darker, nuttier, much less floral cup. Neither is incorrect, but a buyer expecting one will not enjoy the other. |
| Who may prefer it | Someone who wants presence without being dominated and wants to enjoy it on the first cup. It tolerates an imprecise brew. | Someone who wants presence without being dominated and wants to enjoy it on the first cup. It tolerates an imprecise brew. |
Nothing above is a recommendation. The last row describes the drinker each tea suits, using each tea’s own authored fields and the same sentence structure for both, so neither can be framed as the safe choice.