For ten years, HOJO has continued to present Mi Lan Xiang as a more affordable line.
Mi Lan Xiang is also the most common and well-known tea among Phoenix Dan Cong Oolong Teas.
However, Mi Lan Xiang does not equal inexpensive tea. For Phoenix Dan Cong Oolong Tea, each aroma type has grades, and quality and prices vary widely.
For example, Tong Tian Xiang and Ba Xian sold by HOJO are very expensive teas, but teas priced below 2,000 yen per 100g also exist.
Phoenix Wu Dong Lao Cong Mi Lan Xiang is harvested from Lao Cong, meaning older trees, among Mi Lan Xiang trees. It is recommended for those who want to upgrade further from ordinary Mi Lan Xiang.
This product is characterized by a sweet flavor like fresh lychee. It has a strong lingering finish and a soft mouthfeel that seems to permeate the throat.
It is recommended to drink it right away, but it is also recommended to let it rest for several years so that its aroma matures into the Nong Xiang aroma type.
Characteristics of High-Quality Phoenix Dan Cong
High-quality Phoenix Dan Cong is grown using a method called qiaomu. Qiaomu is a method in which tea trees are allowed to grow large with their branches spreading, without pruning the growing point, so they grow like trees in the mountains (see the photograph below).
An old Phoenix Dan Cong tree and me, Akira Hojo (from behind)
In contrast, in ordinary tea gardens in Japan, Taiwan, India, and Sri Lanka, tea trees are pruned low and kept in a more compact, manageable form. In ordinary tea gardens, tea trees are densely planted, making harvesting efficient, increasing production volume, and offering economic benefits. However, tea trees grown by the qiaomu method in a natural growth environment, although more labor-intensive to harvest, have superior flavor and quality. In Phoenix Town, the production area of Phoenix Dan Cong Oolong Tea, tea trees at high altitudes are managed using the qiaomu method, while surrounding lowland areas are characterized by ordinary tea-garden methods.
All tea trees at high altitudes are managed using the qiaomu method: photographed near Wu Dong Village
What Is Dan Cong?
Phoenix Dan Cong is an Oolong Tea produced around Wu Dong Shan in Phoenix Town. Dan Cong refers to tea trees grouped by cultivar and aroma characteristics and managed in small lots. Some tea-related books state that tea made from a single tree is called Dan Cong, but this is no longer the meaning in which the term is used. Tea made from a single tree is called single tree tea. 
Good Phoenix Dan Cong is harvested not from tea trees pruned low like those in Japanese and Taiwanese tea gardens, but from independently grown shrubs (qiaomu) like fruit trees. Producers know the characteristics of each tree well, group them by tree based on aroma, and sell them as microlots. This is called Dan Cong.
What Is Lao Cong?
Among Dan Cong teas, those with especially old trees are called Lao Cong. Single tree tea made from one tree is also described as Lao Cong single tree if it is from Lao Cong. In general, quality improves as tree age increases. Locally, the fundamental quality of Phoenix Dan Cong is evaluated by the length of its lingering finish and the depth of its aftertaste. In addition, the overall value of the product is determined by how well its aroma is brought out through tea making and finishing. 
Altitude, an Extremely Important Factor in Discussing Quality
For Phoenix Dan Cong and Pu-erh Tea, tree age tends to receive particular attention, but altitude is an equally important quality factor. This is true of all tea types and all growing regions. Usually, an altitude of 600m or higher is a threshold for quality. At lower altitudes, many tea gardens consist of mass-production-style tea gardens or young trees, and their tea is generally traded as inexpensive tea. In particular, tea gardens above 1000m have large temperature differences between day and night and are a treasure trove of tea with rich taste and abundant flavor.
Some people have the impression that Phoenix Dan Cong has bitterness and astringency, but such tea is often made in ordinary tea gardens using large amounts of fertilizer and high temperatures during pan-frying and roasting. In addition, in high-altitude areas, normally only spring tea is harvested, whereas ordinary tea gardens in lowlands are often harvested in spring, summer, and autumn for commercial production, which causes bitterness.
In contrast, high-quality Phoenix Dan Cong grown at high altitudes using the qiaomu method has almost no bitterness or astringency even when brewed with boiling water.
