Dianhong Song Zhen

diānhóng sōngzhēn

滇红松针

“Pine-needle dianhong” — a fine Yunnan red of straight, needle-shaped leaf, made from a bud and one young leaf. Honey, malt and dried fruit in a velvety cup — a perfect first step into Yunnan reds, and very good value.

Region: Fengqing, Lincang and across Yunnan
Harvest: Spring; bud and a young leaf, rolled straight
Oxidation: Fully oxidised
Cultivar: Yunnan big-leaf (assamica)

In the cup

Honey, malt and dried fruit over milk chocolate and caramel — full and velvety, with a touch more body than an all-bud red and a long, bready returning sweetness.

What it gives

A warming, gently energising red — smooth and low in bite, settling and good through the cold months.

Dianhong Song Zhen — pine-needle dianhong — is a fine, approachable red from Yunnan, named for its leaf: straight, slender and needle-like, dressed in golden tips. Where the top dianhong grades are all bud, this one is made from a bud with one young leaf, which is exactly the point — it keeps most of the richness while adding depth and bringing the price within easy reach.

The cup is a velvety, honey-malt red — dried plum and apricot, milk chocolate, caramel, a faint floral note — fuller and a touch more structured than an all-bud tea, with the leaf lending minerality and body. There is no bitterness when it is brewed well, and a long, bready huígān on the finish. It is the natural first step into the world of Yunnan reds.

In the cup

Brew it gongfu, around 93 °C and short, for a layered cup, or three minutes Western for a smooth daily mug. The straight needles open slowly and give steep after steep; a glass shows their gold.

How to brew