Jin Xuan

Jin Xuan (金萱, "Golden Daylily") is Taiwan Tea Experiment Station's cultivar #12, developed in 1981 from a cross of TTES No. 8 with the Yingzhi Hongxin heirloom. The cultivar produces a distinctively milky-buttery cup character that has no analog in other tea cultivars — drinkers genuinely taste cream and butter notes in unflavored Jin Xuan oolong. This natural milky character is the cultivar's defining feature; the commercial "Milk Oolong" or "Milk Tea" category traces to authentic Jin Xuan.

Unfortunately, the popularity of the milky character has produced extensive market fraud: substantial amounts of "Milk Oolong" sold internationally are flavored teas using milk extract or "milk-essence" flavoring applied to ordinary oolong. Authentic Jin Xuan needs no added flavoring. Reputable Taiwanese-tea-specialty brands (Floating Mountain, Song Tea, Camellia Sinensis, others) source unflavored Jin Xuan that demonstrates the cultivar's natural character. The cultivar is also widely planted in Vietnam and Indonesia for cheaper Jin Xuan production targeting Asian markets.

Teas produced

Flavor signature

Growing regions

• Taiwan (especially Alishan)
• Vietnam
• Indonesia