Mi Lan Xiang (米蘭香) is one of the better known Dan Congs.
The name translates into Honey-Orchid aroma, as this is the main characteristic flavor of this Dan Cong.
This is our third Dan Cong Kombucha. Ao Fu Hou and obviously our Black Phoenix, were the other two.
Mi Lan Xinang is "a sub species of Shui Xian. Its origins are the famous Phoenix mountains, in Guangdong China.
As a tea, it is an excellent Oolong which has the natural aroma of orchid blossom, and a complex sweet taste that is reminiscent of honey.
This particular Mi Lan Xiang came directly from China.
Although, the tea leaves are quite dark, when steeped they reveal some surprising greens.
The leaves are also nice and long. And that shows the quality of this particular tea.
The above two pics are from steeping for Kombucha. We always check the quality of the leaves to see what kind of tea we are working with.
The other things that we check are: the aroma, color, and the taste.
Tea steeping, and setting our future Kombucha for the fermentation process is only the beginning.
Once that part is over, then comes the tasting and the bottling.
This initial tasting will confirm that the fermentation process is done, and that this particular Kombucha will be outstanding. We did have high hopes for this Dan Cong.
And it actually turned out to be even more amazing that we thought.
The main aromas of orchid and honey came out incredibly strong. You could smell this Kombucha throughout the whole kitchen.
Since we did not have other Kombuchas to fill on this day, our first Mi Lan Xiang was hand filled.
Here it is again, next to the tea.
Ingredients: Filtered and Revitalized Water, Live Kombucha Cultures, Unrefined Brown Sugar,
and Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong