This is the Premium Fu Brick Lemon Tea ($9.80, no ice, 70% sweetness, remove lemon, +$2.00 for king size) from Order Lemon, made using fu zhuān chá, a traditional dark tea closely associated with the dietary cultures of northern and western China, particularly among nomadic groups such as the Mongols, Tibetans, and Uighurs. These populations have historically consumed this tea to aid digestion and maintain nutritional balance, given their diets are rich in meat and dairy but low in fibre. This tea combines cultivars from Anhua, Hunan Province, and undergoes a fermentation process involving Eurotium cristatum—a beneficial fungus known as the “golden flower”—which plays a central role in shaping the tea’s flavour and nutritional properties.

The beverage had a dark brown, near-black hue reminiscent of coffee, with a fragrant floral aroma suggestive of pandan leaf. When consumed chilled, it delivered a pronounced earthy character at the outset, though not in the mushroom-like manner typical of pū’erh; instead, it leaned towards woody notes. A distinctive pandan-like flavour emerged mid-palate, more akin to Vietnamese pandan tea than to artificial pandan essence, and intensified towards the finish. The lemon provided a soft acidity that complemented rather than competed with the tea’s deeper flavours. The finish was clean, with no residual astringency.

Overall, a gently herbal and woody dark tea with floral pandan notes and subtle citrus acidity. A soothing, accessible interpretation of fu zhuān chá with well-balanced complexity.

This Premium Fu Brick Lemon Tea was purchased from Order Lemon in Sydney, Australia in August 2025.