ou Gui (Cinnamon Oolong). Bold Wuyi Rock Tea — cinnamon-bark aroma, intense body, lasting sweetness. The tea Wuyi locals drink. Ships from Sydney.

Wuyi Rou Gui tea plants growing in mineral-rich Danxia soil

Rou Gui cultivar tea bushes in Wuyi rock tea garden - Fujian Province

Fresh Rou Gui tea leaves close-up - Wuyi cinnamon oolong before processing

Tea farmers carrying fresh Rou Gui leaves on shoulder poles through Wuyi Mountain cliffs

ValleyGreenTea

Rou Gui (Wuyi Cinnamon Oolong) — Loose Leaf Wuyi Rock Tea

$23.05 AUD

Shipping calculated at checkout.

50g

Quantity

Rou Gui: Wuyi Cinnamon Oolong

Other names: Rou Gui, Rougui, Rou Kuei, Wuyi Rou Gui, Cinnamon Oolong, Cassia Oolong, Wuyi Cinnamon Tea, Wuyi Rock Tea, 肉桂, 武夷岩茶

What Is Rou Gui?

Here's a question for you:

what do Wuyi locals actually drink at home?

Most people guess Shui Xian — the famously smooth one. But spend any time in the Wuyi mountains and you'll notice something: the tea on the table, more often than not, is Rou Gui (肉桂).

There's a reason. Rou Gui doesn't ease you in.

The signature cinnamon-bark aroma (the name literally means "cassia") rises fast and speaks plainly — one sip and you know exactly what this tea is made of. In the mountains, where guests come and go and tea is how conversations start, that directness matters. A couple of brews and the room warms up.

Some teas you grow to understand. Some teas say everything in the first sip.

Rou Gui is the second kind.

It's a Wuyi Rock Tea (武夷岩茶) — semi-oxidised, charcoal-roasted, grown on the same mineral cliffs as our Da Hong Pao. But where Da Hong Pao balances everything into one layered cup, Rou Gui Oolong picks a lane and commits: bold, spicy, intense, with a strong returning sweetness that hits fast and stays.

If you like your coffee strong and your opinions stronger, this is your Wuyi Rock Tea.

Three Wuyi Rock Teas, Three Personalities

Rou Gui is the bold one — but it's just one of three Wuyi Rock Teas worth knowing.

All three grow on the same mineral cliffs of Wu Yi Mountain, share the same heavy-oxidation craft, and carry the same signature Yan Yun (岩韵, "rock rhyme"). What separates them is personality.

Rou Gui (you're here) — bold and spicy. Cinnamon-bark aroma, intense body, fast and lasting sweetness. The tea that wakes the table up.
Da Hong Pao — the all-rounder. Floral, fruit, fire, all layered in one cup. The flagship of Wuyi Rock Tea.
Shui Xian (also known as Daffodil) — smooth and elegant. Mellow, floral, more silk than fire. The softest entry point into Wuyi.

A little local wisdom: in Wuyi, Rou Gui is the tea for company — direct, warming, easy to share.

Shui Xian is the tea for quiet afternoons alone. Most serious Wuyi drinkers keep both.

Three teas. One mountain. Same Yan Yun.

The Yan Yun in Rou Gui

We covered the full story of Yan Yun (岩韵) — the "rock rhyme" that defines all Wuyi Rock Tea — on our Da Hong Pao page.

But honestly? You don't fully get it until you stand in the tea pits yourself.

Walk into one of the famous Wuyi "pits" (坑) and the first thing that hits you is the air — cool, damp, mineral. Steep rock walls on both sides. A stream running somewhere below. Tea bushes growing out of what looks like pure stone. This is the terrain that produces top-grade Rou Gui — and standing in it, you suddenly understand why this tea tastes the way it does. The boldness isn't bravado. It's geology.

And then there's the labour. During harvest season, tea farmers carry fresh leaves up and down those cliffs on shoulder poles — load after load, all day. The Chinese say tea has "nine hardships" (茶有九难) — nine stages where everything can go wrong between leaf and cup. Watch one harvest in the Wuyi pits and you'll never look at the price of good Wuyi Rock Tea the same way again.

This is also why Rou Gui has become the benchmark tea of modern Wuyi — when locals want to judge a tea maker's skill, they ask for the Rou Gui first. There's nowhere to hide in this cultivar. Done badly, it's harsh. Done right, it's electric.

What to Expect in the Cup

Open the pouch: tightly knotted, greenish-brown strands with a dark lustre, and a dry aroma that already smells like cinnamon bark and toasted sugar.

In the cup:

Liquor: deep orange-red, clear and bright — noticeably darker than Da Hong Pao
Aroma: cinnamon bark first, unmistakable — then cream, ripe fruit, and a warm charcoal undertone
Texture: full-bodied and assertive, with a tingling, almost spicy sensation on the tongue
Finish: strong 回甘 (returning sweetness) that arrives fast and holds, with the mineral Yan Yun depth underneath
Brews: 7-10 infusions from a single 7g of leaf — the cinnamon note evolves from sharp to sweet as you go

The first brew is the loudest — spice, fire, attention. By brew three, the creamy fruit comes forward. By brew six, the spice has softened into something sweeter and rounder, and the rock minerality takes the lead.

Rou Gui doesn't do subtle. That's exactly the point.

So — convinced? Brew this Rou Gui Oolong Tea the right way, check out our professional Brewing Guide, Storage Care, and The Origins below 👇

🍵 Brewing Guide

How to brew Rou Gui properly?

Rou Gui is the boldest of the Wuyi Rock Teas, and brewing it right means controlling that power — not taming it. The good news: like all heavily roasted Wuyi oolongs, it's forgiving. The key is boiling water, quick early brews, and letting the cinnamon evolve.

The Vessel: Gaiwan or Yixing Clay

A 110ml white porcelain gaiwan is ideal — it doesn't absorb aroma, and Rou Gui's cinnamon notes deserve to be experienced at full volume. A Yixing clay teapot dedicated to Wuyi Rock Tea works beautifully too, adding roundness to the body over time. Browse our Gaiwan collection or Tea Infuser collection for vessels suited to gongfu brewing.

The Ritual (Gongfu Style)

Temperature: 100°C — full boiling water, non-negotiable. Anything cooler and the cinnamon aroma stays locked in the leaf.
Ratio: 1:15 — for a 110ml gaiwan, use 7g of leaves. (For a 150ml vessel, scale up to 8-10g.)
Step 1 — Warm the Vessel: Pour boiling water in, swirl, discard.
Step 2 — Add the Leaves: Place 7g in the warm vessel. Shake gently and smell — the dry cinnamon-bark aroma is already unmistakable.
Step 3 — Rinse (洗茶): Pour boiling water in, decant within 3 seconds. Discard. This wakes the leaves.
Step 4 — First Three Brews: 15-20 seconds each. These are the spiciest, most intense brews — pour high and fast, decant cleanly.
Step 5 — Brews 4-6: Extend gradually to 30-40 seconds. The cinnamon softens, the creamy fruit comes forward.
Step 6 — Brew 7+: Push to a full minute or longer. Rou Gui gives 7-10 brews — the late brews are where the mineral Yan Yun takes the lead.
Step 7 — Drink: Smell the empty cup first. The cinnamon lingers in the porcelain long after the liquid is gone.

Common Mistakes

❌ Water under 95°C — the cinnamon aroma never opens.
❌ Over-steeping the first 3 brews — Rou Gui's intensity turns harsh fast.
❌ Judging it on the first brew alone — the cinnamon evolves dramatically; give it at least 5 brews.
❌ Using a Yixing pot seasoned with green tea — flavours cross-contaminate.

📦 Storage & Care

Storage Care for Rou Gui

Rou Gui is a heavily roasted Wuyi Rock Tea, which means it's built for storage. The charcoal bake stabilises the leaf and gives it a long shelf life — and like all traditional Wuyi oolongs, well-stored Rou Gui mellows beautifully with time. The spice rounds out, the body deepens.

Room Temperature is Best: Store in a cool, dry, dark place. Do NOT refrigerate Rou Gui — moisture and temperature swings work against the roast. A pantry shelf away from direct sunlight is ideal.
Airtight Seal: Keep the bag sealed between sessions to prevent moisture creep. We recommend a Tea Bag Sealer for long-term storage.
Light and Air: Light degrades the aroma. A dark airtight container — ceramic, tin, or opaque jar — protects best.
Age It (Optional): Sealed and stored well, Rou Gui keeps for years — and the cinnamon character matures from sharp to honeyed. Not required, but worth trying with a spare pack.
Keep Separate: Rou Gui absorbs odours. Don't store next to coffee, spices, or scented foods.

🌿 The Origins

From the Cliffs of Wu Yi Mountain

Core Terroir: Wu Yi Mountain (武夷山), northern Fujian Province, China — a UNESCO World Heritage area famous for its Danxia landform: red sandstone cliffs and narrow misty gorges. The mineral-rich, weathered-rock soil gives all Wuyi Rock Tea its signature Yan Yun (岩韵, "rock rhyme") — and Rou Gui, with its naturally intense aroma, carries that minerality louder than any other cultivar.
The Cultivar: Rou Gui (肉桂, literally "cassia") is named for its signature cinnamon-bark aroma — a natural trait of the cultivar, not an added flavour. Originally one of Wuyi's lesser-known bushes, it exploded in popularity over the past few decades and is now the most planted cultivar in the Wuyi range. Modern tea masters consider it the benchmark of Wuyi craftsmanship: there's nowhere to hide with Rou Gui.
The Craft: Like all authentic Wuyi Rock Tea, Rou Gui is semi-oxidised and finished with traditional charcoal roasting — slow, low-heat baking that deepens the body and locks the mineral character into the leaf. The roast is what turns Rou Gui's natural spice into something layered: cinnamon on top, cream and fruit in the middle, stone underneath.
VGT Sourcing: For 18 years, Valley Green Tea has been the trusted destination to buy authentic loose leaf Chinese oolong tea online in Australia. Our Rou Gui is sourced from an experienced Wuyi tea house we've worked with for years, air-freighted fresh to Sydney. Want to explore the rest of the family? Try our Da Hong Pao for the balanced flagship, or our Shui Xian (Daffodil) for the smoothest cup in Wuyi.

Product title