Sourced by Michael Zhan on Phoenix Mountain
In the spring of 2025, Michael Zhan walked the red-earth paths of Phoenix Mountain (Fènghuáng Shān) in Guangdong’s Chaozhou region. His mission: to select single-bush lots from the ten most iconic dancong cultivars for a special constellation project. Over three days, he visited seven families in Wū Dòng, Píng Kēng, and Lǐ Cūn, tasting through dozens of micro-lots.
What struck him most was not just the range of fragrance—from Mí Lán Xiāng’s honey-orchid to Yā Shī Xiāng’s heady ginger-lily—but the way each farmer spoke of their trees as kin. Those conversations, scribbled into a field notebook, became the seed for this scarf. Michael sketched the Chinese characters of each cultivar in the margins, later refined by a calligrapher in Chaozhou. The honey-mustard ground echoes the amber liquor these teas yield, while the hand-rolled silk edges mirror the hand-finishing of the leaves.
Every scarf sold supports the schoolhouse in Wū Dòng, a gesture Michael insisted on. It is, in fabric, a record of origin—sourced not just with palate and eye, but with deep respect for the families who tend these ancient trees.