This tea, made by the Yi ethnic group, has a sweet floral and hay like flavour with a strong presence. Due to the small scale equipment used by the ethnic minority, it also has a roasted note, similar to Scotch whisky.
The tea is characterized by strong richness, with a lingering sweetness that remains after drinking.
Produced by ethnic minority farmers living in high altitude areas, this tea has a handmade character with a roasted note, similar to roasted beans. It is a tea that pairs well with cold weather, offering a rich and soft taste.
Raw Pu-erh tea is a delicate tea with a fruity and fresh flavour, similar to newly made white wine. It has no bitterness or astringency, making it very popular with children.
When people think of Pu-erh tea, they often imagine a tea with a brown liquor and a flavour of dried mushrooms or dried fruits, which is a type of Pu-erh called Ripe Pu-erh.
Differences Between Raw and Ripe Pu-erh >
Product Details
Xianshu Mountain is located in Lincang. It is situated deep in the mountains, about 8 hours from the town of Lincang.
The soil is red and dry throughout the year, which restricts the growth of the tea plants, resulting in tea with concentrated flavour and strong richness.
The tea trees are owned by the Yi ethnic minority, from whom I purchase the tea. As a side note, the Yi people love alcohol, and when I go to purchase tea, they strongly recommend baijiu, which makes the process quite challenging.
A large tea tree growing beside an ethnic minority house
In Yunnan Province, old trees are owned by ethnic minorities.
This tea is pan fried by the Yi people themselves using wood fires. The difficulty in controlling the heat from the wood fire gives the tea a roasted note. The combination of the tea’s aging and roasting notes results in a character similar to fine Scotch whisky.
The tea is characterized by strong richness with a lingering sweetness. Especially after long term aging, the tea develops a smoothness similar to vintage oolong tea, with a sweet aftertaste that lingers.
Please note that tea aged for a long time in an oxygen free environment should be enjoyed a few days after opening. Similar to decanting wine, exposing the tea to air allows its flavour to develop more fully.
Xianshu Mountain ancient tree raw tea is made from leaves harvested from late March to the first week of April. The delicate leaves give the tea a silvery appearance, similar to white tea.
Focus on Sourcing Naturally Cultivated Tea
Since 2010, we have been visiting Yunnan Province every spring. Over the years, we have built connections with many famous tea regions. However, our focus is not on a region's fame, but rather on tea with transparency and a long lasting aftertaste. To achieve this, we focus on remote mountain villages, selecting tea gardens with ancient tea trees, high altitudes, and no fertilizers, sourcing through unique logistics channels. For more details, please visit the following page.
In Yunnan, teas claiming to be from famous regions are produced in thousands of locations, using leaves from other areas, and can be found everywhere from airports and convenience stores to supermarkets.
What complicates matters is the surprising phenomenon where imitation teas made from leaves in remote areas are of higher quality than the genuine articles. This is especially common with Pu-erh teas from Lincang, and it is a well known fact among professionals involved in local sourcing. For more details, please visit the following page.
In Yunnan Province, there are long established brands like Dayi and Zhongcha. These brands are renowned because teas produced before 1990 are highly valued.
So, why are these older teas considered special? Many people assume it is due to long aging, but in reality, the tea leaves used at that time were naturally grown without fertilizers, resulting in their superior quality.
Therefore, even if current teas are aged for a long time, they will not reach the same quality. For more information, please visit the following page.
