2012 Yunnan Sourcing "Huang Shan Gu Shu" Ancient Arbor Raw Pu-erh Tea of Yi Wu Mountain

Our Autumn 2012 harvest tea cake is made from the production of one family who in total produced just 30 kilograms total from their ancestral tea garden.  The tea trees are between 200 and 300 years old.  Being located in the southern region of the Yi Wu range the tea is typically large leaf varietal of camellia sinensis var. assamica.   The processing is traditional and characteristic of the Yao minority people who are scattered throughout the southern and central Yi Wu mountains.  The leaves were allowed to mature somewhat before picking, so although there are white bud tips, they are not as prominent as other teas picked in the earlier stage of their growth.  The tea was hand processed from start to finish.  Particular attention was paid to the kill green process which was done by hand and achieved without imparting any noticeable smoky taste.  Lack of smokiness can often be a sign of tumbler kill green process, and smokiness a sign of hand processing.

The taste of this tea is special. For an Yi Wu ancient arbor tea it has fullness in the mouth, protracted mouth-feel and strong mouth-watering effect.  Though some bitterness and astringency is detected it's not persistent or overwhelming.  This is a good thing, since the tea itself has plenty of noticeable taste and power to keep our attention!

250 grams per cake (7 cakes per bamboo leaf tong).

October 2012 harvest and pressing.