2016 Yunnan Sourcing "Man Lin" Ancient Arbor Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake

Entirely Ancient Arbor tea from Man Lin village (Spring 2016 Harvest).  Man Lin village is in the Man Zhuan area, and is SSE (south by southeast) from Man Zhuan village.  Man Zhuan is one of the six famous tea mountains in Banna and is just north of Yi Wu.

We have selected spring harvest (第一波春茶) wild arbor material from the area of "Man Lin" (曼林), a high mountain area in the Man Zhuan area of the Yi Wu mountains.  Man Zhuan area teas are known for their special thick aroma and a taste that with age becomes stronger and more textured. This tea comes from wild arbor trees between 200 and 300 years old growing at an altitude of 1400-1500 meters.

When brewing the tea you will notice the tea soup is a bright yellow-gold and clear, the aroma is penetrating and the tea is full in the mouth. The bottom of the cup or cha hai aroma is that of fresh watermelon.  The tea soup is thick and soup-like, with a balanced taste.  The bitter and astringent character is there but balanced and never overpowering. The brewed leaves are thick and stout with a dark olive-green color, attesting to their wild arbor origin and can be brewed 10+ times gong fu style.

This tea was compressed in a small tea factory in Yi Wu town where unusually large 40 kilogram stone presses were used. Low temperature (35C) “baking” was used to dry these cakes after the compression process thus preserving their integrity!

In total just 20 kilograms of this tea has been produced. We have delayed sales of this cake for more than 4 weeks to allow the water vapor from pressing to dissipate. Further aging will only improve this wonderful tea!

Net Weight: 250 grams per cake (7 cakes per bamboo leaf tong)

Harvest time: Late April 2016

Harvest Area: Man Lin (village), Man Zhuan area of the Yi Wu mountain range, Meng La county of Xi Shuang Banna

Varietal:  Mixed (Large and Small leaf) naturally occurring. 

Total Production amount: 80 cakes (20 kilograms)

Wrapper Design by Vladimir Seredin of Ukraine

This tea has been tested in a certified laboratory for 191 pesticides, and is within the EU MRL limits set for those 191 pesticide residues. For a full list of the 191 pesticides we tested for and more information about MRL testing and the EU Food and Safety commission click on this link.