About 2016 YULIN Ning Xiang Ancient Tea Tree Pu-erh Ripe Tea Cake 357g

This tea cake was made by the YULIN company in Menghai County. The tea originates from the virgin forests in Xishuangbanna, Yun Nan province, China.
YULIN Company is very famous for its handmade ancient pu-erh tea, the material of its pu-erh mostly is pure ancient pu-erh tea tree leaves and only the freshest tea leaves are chosen instead of low-quality Shaiqinmao tea leaves (Yunan big-leaf variety). YULIN’s lowest picking standard is “one bud two leaves”, which means they are very strict with the quality of their pu-erh tea. Some of their pu-erh tea cakes are even made with the “one bud one leaf” standard.
During the production process, they only allow local ethnic-minority masters who know the local ancient pu-erh tea trees best to make pu-erh tea cakes in their villages. All YULIN pu-erh teas are handmade.

Appearance & Taste

2016 YULIN Ning Xiang Ancient Tea Tree Pu-erh Ripe Tea Cake 357g

The taste of the tea is so special that you will feel like touching the natural ancient forest. It has no unpleasant smell like artificially controlled fermentation which some low-quality pu-erh tea cakes have.

The taste is very smooth and pure, with an extraordinarily sweet aftertaste. You may also feel a hint of soft and earthy flavour and plus some woody aroma from the tea soup. After aged for several years, it also has a special ‘Chen’ fragrance. The tea soup is bright, with an oily wine-red colour.

Taste: Earthy, Sweet, Woody

Brewing Guide

Tea Cup

2 teaspoon(s)

100°C (125ml)

3-4 mins

Enjoy!

Glass

4 tsp

100°C (250ml)

3-4 mins

Enjoy!

Teapot

8 tsp

100°C (500ml)

3-4 mins

Enjoy!

Kongfu Style

For simple glass vessel/teapot brewing:

Use 2 teaspoons of the tea for 125ml teacup, 4 teaspoons for 250ml glass or 8 teaspoons for 500ml teapot. Then use 100°C hot water to infuse tea leaves for around 3-4 minutes. Re-steep for around 6-7 times. Adjust the amount of teas or water based on personal taste.

For Gongfu Style: (Recommend using (Yixing) Clay Teapot and Gaiwan)

Warm the Gaiwan/tiny teapot with hot water, then discard the water
Add 1g pu-erh tea for every 50ml of water (recommend using 7g-10g tea leaves each time or adjust by personal taste)
Pour hot water (100 °C) into the clay teapot / Gaiwan. Tilt it and slowly rotate it twice and quickly discard the water (this step is for waking up tea leaves and stimulating the special aroma of the pu-erh tea)
Refill the clay teapot/Gaiwan with hot water
Infuse the tea for around 10s – 20s for the first brew, extending an extra 20s infusion time for the following brews
Pour the steeped tea into a serving cup and divided into small teacups and serve
Repeat 8-15 times depending on personal taste

Origin

This tea was made by the YULIN company in Menghai County, the material of which was from ancient Pu-erh tea trees that naturally grow in the virgin forests in Xishuangbanna. The tea trees there are at least 100 years old.

Yunnan, especially in Xishuangbanna, is the place with the most contiguous ancient tea gardens in the world. It has a unique and optimal ecological environment and at the same time is the only tropical rain forest in China. The ancient tea trees there do not need pesticides or to be fertilised as they have already established their defensive system against pests naturally after hundreds and thousands of years of their natural evolution.

The mineral substance inside the soil of the virgin forest is rich which gives the YUNLIN Fuxi a rich mellow, a complex aroma and mouthfeel.