Black Yunnan red tea from China

Black Yunnan red tea belongs to that category of Yunnan red teas with a robust body and capable of giving some satisfaction even to coffee drinkers who want to try to step out of the ordinary a bit.

One feature of this product is that the leaves received special attention during processing. In fact, the plant mass during the oxidation process was exposed to heat that gradually increased until the leaf turned completely brown. This arrangement ensured that the tea retained an herbaceous note in flavor with even a hint of citrus. Another factor that has influenced the taste of this tea is undoubtedly the growing environment: its comes from gardens located at about 1380 meters above sea level, where mild temperatures help preserve the freshness of the product.

Drinking this tea you will recognize on the palate the classic taste of a Yunnan red tea, a full-bodied beverage with a distinct hint of malt: however, the small variations in flavor and characteristic notes of this Black Yunnan will help to better understand how much diversity there is even among fairly common types of tea, such as totally oxidized teas from Yunnan.

Place of origin

Yunpan Shan, Pu’er – Yunnan, China

Production

After harvesting, the leaves are allowed to wilt in the sun for a time, at the producer’s discretion, before moving on to the folding stage. The leaves are then folded and rolled so that the juices inside are stirred and the oxidation process can begin. In the case of this particular tea, the leaves are exposed to a gradual increase in temperature during oxidation. Once the leaf reaches its typical brown color, the remaining internal moisture is removed with the last step: drying. After a few days of rest, the tea is ready to be consumed.

How to prepare

We highly recommend infusing this tea in the traditional Chinese method (gong fu cha) to best enjoy these leaves. Following this preparation, 5 grams of leaves (about 4 teaspoons) can be used in a gaiwan of about 150 ml to make several infusions with different tastes. After a quick rinse of the leaves in water at 95°C, an initial infusion of 20 seconds can be made, and after that, keeping the water at the same temperature, the time can be increased each time by 10 seconds from the previous infusion (20 – 30 – 40 …)

This tea has a longevity of about 6 brewings.

For a classic preparation according to the Western style, we recommend 3 grams of leaves (about 2 teaspoons) in a 200-mL cup with 95°C water for an infusion time of 2-3 minutes.

The tea can be filtered for greater ease at the moment of tasting, and also the infusion times indicated above are intended to be purely indicative, so you can also adjust according to your personal taste.

Store in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight.