Revolutionary new black tea picked in Henan and finished in Laoshan Village with creamy sweet potato, chocolate and honey . . . Last year, we were pleased to offer the very first experimental harvest of this incredible, innovative tea from Wang Yanxin. Her first experiment yielded a completely new kind of black tea that combined the best chocolatey notes of Laoshan Black with the crisp texture and honey aftertaste of Jin Jun Mei. This Spring, Wang Yanxin and her friends in Xinyang and Laoshan have outdone themselves with the newest harvest.
Wang Yanxin brewing her Yu Lu Yan Cha (no sound)
Fresh young Xinyang Maojian leaves are traditionally oxidized over three days and hand roasted in Laoshan Village as a black tea. The Spring harvest of this ingenious tea finds the perfect balance of sweet potato, chocolate notes, honey, and silky smooth texture. Closest to a fine Jin Jun Mei in profile, this collaborative tea continues to prove that the world of tea is still young with room for innovation everywhere.
The name Yu Lu Yan Cha Black comes from the ancient names of Henan and Shandong province. Yu is Henan, and Lu is Shandong. To commemorate this landmark cooperative tea producing effort, Yu Lu is added to the tea name. Yan is the first part of Wang Yanxin's name, honoring her innovation in creating this new tea.
This tea met with such great success last season, Wang Yanxin was able to partner with her friends in Henan for a much larger Spring edition. We are pleased to offer the entire 100 pound Spring harvest from Wang Yanxin, and pleased to finance the experiment through buying up the results.
Date of Picking:April 2013
Location of Picking:Xinyang, Henan Province
What Was Picked:Xingyang Maojian green tea leaf, fully oxidized and roasted in Laoshan Village as a black tea.
Quantity Acquired:Wang Yanxin sent us the full 100 pound batch of this tea.
Sourcing Agent(s):Wang Yanxin had the fresh Xingyang leaves delivered from a good farmer friend and roasted them herself.
Western Brewing: Use two teaspoons of leaves per cup of water. Steep in a brew basket or loose in a pot to give the leaves plenty of room to expand. If possible avoid tea balls or paper filter bags. Steep for 1-2 minutes with filtered boiling water and remove leaves or pour off water. Save the leaves. Enjoy at least 4 infusions.
Gongfu Brewing: Use 5g of leaves for a medium gaiwan or yixing pot. Heat the gaiwan or pot with boiling water and pour out. Add leaves, rinse leaves with boiling water for less than a second. Use this steeping to heat cups and pour over yixing. Steep each round for 2-3 seconds, increasing time by 3 seconds each steeping after the third steeping. Enjoy at least 15 infusions.
