Daxueshan Wild Pu'erh Shoots

This wild pu'erh is made from 1000 year old tea trees that grow on Daxueshan, or Big Snow Mountain. Trees of this impressive age reach very high, and no longer grow many leaves. It is considered disrespectful to harvest the leaves of trees this old, as it may hinder them, so instead, this pu'erh is made from "the shoot." These shoots are dense bundles of newly sprouting leaves, tightly nested within one another, such that they appear flanked, like armor.

These trees are over 65 feet tall. In order for him and the local villagers to gather the shoots, they have to shimmy up them with their limbs wrapped around the trunk. To collect even a modest amount of shoots the pickers have to pack tents and living supplies in their backpacks and stay on the mountain for at least a night, as it can't be done in a single day.

It is a long-standing tradition for Yunnan locals to harvest a small amount of fresh shoots from wild tea trees. The shoots would be dried under the sun, or pan-fried. These teas are never normally for sale on the market, as locals usually only make enough of it for their own consumption.

Many years ago, Mr. Tang attended his brother's wedding on Daxueshan, in Fengqing, where he first encountered wild pu'erh shoot tea made by local villagers. He was so captivated by the unique smell of wild flowers present in it that, ever since, he would visit a few villages in Daxueshan in the spring, collect a small amount of shoots from the villagers, and bring them back to his tea farm where he would experiment withering them and roasting them over charcoal, as is the custom.

Mr. Tang crafts this tea according to the methods that have been passed down through generations of the local people. The shoots are slightly bruised as they are picked from the tree, making the tea slightly fermented. It is dried directly in the sun on bamboo mats after harvesting. Mr. Tang gently agitates the shoots as they are spread out on the mats to enhance the expression of their compelling fragrance. To finish, the shoots are slowly roasted over low-temperature charcoal for at least 2 weeks, removing the "coldness" from these wild tea leaves.

Prized for its energetics, and for offering us such a direct experience of ancient pu'erh trees, Mr. Tang's Daxueshan also delivers a shocking amount of flavour. The dense, freshly harvested buds are bright green with a streak of purple running along one side. They float in the gaiwan like small boats, and smell as though they are carrying an import of tropical fruit.

The liquor they brew is very clear, which can be deceiving, because its taste is so strong. Their liquor has a flavour like acacia honey and mango peel, finishing intensely sweet, like dissolved sugar and lychee. Its mouthfeel is dense, like electrolyte water. The potent energetics of this tea teaches us something about the way the ancient trees transmit their essence -- we taste their sap, and feel their enduring vitality.