Organic Yunnan Green Tea

Estate Name: Wa Kan Shan
Farming Methods: Organic, hand picked
Production Methods: Plucking – Frying – Rolling – Baking and drying

This is the earliest plucking 2021 Yunnan green tea from the organic tea garden in Wa Kan Shan of Simao, South Yunnan. This organic tea garden is situated at Wa Kan Shan in Simao, South Yunnan. The tea garden was built in early 1960s using tea local seeds. The cultivar in this tea garden is Qun Ti Zhong (Mixed cultivars) Yunnan Big Leaf Tea. The mixed local cultivars preserve the rich gene source of tea, which not only makes the tea quality from this tea garden very rich in taste, but also causes the tea plants to be very resilient and resistance to damage by pests and plant disease. The local indigenous Wa people manage and operate this tea garden in an ecologically sound way with fully organic farming practices. It has been a certified organic tea garden since 2012. The altitude of the tea garden is around 1600m. The tea trees are over 60 years old and are classified as old bush trees. It is the ideal tea garden and environment for producing good quality teas.

The tea makers in this garden are harvesting and producing this green tea at an ideal time (and well before Qingming!) The reason being is that, unlike most of other Chinese provinces, the climate of Yunnan is heavily influenced by the Indian Ocean. Each year in between October and the end of April, before the humid air from Indian Ocean reaches Yunnan, the weather is very sunny and dry. Because of this, the tea germinates in the beginning of March and under these conditions the early germination causes the tea leaf to be exceptionally rich in quality.

Some of the photos show the chickens that are living throughout the tea garden area. They not only eat the insects on the tea trees, but also dig the ground to find more insects underground, which in turn helps to eliminate the grass and weeds in the tea garden giving the bushes more room to grow – true organic and natural farming in action!

We’ve also included some photos of the skilled local indigenous Wa people harvesting the ea. Most of the tea pickers in the village are women.

Dry Leaf
Color: Yellowish green
Shape/size: Tea leaves with natural extending appearance

Brewed Tea
Color: Green
Aroma: Mellow
Body Taste: The green tea has strong robust mellow taste, without any astringency, and produces a deep sweet aftertaste!

Suggested Brewing (adjust according to personal preferences)
Water Temperature: 85-90°C/185-194°F
Amount: 2-3g per 150ml teacup
Steeping Time: 1-2 minutes
# of Infusions: 2-3 infusions