Notes of sweet vermouth, hawthorn flakes, and blackberry honey.

Red tea from Yunnan, China・April 2024・ 野生"紅褲"茶・Arbor/Biodynamic

This tea is both a rechristening and an upgrade to our iconic Old Tree Yunnan Red. The wild in its name refers to the old grove of wild camellia taliensis trees used to craft this tea. We’ve chosen only the smallest leaves, creating a liqueur that is strikingly bright and candy-like.

Wild Tree Yunnan Red was grown in Fengqing County, Yunnan. This region boasts China's most ancient tea trees – some hundreds of years old, with deep root structures that allow for high absorption of nutrients and minerals from the soil. This varietal is known fondly as hong ku, or “red pants” by the indigenous people who harvest its leaves. Over the centuries, hong ku has adapted to the local ecological environment and, as a result, these trees are resistant to most pests and diseases and require neither watering nor fertilizing.

This tea is a labor of love from a producer with a passion for crafting delicious heritage teas. Wild Tree Yunnan Red is harvested in early April 2024, then shade-withered to bring out its innate clarity and sweetness. With a deft nurturing hand, the leaves are bruised, oxidized, and pan-roasted in small batches. The resultant maocha, or unfinished tea, is wrapped in canvas and baked over charcoal.

We received this tea within a month from harvest in 2024, but intentionally held it for a year so the tea could mellow, sweeten, and increase in complexity. It brews smooth, sweet, and fragrant, with liquor the color of Chinese lacquerware. Wild Tree Yunnan Red's flavor profile is decidedly juicy, a remarkable amalgamation of sweet vermouth, hawthorn flakes, and blackberry honey.

Brew: 5 grams・150 ml・208° F・1 min

We prefer quick infusions to extract this tea's fruit notes and sweetness - and repeating the short brew time for subsequent infusions.