Red Leaf Black

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Yesheng Hongcha 野生红茶/

Black tea from Pu’er, Yunnan/

Picked in March 2016/

cherry, oak, tobacco/

What to expect: matte black and purple coloured small leaves that turn red with brew

Brewing Tip: 3g of tea leaves in 85°C water (100ml)

4 to 5 brews and keep going if you dare!

With mellow liquor full of fruity and woody notes, our 2016 Red Leaf Black is one of the special creations of Dan Ni, the producer of our Yunnan teas. For this one, he used red coloured leaves specifically, a natural mutation that sometimes occurs on single branches of wild growing tea trees approximately 300 years of age or more. The mutation makes the leaves produce high levels of anthocyanin, giving dark red or purple to the leaves. The same chemical can be found in fruits such as cherries or blackberries, adding the colour and sour taste.

In tea production, these leaves are normally used to raise the prices of average grade Pu’er fermented teas by adding some colour into the cakes – it often does not do much good to the taste, as these red leaves turn bitter, giving these teas an astringency that Chinese medicine says to be healthy for blood circulation, but not considered to be fine in taste.

Our producer has found a way to use these red leaves to make a mild black tea – and it is truly amazing. The anthocyanin gives a very distinct smell of sour cherries to the tea that can be found again in the aftertaste, while the base and top notes are mild, warm and well-balanced.

Our 2016 Red Leaf Black is a beautiful and very special tea rarity that is only available in limited amounts.