Camellia Sinensis Zhenghe aged Baimudan 2012

Extraordinary teas are born in the hills of Zhenghe, and I am not referring to the subtle and aristocratic traits of a Bai Hao Yin Zhen, but to the more rustic and bourgeois ones of Bai Mu Dan and Shoumei, teas whose time is only able to give decadent splendor unattainable for virtuous tea who do not see the rain, inviting to exercises of reflection and mnemonic recall.

The trees are low-growing, the Zhenghe Dabai is also a broad-leaved cultivar, on average longer and narrower and with heavier shoots than that of Fuding; typical is the green-yellow color of the shoots with thick hair and a brown-purple contrast.
Mr.Yang and his family produce this tea near Gaoluntou, 900m altitude, above most Zhenghe and Fuding gardens. Their work celebrates the coexistence between earth and human, sanctifies a type of tea that was typical of a middle class who, like wine, wondered how to get their hands on earthly gratification while holding on to the money of a working day and their status as a dignified self-sufficiency. Time passed, pressing into cakes was convenient for storing tea in piles, and the leaves changed, sealing in them the aromas of an entire village.

The last leaves of this Bai mu dan from 2012 highlight a fascination given by the passing of the years, which seems to have increased with them even with some elements that give the impression to diverge and have taken their own course, but that for some perverse reason we seem to like it at the point of not being able to exclude it anymore, like the rural scents of an aged baicha, the almost ferrous note of some shoumei or the lips of Dolly Parton.
The wet leaves bring back memories of ancient flowers, raisins, cider-fermented apple and candied fruit. During the infusion, perfumes of chestnut cake, woody hints of apricot and lotus root emerge, floral echoes arrive with hints of rose during the session. The liqueur is orange, the sip is ethereal, juicy, thick and refreshing. Aromas of distilled pear, magnolia and wild strawberries follow each other harmoniously. On the palate blows of jujube and citrus scents accompany an interminable finish.