Wild Harvested

Tag: mengku

  • Unbound by fragrance – The tea of Ba Nuo through a 2022 teng tiao gushu

    Unbound by fragrance – The tea of Ba Nuo through a 2022 teng tiao gushu

    In recent years I have repeatedly had the pleasure of trying Ba Nuo teas, it is one of the places that perhaps more than others has taught me to free myself from the “aromatic” dimension of tea and to concentrate on the sip, on the tactile sensations, on the physicality of the brew.

    Ba Nuo is a village accessible via narrow, dirt roads, you can still see the old houses, some with sheet metal roofs, flanked by other newer and larger ones, the result of overbuilding and the rush to compulsive urbanism that followed the economic growth of the tea villages.
    Ba Nuo is located at 1900 meters above sea level, located on the eastern mountain range of Mengku, Dong Ban Shan, populated by around 300 families of the Han and Lahu ethnic groups, practically all of whom work in the tea industry. From the top you can see the villages on the western side, the Xi Ban Shan range, Dong Guo, Xiao Hu Sai, Da Hu Sai, Baka, as if immersed in a Bierstadt painting.

    The soils contain a good amount of clay and organic matter, are acidic or sub-acid, with no stones on the surface, but what is striking are the Teng Tiao, also called “vine trees”, which appear like bony and lignified hands dating back to soil, without other plants to counteract them. Pruning the lateral branches favors the apical dominance of the plant, which will develop very elongated branching and leaves placed only on the tips.

    Yang, a farmer from Ba Nuo, explained to me how it is not a natural way of cultivation, the land has been prepared, even weeded up to 15 years ago, the surrounding forest has been partly cut down to allow the tea trees to receive more light. Many trees were planted by the Lahu people as early as 300 years ago but the influence of the Han and modernization over time led to the development of this type of cultivation.

    Despite the altitude, the agronomic peculiarities, it is not a tea that impresses with its aromas, it is not a complacent palliative for the slaves of fragrance. It took me five months to revisit this tea, perhaps among the most misunderstood in Yunnan, but also one of the most particular.

    This Teasenz sheng was harvested in spring 2022 from teng tiao gushu, after being aged 7 months as maocha. I waited 5 months before trying it again, stored at 65% RH, slightly lower than what I store my teas at (68-69% RH).
    Timidly the leaves began to advance notes of orchid, dandelion root, wood and toasted cereals. The sip was soft, with aromas of honey, chrysanthemum, apricot, but where it really struck was the qi. It wasn’t a sip that simply came and went, but it came again and again, it continually returned after each infusion and continued even far from the cup, the huigan accentuated the honeyed sweetness even more, surrounded by a light minerality that made the sip every time more pleasant.

  • Geography of Mengku, a bit of history of the Shuangjiang factory and an excellent pu’er

    Geography of Mengku, a bit of history of the Shuangjiang factory and an excellent pu’er

    Yunnan’s soil is complex, as is the climate in its multidimensionality. In a single region we find a tropical climate or a mountain one, in the chromatism that envelops the observer, the eyes find both rest and the neurasthenia of the course of nature in a landscape that seems to be the meeting place between Cuyp’s Flemish vedutism painting and the almost brittle and super-ideal accuracy of Xiang Shengmo.

    But it is where this takes place in its verticality that we find the remnants of the history of the camellia, in the 18 villages between the peaks of Ma’an and Bangma, respectively east and west of the Nanmeng River.
    In the Middle Eastern areas we find the villages of Mangbeng, Banuo, Najiao, Bangdu, Nasai (including Zhengqitang and Xiaocun), Donglai, Manna and Chengzi; while in the mid-western area are included the villages of Bingdao, Baka, Tanguo, Dahusai, Gongnong, Banggai, Bingshan, Hudong, Daxueshan and Xiaohusai.

    It is mainly in the latter area that much of the material of the Shuangjiang factory of Mengku is concentrated, a company of the Rong family founded in 1993 but whose first generation dates back to 1935. Much of the material comes from the mountainous area of Mengku, especially from Daxueshan and Bingdao of which this factory was one of the forerunners. In 2005 the Rong family used the leaves of Bingdao, especially Laozhai and Nanpo, for the base of their “Mushu cha” which was followed by series dedicated to this area, as well as a lot called “Bingdao Cha” by professor Gao Zhao in 2006.

    Since the 1930s, the Shuangjiang factory has always focused on the art of blending, creating a standard of Mengku tea, a character that contrasted with the Yiwu and Bulang teas in the Jianghu of Puer in the early 2000s. The feature of the Mengku blends is that of a suspended cup, a tactile and gustatory return after the liqueur has left the oral cavity, a chewable sweetness that coexists with bitterness, almost creating a receptive antithesis in the same areas of the tongue. They are pleasant teas even in their youth despite their initial roughness, managing to relax elegantly without excessive dissonances in the evolutionary path.

    This 2011 pu’er from Shuangjiang factory is made from old trees leaves from different mountains in Mengku. The scents of dry leaves are reminiscent of an old mountain house, made of ancient, damp and slightly moldy wood, it almost recalls the smell of an old leather sofa. The wet leaves bring to mind earthy and woody notes, of wild mushrooms and undergrowth, wet wood and antique furniture. As the infusions pass the water dilutes the strongest odors, bringing back aromas of jujube, camphor, leather and virginia tobacco; it then evolves into a more fruity texture of apricots, stewed apples and madernassa pear poached in wine. The initially primordial and nostalgic character continues in the liqueur, with primarily animal smell on the nose, on the other hand notes of dates, wild oregano and dulsita sugar emerge in the mouth, a sugary sensation increases salivation together with the bitterness that takes possession of the sides and bottom of the tongue. The fruity notes close a complex, intense, soft, persistent and identifying sip.