Exploring Yunnan tea
Yunnan's large-leaf assamica goes into three quite different products, and the same leaf can become any of them. Following one plant through three processes is the clearest lesson in how much processing outranks botany.
Who this is for
Someone who knows Yunnan for pu-erh and not for anything else it makes.
What you should come away with
An understanding that pu-erh, Dian Hong and Yunnan white are the same material treated three ways.
Leg 1 · As black tea
The most approachable use of Yunnan leaf, and the newest — production began in 1939.
Starting point. Everything after this is measured against it.
Thick, honeyed and almost syrupy, with essentially no astringency. It is the most immediately likeable Chinese black tea there is.
Why this step follows
Same region, same sweetness, far more mineral depth. The old-arbour material is where Yunnan black stops being simply pleasant.
Dian Hong’s sweetness with a mineral spine underneath and a much longer finish. The difference from plantation material is real and audible in the aftertaste.
Leg 2 · As ripe pu-erh
A change of mechanism. Microbial fermentation rather than oxidation, developed in the 1970s to imitate decades of ageing.
Starting point. Everything after this is measured against it.
The smoothest shou there is, sweet and almost chocolatey, with none of the coarse earthiness of lower grades.
Why this step follows
The smoothest shou, then one taken through a shorter pile that keeps some of the raw leaf’s brightness.
Cleaner and brighter than conventional shou, retaining a trace of the raw leaf’s character rather than being entirely transformed.
Leg 3 · As raw pu-erh
The oldest use and the hardest. Sun-dried and pressed, then left for decades — the bitterness is the price of admission.
Starting point. Everything after this is measured against it.
The middle of the road for young sheng, which makes it the sensible reference point against which Bulang’s aggression and Yiwu’s softness are judged.
Why this step follows
From the balanced middle of young sheng to its most extreme expression. Expect severe bitterness and an equally severe returning sweetness.
Genuinely difficult on first meeting — the bitterness is severe — and the returning sweetness that follows is what the entire price is about.
Read alongside
- What is dark tea, and what is pu-erh?
The one category defined by what happens after manufacture rather than during it. Pu-erh is the famous member; the category is larger than pu-erh, and the distinction is worth getting right.
- How processing changes flavour
One species, six categories, and the whole difference is a sequence of decisions about heat, damage and time. This is the single idea that makes the rest of tea legible.