We travel from Menghai to Jinggu in an old bus
secured as a last minute replacement for the two taxis we had booked, which
obviously got better offers - everywhere is very busy because it is a local
festival. The bus is quite slow and the journey takes us 8 hours.
We meet Mr. Yi, who owns a factory that processes
local green leaf and also presses unfinished tea (maocha) into Puer cakes in a
variety of shapes and sizes.
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| Transport up the Mountain |
We taste a selection of his teas, including a cake
made from 2012 Yue Gwang Bai, one of the main teas on my list. Yue Gwang Bai -
Moonlight White - is made from the leaves and buds of the Big White Bud
variety, rolled and dried slowly in the cool of the night. It is partially
oxidised but not baked, with combination of oolong and black tea flavours. It
has an aroma reminiscent of fruit cake. This is not a tea for the purist, but I
like everything about it - the name, the appearance, the aroma, the taste - and
it has been very popular at Fortnum & Mason. The big disappointment was
being here a little too early for the 2013 harvest, and only being able to
taste a pressed 2012 cake, which doesn't develop the flavour and aroma of the
loose version.
Next morning we are off up the mountain on the
lookout for special trees, accompanied by Zhong Xin, who has joined us for the
rest of the Yunnan trip. It turns out that not only is he a 29 year old tea
master, he also has five apprentices - four in Yunnan and one across the border
in Burma. I discover that I bought a Raw Puer made by him in 2011 from
Yako village on Bulang Mountain, a far away part of Yunnan. I had no idea at
the time but clearly I have a very discerning palate indeed. He has every right to be a bit smug and superior,
and he does have the Philip Oakey** floppy fringe and pout, but he is genuinely
impressive guy. He tells us that he is entirely self-taught and simply went up
into the mountains to learn his craft. It's a slightly unlikely story but we
are very happy to believe it.
We are looking especially for the Big White Bud
variety - Da Bai Hao. This is not quite as easy as we expected, but eventually
we find one amongst a hundreds of other old trees in an area that had been
abandoned for years because it is so remote. A local farmer had cut down a lot
of less valuable trees, letting the light in and discovering the valued Big
White Bud amongst the ones remaining. It was quite exciting to find it, but the
actual appearance is rather underwhelming. All this changes when the tea is
made, as the long buds turn white and look beautiful, particularly when pressed
into a cake, which looks like a glowing moon.
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| Da Bai Hao - 'Big White Bud' |
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| White Bud cake |
We also find the rare Purple Bud variety, a
mutation apparently caused by the strong sunlight. In fact it's not very
purple, just a few leaves on an otherwise green leaved tree. The made tea is
however a dark glossy purple, and looks attractive in a pressed cake. This is a
tea that needs to mature for several years, as the early taste is rather thin
and bitter. Jennifer set aside some cakes for us last year and we expect them
to be ready by around 2015. It's a different way of buying tea.
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| Purple Bud Tea |
Just as we were leaving, Zhong Xin appeared
clutching a sprig of three leaves with a variegated pattern that no-one had
seen before. How he found them amongst hundreds of trees is a mystery, but he
is a bit different. Maybe it will turn out to be a new variety, who knows. One final comment about Zhong Xin. He is happy to
share his knowledge, theories and techniques with anyone - there is no hint of
keeping things close to his chest. You can't help liking and admiring him.
We decide to walk down to the main road rather
than using the pickup. It's a steep path down through woodland, and a good
experience. Warm though, and by the time we get to the bottom we're rather hot
and dusty and in need of a shower. Not much chance of that. Please see
"Showdown in Old Jinggu Town".
** Those of you born after 1965 look away now.
Philip Oakey headed up The Human League in the 1980s. For many this was music's
lost decade, but for those of us courting and dressing up to go dancing in
Faces Nightclub at Five Ways in Birmingham it was a magical time. Viz. the
12" extended remix of "The Sound of the Crowd". Dress to
impress, look moody. Fabulous.
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| Zhong Xin |
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| Philip Oakey |
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