Wa Shan Shu Pu'er Cake Vintage 2018

Origin: Wa Shan, Cangyuan County, Yunnan Province, China
Cultivar: Mengku Da Ye Broad Leaf & Fengqing Da Ye Broad Leaf
Elevation: 1600-1802
Harvest: Spring 2018

This Shu Pu’er tea cake is produced at the Wa Shan Ecological Tea Garden in Lincang, on the border with Myanmar in southwestern Yunnan. The farmers grow a suite of specialty cultivars that produce exquisite teas for our Garden Direct collection, including Yunnan Purple Buds, Lily Black, Honey Green, White Crescent and others. Made from their most prominent cultivar, the Mengku Broad Leaf, a strain of the ancient broad leaf assamica which is favored for Pu’er tea and grows in the Mengku area of western Yunnan. The local Wa farmers planted most of their gardens with Mengku Broad Leaf and some Fengqing Broad leaf varieties to make some of the best organic certified Pu’er teas available in both Sheng and Shu categories.

Our Wa Shan Shu Pu’er cake is crafted from spring buds and processed by pile-fermentation of Saiqing maocha over a period of 65 days before being pressed into cakes. Like a fine wine that is properly vintaged, Pu'er tea has the ability to age beautifully, developing new flavors over time.


Chip the cake carefully with a pick or Pu’er dagger.
Add 8g - 9g to a Gaiwan or Gongfu Teapot (per 150ml-200ml).
Use 212°F boiling water.

Briefly rinse leaves for 5 - 10 seconds. Decant and discard this rinse infusion. Proceed to infuse the tea using boiling water.  Enjoy each infusion individually and savor the flavors of each round.

Decant 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th infusions after 45 seconds. The tea infuses fast and gives out its strength in the beginning of the session. Brew the tea several times until the taste weakens. Increase the infusion time to your taste preference after you become familiar with the tea.