{"title":"map-nanzuo","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"nanzuo-lao-shengtai","title":"Nanzuo Lao Shengtai","description":"\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e50-year-old natural tea gardens one bud\/two leaves from Nanzuo village\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePicked from early March to early April\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProcessed by hand in Mr. and Mrs. Zhang’s tea factory\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePressed into 357g pu-erh tea cakes\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMrs. Zhang selected the oldest natural tea gardens of her village to make this tea. She processed it with her husband in her tea factory in Nanzuo village. Located 10km away from Jingmai main village, this village enjoys unique climatic conditions, distinct from the rest of Jingmai Mountain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith a different raw material and processing technique, this tea is an interesting sibling of our Jingmai Miyun. While coming from the same mountain, it features different aromas and has a more feminine profile. Delivering less bitterness and astringency, it flows like oil in the mouth, offering its flowery fragrance in the process.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis cake has a graceful harmony; it contains a bit of everything we like to find in a pu-erh tea and hence makes a good introduction to this family of teas.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e Read more reviews written by customers on \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/steepster.com\/teas\/farmerleaf\/76360-nanzuo-lao-shengtai\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eSteepster\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #073763;\"\u003eMore on the natural tea gardens of Jingmai Mountain\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #073763;\"\u003eBeginnings as intensive tea plantations\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJingmai Mountain is famous for its vast ancient tea gardens. Yet, two-thirds of the cultivated surface is occupied by younger plantations called natural tea gardens. The first plantations of this kind were planted in the 1970s around Jingmai. During this era, increasing production was the main objective; the tea had to be cheap in order to be affordable for the masses.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the time, these new plantations were seen as an improvement over the ancient tea gardens. They were fertilized chemically, protected from insects and disease by pesticides; weed was controlled by herbicide and picking tea was faster than ever thanks to the well-pruned picking tables on top of the tea trees.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt that time, Pu-erh tea was not seen as an exceptional product. It was a tea for every day, blended and pressed in a handful of county-scale factories; only a couple of different cakes were available each year. Therefore, the logic behind the implantation of these gardens in Jingmai was clear: upgrade the tea garden management techniques, taking advantage of Jingmai’s high altitude and necessary skill of the locals regarding tea farming and processing. The Green Revolution was on its way in Jingmai.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe tea made in the plantations of Jingmai was especially fragrant and praised by the large tea factories of Menghai and Lancang. At that time, many tea plantations thrived in Yunnan; it was supported by the slow price increase and the rise in general domestic consumption. From 2003 to 2007, the Pu-erh boom lead to an increase in tea plantation surface, every mountain wanted to make more tea, more and more tea businesspeople would drive directly to the mountains and wanted their ton of the famous Pu-erh tea.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 2007, the market crashed, and the tea world understood this growth was just a brief episode in the broader history of Pu-erh tea. The price of old-growth tea continued to rise over the years because surface can’t be extended. The Pu-erh tea production in Yunnan had increased several-fold compared to what it was ten years before. Despite the rise in demand, the tea price wouldn’t increase; competition was too fierce in the low-end market.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #073763;\"\u003eA new hope...\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt that time, the local government decided to convert the conventional tea plantations of Jingmai Mountain into so-called “natural tea gardens”, or Shengtai Cha Yuan in Chinese. The project would lead to a decrease in the use of fertilizer and pesticide, a reduction of the plantation density by cutting 4 out of 5 tea trees and the establishment of shade trees in the tea gardens. This project officially started in 2010 and went quite successfullly. Through local monitoring and financial incentives, the locals changed their techniques, and there has been a dramatic decrease in the use of pesticides since then.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe natural tea gardens of Jingmai Mountain are not organic. The tea farmers may spray herbicide, usually when they don’t have time to clear the weeds mechanically; spraying insecticide or fungicide, however, is subject to local government approval and would be done collectively. To our knowledge pest and disease outbreaks are rare nowadays, why is it so?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe decision of cutting 80% of the tea trees in the tea plantations may sound crazy; yet, the purpose was to allow space between each tree. In a conventional tea plantation, the trees are so close that the picking tables form a carpet. This makes the whole tea garden much more vulnerable to pest and disease spread, and this is why such gardens most often need a chemical protection. In the natural tea gardens of Jingmai, the space between each tea tree creates a buffer that slows down the spread of insects.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMoreover, the implantation of shade trees along with the absence of insecticide creates a favorable habitat for spiders. These natural predators offer a further protection against pest and disease in the tea gardens. As the shade trees grow, they offer more ecological services: they limit sunlight, regulate temperature, reduce weed presence, provide firewood for cooking and tea processing, bring in organic matter, pump nutrients in the deeper layers of the soil and provide more comfortable conditions for the tea pickers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFinally, the limitations on fertilizing, only once every two years, limit growth and increase quality.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #073763;\"\u003eA good decision?\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe impact on yield has been severe, but the trade-off was largely worth it in the current context. Low-quality tea doesn’t sell well; Jingmai pursues an image of excellence, and the quality of the young tea garden leaves has increased since the new policy was implemented. Since 2010, the price of the fresh leaves has quadrupled, and Jingmai has no problems selling its tea production.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Jing Yu Tian Xiang","offers":[{"title":"357g cake (12.6oz)","offer_id":21867672647,"sku":"16年春 南座老生态 357克茶饼","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1318\/5761\/products\/jingmai_nanzuo_shengtai.jpg?v=1510245695"},{"product_id":"nanzuo-single-trees","title":"Nanzuo Single Trees","description":"\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHundred-years-old tea tree one bud\/three leaves from Nanzuo village\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePicked from late March to mid-April 2016\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProcessed by hand in Mr. and Mrs. Zhang’s tea factory\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePressed into 357g pu-erh tea cakes\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c!-- split --\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 2016, we decided to give more punch to our homemade Jingmai teas. But by doing this, we would left aside some traits of Jingmai tea, and this is a pity considering what this mountain can offer to the tea enthusiast. This is why we sought help, and we found it in Nanzuo, a hamlet bordering Jingmai Mountain. Mr. and Mrs. Zhang helped us craft teas with a different personality from ours; their tea factory is full of charm.\u003c\/p\u003e\nNanzuo feels like a western movie town; it’s windy, dry and suspiciously quiet. But unlike the far west, they have no guns but a bunch of tea trees instead. Their tea gardens are not as extensive as in Jingmai village, but they do have a couple of ancient tea trees scattered around the sloppy hills. Mrs. Zhang owns about thirty of these hundred-year-old tea trees; own we got the chance to collaborate with her this year and release these pu-erh tea cakes.\n\u003cp\u003eOur Nanzuo single trees pu-erh tea is made in a traditional way: withered on bamboo mattresses and processed in a wok with a lower temperature than we used for our jingmai-produced cakes. The brew renders a yellow soup that marks the prelude of a symphony well-known to the tea aficionado. This tea guarantees you a smooth and energizing session that will last as long as you wish. Plenty of sweetness builds up on the back of your mouth, and the fine fragrance of this tea is noticeably different from our Jingmai tea.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRead and write more about this tea on \u003ca href=\"http:\/\/steepster.com\/teas\/farmerleaf\/76349-2016-nanzuo-single-trees\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eSteepster\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #073763;\"\u003eMore on huigan and the psychotropic effects of a good tea:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the West, the tea enthusiasts focus mainly on the fragrance of tea. However, for the avid Pu-erh tea drinkers, the pleasure of a fine cup lies in other dimensions. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHuigan is probably the most trait sought-after in high-quality Pu-erh tea. This Chinese word refers to the freshness that gradually seizes the back of the mouth and the throat during a tea session; it can remind you of a mix between camphor and chicken soup. A good Huigan is easily perceived when breathing in, feeling air going through your throat, loaded with tea scents; it makes you feel like your breathing channels are opened wider than usual.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHuigan most often comes in the middle of the session. Sometimes, an old-growth Pu-erh tea can seem disappointing in the early session, only to make you high in the end. Old-growth tea tends to take more time to reveal its power than plantation tea; you will only start to feel its power in the 4th or 5th brew. Huigan can last for a long time, sometimes hours after the tea sessions. It can go deep, down to the middle of the throat, or stay only in the back of the mouth. The depth of Huigan is an indicator of quality for many tea drinkers. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #073763;\"\u003eNow comes the interesting part...\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGood tea will not leave your body indifferent. The body reaction varies a lot depending on the individual and the time of day. I find the most pungent effects occur on an empty stomach, and that's why I love to drink tea in the morning. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn excellent tea should make you feel both relaxed and energized. It can help many people focus better or have creative ideas. I notice my guests tend to be more talkative after a good tea. The body feeling is like an internal massage; you can feel your blood vessels expanding. I love to drink tea when performing mental tasks; it seems to me drinking good tea helps think better. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you drink too much tea, you might end up \"tea drunk,\" which is a mildly unsettling feeling, quite hard to describe. I recommend you eat something, and the symptoms should subside soon. When you invite friends for a tea session, it's always a good idea to have snacks on hand: nuts and dried fruits are an excellent choice.  \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe scientific community has not much studied the detailed effects of tea on the body, and many people don't feel anything special when drinking tea. This is why the Chinese term Cha Qi is so controversial; some conspiracy theorists see in it the advent of a mighty tea sect. More rational people would argue that Cha Qi designates the different feelings, noticed during and after a tea session, caused by the cocktail of psychoactive molecules present in tea. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCaffeine is the primary active stimulant in tea, but there are actually dozens of other compounds, present in varying quantities, that add up and offer the tea drinkers a special experience. Theobromine is suspected to improve mood, it is present in large quantity in chocolate and can be found in tea too. Traces of Theophylline can also be found; it is known to improve breathing by relaxing the airway muscles temporarily. Finally, L-Theanine, which is present in significant quantities in tea, is supposed to give a relaxing effect and is also responsible for the umami taste in tea. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere are probably many more psychoactive molecules in tea, and the feeling provided by tea is the interaction of this molecule cocktail with your body. The best way to know about it is to try it yourself!\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Jing Yu Tian Xiang","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":29568835649601,"sku":"16年春 南座单株 357克茶饼","price":80.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1318\/5761\/products\/jingmai_nanzuo_single_trees.jpg?v=1510245690"},{"product_id":"jingmai-sun-dried-black","title":"Jingmai Sun-Dried Black","description":"\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNatural tea gardens of Nanzuo Village, Jingmai Mountain\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePicked in August 2016\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMade by Chen Xiao Hua in his factory of Nanzuo Village\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLoose-leaf sun-dried Yunnan black tea \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn Spring 2016, we needed to rent a truck to bring our 400kg of tea to press them in Menghai. We had seen such a truck during our last visit to Nanzuo, a remote village on Jingmai mountain. In no time, we rid our motorbike there and arrived in this windy and empty dirt street. The truck was parked in a courtyard, we entered the house and found a young guy, Chen Xiao Hua. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe accepted to take our tea to Menghai; meanwhile, we had tea at his home and started to talk about the details of processing. He told us he was trying to make good black tea in Nanzuo; something that had never been done before in this remote and conservative Wa village. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the remote villages, making Pu-erh tea is the norm because of limited demand for special tea and less advanced tea factories. Chen Xiao Hua wants to improve things; he opened the first tea cooperative of Nanzuo in September 2016, with a decent small tea factory opening up more possibilities in terms of processing. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe have become friends and often visit him to try his tea. We tried several of his black tea samples and found an interesting sun-dried black tea, also called Shaihong (晒红). \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere are two ways to dry black tea: with hot air in a dedicated machine, or under the sun, laid on bamboo mats. Most of the black tea produced is dried with hot air because it is faster to process and adds more bite to the tea as soon as it is out of the factory. Black tea dried with hot air a make great drink-it-now; if it is dried quickly, it can even add light roasted notes, like our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.farmer-leaf.com\/products\/jingmai-dianhong-black-tea\" title=\"Jingmai oven-dried dianhong yunnan black tea\"\u003eJingmai black\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSun-dried black teas are less impressive when they're just out of the factory, but the main difference is they have more potential for aging well, just like Pu-erh tea. Their scents are totally natural, only the result of oxidation. The mouthfeel is more similar to Pu-erh tea, featuring thicker soup and some Huigan (sweet and fresh feeling in the throat). This tea will certainly please people who're looking for unadulterated fragrances and want to drink their tea on the long run. You will see it evolve over the months, and we are confident it will remain attractive for three years or more.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Farmerleaf","offers":[{"title":"100g loose leaf tea (3.5oz)","offer_id":32747061386,"sku":"景迈晒红 100克散茶","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"20g sample (0.7oz)","offer_id":32694068042,"sku":"景迈晒红 20克样品","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1318\/5761\/products\/shaihong_3_e74af34f-d9a7-4ff1-8db8-b81ba7fd9c8e.jpg?v=1478727538"},{"product_id":"spring-2012-nanzuo-shengtai","title":"Spring 2012 Nanzuo Shengtai","description":"\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNatural tea gardens of Nanzuo Village, Jingmai Mountain\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePicked in Spring 2012\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eProcessed by Chen Xiao Hua in Nanzuo Village\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePressed into 357g pu-erh tea cakes, aged in Jingmai Mountain\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c!-- split --\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis tea comes from Nanzuo village, a remote village on Jingmai Mountain. It was made by Chen Xiao Hua, our friend from Nanzuo. It was actually his first production. Starting out as a tea maker can be difficult, because you don't know tea buyers, which means it's common to end up with a part of the production unsold. Chen Xiao Hua pressed the remaining tea in cakes and let it age, he now feels confident to sell it, after five years of aging.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe tea has age remarkably well for a tea stored in the tea mountains. In Jingmai, the summer season is very wet and a lot of tea turns moldy if it isn't well protected. This tea was well wrapped and survived five dangerous summers on Jingmai Mountain. When it arrived in Puer in late Spring 2017, it had a bit of that mountain wetness, this trait has toned down and now is left a sweet and mineral tea, aged in moderately dry conditions. It features a decent huigan that comes after a couple of brews. It was processed on the redder side and this trait can still be found in the tea nowadays, the fragrance is on  the fruity side.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA very brewable and inexpensive tea that makes a great daily drinker if you like semi-aged Pu-erh teas.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Farmerleaf","offers":[{"title":"357g cake (12.6oz)","offer_id":47797648084,"sku":"12年 春 南座生态 357克","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"20g sample (0.7oz)","offer_id":47797648148,"sku":"12年 春 南座生态 20克","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1318\/5761\/products\/spring_2012_Nanzuo_shengtai_2.jpg?v=1501999030"},{"product_id":"spring-2022-nanzuo","title":"Spring 2022 Nanzuo","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis tea is an interesting alternative to the Jingmai Miyun. Same mountain, but slightly different personality. Probably less upfront fragrance and minerality, but a smoother mouthfeel and a deeper overall experience.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!-- split --\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eNanzuo: an isolated village on Jingmai Mountain\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNanzuo is the smallest village on Jingmai Mountain, it is located off the beaten track, on the Northern edge of the mountain. It is inhabited by the Wa, an ethnic group that has been scattered by the chaos of history and is quite isolated.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSince their village is relatively hard to find, they don’t attract the many tourists who visit our mountain. To make matters worse, unlike the numerous Dai and Bulang who mainly populate Jingmai, the Wa of Nanzuo they are quite isolated socially, having no relatives in other villages, it is hard for them to rely on local trade. They mainly sell fresh leaves to the Dai of Nuogan village.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYet, these hardships foster cooperation between the villagers. They tend to manage the gardens in a more conscientious manner than in the other villages. Since they arrived recently in the area, they don’t have a lot of ancient tea gardens. They spend their time growing the natural tea gardens on the upper slopes, as well as rice and corn in the low grounds. They don’t rely as much as the other villages on seasonal workers, they do most of the work themselves.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe’ve known You Guo for many years, he used to sell his fresh leaves to other producers. In 2019, he started his own tea factory, on the ground floor of his house. He spent a couple of days processing tea in our factory to learn our technique. Every year, we stock some of his teas for aging, it has a slightly different profile from our Jingmai Miyun. Even though the age of the trees is the same, the soil and microclimate are different. You’ll be able to taste the difference.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe gardens used to make this cake have taller than average tea trees. They grow on a rather flat land, surrounded by steep slopes and forests. High humidity, low temperatures and scarce sunlight characterize this garden.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Farmerleaf","offers":[{"title":"357g cake","offer_id":44532083589307,"sku":"22年 南座 357克","price":75.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"20g sample","offer_id":44532083622075,"sku":"22年 南座 20克","price":8.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1318\/5761\/products\/20230315194706.jpg?v=1678916738"}],"url":"https:\/\/farmerleaf.com\/collections\/map-nanzuo.oembed","provider":"Farmerleaf","version":"1.0","type":"link"}