Tea: Brown River 2024Type: Non-Dabai White TeaHarvest: Late April 2024Region: Hefeng, Enshi, HubeiProducers: Loushui Cooperative Tasting notes: Sugarcane, Mineral, Peach, Bark. One late April morning, we went to collect a batch of leaves to make the local style Shaigan green tea. What we got from other households were heirloom cultivar leaves at a range of sizes too large to make our intended tea. We then decided to process the tea as if it were shoumei, using the trays and racks usually reserved for red tea production. After almost two weeks of slow browning, we arrived at the following tea. With its heavy silver down, the local heirloom cultivar is well suited to be made as a white tea. Compared with Fuding brown shoumei, this tea is somewhat milder, yet still pleasantly sweet. It is a light tea that is good for a late night session, or as a substitute for a sugary drink at work. As a brown shoumei, this cake is now already approaching the peak of its sweetness and aroma, both of which should be enjoyed within the next two years.
