Product Overview
Hunan Yancha is a green tea consisting of Camellia sinensis leaves that are smoke-dried over a fire. This smoking is accomplished as a hot smoke of sweetgum fruits.
In China, during the production of high-grade tea, regardless of whether it is green tea, black tea or yellow tea, drying of tea leaves in the bamboo basket that is heated over burning firewood was the common final step. The intensity of the smoke aroma can be varied by locating the leaves closer or farther (or higher or lower in a multi-level facility) from the source of heat and smoke or by adjusting the duration of the process. The flavor and aroma of Hunan Yancha is described as containing empyreumatic notes, including wood smoke and pine resin.
Hunan is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting. Hunan has a long history of tea production in China and is one of its largest producers. Some of the famous teas from Hunan are Junshan Yinzhen (silver needles), Maojian, Dark black brick tea and Huang Ya (Yellow tea). Famous tea areas in Hunan include Dongting Lake, Heng Mountain and Shao Mountain.
Accented with silvery tips, the twisted dark-olive leaves of this green tea offering from Hunan province yield a pale gold liquor with a smoky aroma.
Due to its smoky aroma, many people assume that it tastes bitter. However, Dragon Tea House's Hunan Yancha is not bitter at all. Our Hunan Yancha gives a grassy aroma, smooth drinking feeling. The cup is buttery smooth and light with a vegetal whisper that leads to a clean finish. It has a smoke, vegetal initial taste that matures into a smooth, lingering sweetness.
For a lot of tea drinkers who are looking for new experiences in smoky teas, this Chinese green tea is a wonderful starting point.
Brewing Guide:
1. Prepare 3 g of tea leaves for 150ml of water.
2. Place the tea leaves into a warm glass.
3. Let the boiled water cool down to 80-85 degrees Celsius. Green tea leaves prefer a slightly cooler temperature as compared to black or oolong tea
4. Gently pour water onto the leaves. The quantity of water should be 1/3 of glass (about 50 ml), or merely enough to cover all the leaves.
5. After one minute, pour in another 100 ml of water. When pouring the water. Brew for 2 minutes and serve.
6. If the taste is too strong, add hot water to the glass.
