Product Overview
Type: Green
Packaging: Bag
Origin: China
Description: Lovely, fresh and tender, Meng Ding Gan Lu ("sweet dew") is grown in the lush Meng Ding Mountains of the southwestern province of Sichuan where it has been cultivated for over a thousand years. The area is also well-known for it's beloved local residents, the panda. In the high elevation tea gardens on Mengding Mountain in Sichuan Province, sweet and tender early spring tea buds are covered with soft, fluffy down. The most coveted batches of Gan Lu are from the Pre-Qing Ming 1st Spring Harvesting Season, which begins on Mengding Mountain in the middle of March and ends on April 5th.
These tiny buds yield a refreshing tea that possess a slightly-earthy/nutty taste punctuated with beguiling, delicate sweetness and a lovely floral aroma. Despite the small size of the leaves, this tea delivers a satisfying cup. This very appealing quality has earned this tea the name, Gan Lu, or Sweet Dew.
According to legend, a Taoist Master Wu Lizhen first planted seven tea bushes on Meng Mountain during the Ganlu era (53-50 BCE) of Emperor Xuan of Han dynasty. Prior to this, tea were picked from wild tea bushes. After he died, the tea was called "tea of the immortals". Buddhist monasteries were later established on the five peaks of the mountain, and from the Tang dynasty to the Qing dynasty, 360 tea leaves were picked and prepared each spring by the Buddhist monks to be presented to the emperor. The tea was used as ceremonial offering by the emperor. Wu Lizhen was conferred the posthumous honorific title of Master of Ganlu (meaning "Sweet Dew", full title Ganlu Puhui Miaoji Dashi by Emperor Xiaozong of the Sung dynasty, from which the tea acquired its name.
Before the mid-Tang dynasty, tea from the Meng Mountain was rare and highly prized; and as demand grew, more tea bushes were planted. Mengding Ganlu is one of the teas produced in the Meng Mountain and it is a green tea, other teas from Meng Mountain include "Mengding Huangya" and "Mengding Shihua" which are yellow teas. According to the 16th century scholar Li Shizhen who compiled Compendium of Materia Medica, tea produced from Meng Mountain is "warm and able to take charge of disease," unlike other kinds of tea which are generally cool in nature.
Different from common plain Meng Ding Gan Lu, ours has been scented with jasmine aroma. This exquisite tea is produced using the highest quality early spring tea buds of the Mingshan mountain and the best jasmine flowers too. The dry tea leaves are neat and compact and mostly green with visible silver hairs and a hint of yellow. The jasmine flowers are finally allowed to blossom when the tea is brewed and they float serenely among the green tea leaves. Watching the fresh green leaves slowly and steadily descend, separating themselves from the white jasmine blossoms floating on the top is a surreal experience that will sooth your soul.
The visually stunning yellowish green liquid has a distinctive jasmine fragrance combined with a vigorous green tea aroma that slowly recedes as the jasmine fragrance steadily becomes the stronger aroma. The tender and delicate buds deliver all the freshness and sweetness of green tea while the jasmine offers up a pleasant floral smell that awakes you and lifts your spirits. The finish is fast and sweet and continues to fill the nose with delightful aromas that will embrace you for your entire journey with this tea. Always present, but never overpowering, the jasmine and tea leaves are so young and fresh they are even edible and quite delicious.
Brewing Guide: Put 5g Meng Ding Gan Lu into a glass. Pour into the glass 200ml 90°C water, brew for 1-2 minutes. One minute for delicate taste, two minutes for stronger taste. It stands up to three brewing.
