Wild Tree Yunnan Red - Song Tea

Notes of cranberry, fruit leather, and honey.

Visual Notes

The tea leaves are a dark brown, almost black color and are super thin. They are twisted and look to be 1-3 cm long on average. There are some lighter colored leaves with a rustic deep leather brown color. While the tea leaves vary in size, there does not appear to be any tea dust, and only a few small broken leaves.

The tea brews to a dark amber orange color, with a feint fogginess.

Scent Notes

The dry leaves give off a berry like sweetness, notes of cranberry and strawberry fruit leather. The tea itself gives off a characteristic black tea sweetness. The hot tea leaves emanate sweet wood notes with slight fruity aspects. The empty tea cup has feint fruity notes with aged vibes.

Tasting Notes

The texture is mildly milky and has a smoothness to it that spreads the flavor across the palate. The initial flavor has a strong sweetness, but instead of a molasses like sweetness from other black teas, this tea really embraces sweeter notes of berries and honey. After multiple sips, there is a slight acidity on the center and sides of the tongue, but it is rather mild. There is a slight bitterness to the tea, but it is mostly masked by the sweetness and other flavors. Initial impressions are quite positive, as this tea carves its own path from a Yunnan black tea that I was expecting. The finish is mild and not strongly present. Barely no astringency, with a slight cranberry aroma finish.
The second infusion brews to a similar color, and is similar in scent and appearance. The tea retains a slightly thicker texture, a bit milky but not quite creamy. There is still a notable sweetness in this tea that is quick to spread across the palate and is quick to encapsulate the senses. I think this tea is very well balanced, and it is not too sweet, bitter, or sour. After multiple successive sips, the acidity does reveal itself, but slowly and mildly. The tea still maintains notes of cranberry and honey.
At this point, I am curious to see if the tea can maintain its quality from the first and second infusion without a sharp fall off on the third.
The texture has thinned out and is more watery. The overall flavor profile feels like it is still there, just mellowed out. Thankfully it does not seem as if a strong bitterness has stepped in to take its place. I’d say that this tea maintains a similar profile as the prior infusions, but with a toned down intensity. I think that this tea is now at the point where it would be great to sip passively and still be pleasant. The sweetness is mild and still spreads across the tongue. Still to this point there is surprisingly little astringency, only now starting to become noticeable. There is not much different in terms of flavor development here.
The fourth infusion is watery and has a notable pickup in bitterness. The initial sweetness is very fleeting and gone in an instant. You can still pick up some of the fruity black tea notes in the back of the mouth and through the aroma of the tea, but for the most part the tea has dulled out. The tea is now mostly dull in flavor, with increasing bitterness. I would stop paying attention to the tea at this point. Item description

Rating: 5/5

I really appreciated the flavor profile of this tea. I am typically not a fan of black tea, since the strong molasses sweetness is often overpowering for me. However, this tea seemed to take on a fruity like sweetness through its deep oxidation rather than a syrupy one. I picked up notes of cranberry, fruit leather, and honey. This tea had a balanced flavor profile, with a strong forward sweet and fruity note, with a background that is slightly woody, with a tinge of acidity and very subtle bitterness. Throughout multiple infusions, the tea stayed consistent amongst itself and delivered an unchanging flavor profile that only tapered out in intensity on the third infusion and onward. This tea managed to deliver multiple tasty brews with an enjoyable mildly complex flavor profile.

Tea Seller’s Description

Notes of sweet vermouth, hawthorn flakes, and blackberry honey.

Red tea from Yunnan, China・April 2021・野生"紅褲"茶・Arbor/Biodynamic

This tea is both a rechristening and an upgrade to our iconic Old Tree Yunnan Red. The wild in its name refers to the old grove of wild camellia taliensis trees used to craft this tea. We’ve chosen only the smallest leaves, creating a liqueur that is strikingly bright and candy-like.

Wild Tree Yunnan Red was grown in Fengqing County, Yunnan. This region boasts China's most ancient tea trees – some hundreds of years old, with deep root structures that allow for high absorption of nutrients and minerals from the soil. This varietal is known fondly as hong ku, or “red pants” by the indigenous people who harvest its leaves. Over the centuries, hong ku has adapted to the local ecological environment and, as a result, these trees are resistant to most pests and diseases and require neither watering nor fertilizing.

This tea is a labor of love from a producer with a passion for crafting delicious heritage teas. Wild Tree Yunnan Red is harvested in early April 2021, then shade-withered to bring out its innate clarity and sweetness. With a deft nurturing hand, the leaves are bruised, oxidized, and pan-roasted in small batches. The resultant maocha, or unfinished tea, is wrapped in canvas and baked over charcoal.

The finished tea is then sorted by hand, selecting only the smallest leaves. It brews smooth, sweet, and fragrant, with liquor the color of Chinese lacquerware. Wild Tree Yunnan Red's flavor profile is decidedly juicy, a remarkable amalgamation of sweet vermouth, hawthorn flakes, and blackberry honey.

Brew: 5 grams・150 ml・208° F・1 min

We prefer quick infusions to extract this tea's fruit notes and sweetness - and repeating the short brew time for subsequent infusions.

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