2017 Tibetan Dark Tea Guru

The tea is relatively lightly pressed into a 500g brick and is made up of a mixture of small and larger leaves (bud plus two larger leaves) and twigs. The leaves are dark brown and smell of old dried wood and nuts. The chestnut brown infusion has a mild creamy earthy slightly woody flavour with notes of nuts, figs and dark chocolate.The tea comes from the gardens on Zhougong Mountain, south of Ya-an, the administrative town of the growing area, where the tea has also been dry-stored throughout. The tea was harvested in the spring of 2017 and pressed and packaged in the same year.

How to brew Guru tea

Use 5 g of tea leaves per 0.5 l of water boiled and cooled to 95ᵒC, infuse for 2-3 minutes. Feel free to experiment with the steeping time, water temperature and the amount of tea leaves used. You can also read our articles on tea preparation and water quality. This tea can also be prepared the Asian way with multiple infusions: 5 g of tea leaves per 150 ml of water boiled and cooled to 85-90ᵒC, steep for 30 seconds. In other infusions 40, 60 and 90 seconds.

Cultivation and production

The tea trees from which Tibetan tea is harvested grow in the mountainous regions of western Sichuan at altitudes of over 1 000 metres. Growing at higher altitudes gives the tea its unique character. Mature leaves are harvested, often including a bud and several leaves (up to five). As with other teas, there is not as much attention paid to the content of the tea buds. The resulting tea often contains a high proportion of tea twigs and even red moss, with which the twigs and leaves are covered. This is the source of the tea’s higher nutritional value, which is valued mainly in Tibet. Often a different type of tea is produced for export and another for domestic consumption.

The tea leaves are heated on hot pans after plucking. This slows down or stops the oxidative enzymatic processes. Similar to puerh or green tea. In doing so, the tea leaves should be shaken and spread out on a cooler pad to prevent them from steaming or burning. The leaves are then manually or mechanically rolled, so the cellular structure of the leaf is disturbed and many chemical transformations occur. This is followed by a complicated process of controlled anaerobic fermentation where the leaves are bought, moistened and heated. For 30 days, covered with tarpaulins, they are left to undergo the complex fermentation process. They are regularly checked and re-purchased to prevent unwanted processes and the spread of mould. The flakes are then dried and pressed. The tea is not sold immediately but is left to mature for some time. At least half a year, ideally several years. The tea continues to undergo very slow post-fermentation processes. The flavour mellows and deepens. Higher humidity and temperature are therefore suitable for storage.

Read more about Tibetan teas on our Blog.