Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽

Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽

2024 / 50 g
€75,00
Sale price  €75,00 Regular price 
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Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
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Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽

yellow tea

Year of production2024
Weight50 g
€75,00
Sale price  €75,00 Regular price 
Unit price €1.500,00/kg

A tea that once whispered only to emperors.

High on the misted slopes of Mengding Mountain in Sichuan, where clouds drift like ancient silk, grows a tea with a lineage spanning two thousand years. Mengding Huangya, the Yellow Bud of Mengding, traces its cultivation to the Western Han dynasty. In the Tang and Song courts, envoys carried its golden leaves wrapped in silk as tribute, a breath of mountain spring delivered to the throne. Each year at the spring equinox, when the first buds begin to stir from their winter quiet, pickers gather only the finest unfurling shoots, round, plump, and dusted in fine downy gold. Through a patient alchemy of heat and stillness unique to yellow tea processing, they are transformed into slender yellow spears, gently sealed in their own warmth to mellow what would otherwise be raw and grassy into something soft, clean, and quietly enduring.

pale jade · petrichor · cool stone after rain · smoky warmth · chamomile · grain · nutmeg · honey · ripe pear

Provenance & Craft

FORMAT · Loose leaf

HARVEST · Chun fen · 春分 · Spring Equinox · February 

ORIGIN · Mengding Mountain, Sichuan Province, China

ELEVATION · 1440 - 1456 m

CULTIVAR · Mengding Te Zhong (Mengding Native Cultivar)

PRODUCER · Yaan Lanjing Tea Roastery 

PROCESSING · Hand-plucked single buds → Fixation → Men Huang (Sealed Yellowing) → Slow baking and drying

BATCH · 65kg 

CERTIFICATION · Imperial Tribute Heritage Standard

STORAGE · Sealed, dry, odour-free environment at ambient temperature

Yuan Archive Score

88/100

静山 · Jìng Shān Still Mountain · 88-94

The mountain at its most present. Everything unnecessary has fallen away.

Mengding Huangya scores 92 due to its spectacular adherence to historical processing methods. The execution of the men huang (sealed yellowing) phase is flawless, completely removing any harsh astringency while protecting the vibrant structural profile of the spring harvest. It sits at the absolute height of the Still Mountain classification. more about the Yuan Archive Scoring System

Quality & Purity Verification

State-Certified National Park & Organic Terroir

This tea is cultivated in an officially designated, state-monitored ecological protection area.

State-Monitored Ecology: Grown in a strictly protected natural reserve where industrial activity is forbidden, and natural biodiversity creates an optimal microclimate for tea.

Purity Guaranteed: Free from synthetic pesticides, chemical fertilizers, or soil additives.

Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Yellow Bud · Huángyá · 黄芽
Sensory Profile

The Dry Leaf

Slender yellow spears, plump, uniform, and elegantly dusted in a fine downy gold layer that catches the light.

The Soup

Pours a magnificent, pale jade liquor kissed by a soft whisper of golden sunlight.

Fragrance & Palate

The fragrance arrives in unhurried layers: the first breath of petrichor, cool stone after rain, gives way to a softly smoky warmth, then opens into chamomile, grain, and a faint trace of nutmeg. Honey and ripe pear drift beautifully through the mid-palate. The finish is remarkably long, silky, and deeply settling to the body.

Spiritual Character

The Energy: Cool and neutral in nature. It neither overstimulates nor dulls, it clears the mind and establishes an effortless equilibrium.

The Hour: Summer afternoons when the heavy heat needs quiet company, or early mornings before the demands of the day have claimed your focus.

Lineage & Terroir

Lineage & History Mengding Huangya carries a prestigious lineage spanning two thousand years, tracing its cultivation back to the Western Han dynasty. In the Tang and Song courts, envoys carried these golden leaves wrapped in silk as an imperial tribute. Harvested strictly at the spring equinox, only the finest plump, downy shoots are plucked. The tea's distinct character relies entirely on men huang (sealed yellowing), a patient, unhurried process where leaves are sealed in their own warmth, mellowing their raw grassy edge into something remarkably soft and clean.

Terroir & Microclimate This rare yellow tea grows on the mist-veiled slopes of Mengding Mountain in Sichuan Province. The high-altitude environment, wrapped in drifting clouds and persistent mountain fog, acts as a natural canopy. This heavy moisture and diffused light nurture the Mengding Native Cultivar, allowing the spring buds to develop a delicate, multi-layered sweetness of honey and petrichor without aggressive tannins.

Brewing & Pairings

These delicate yellow buds require a gentle, unhurried hand to preserve their intricate, multi-layered aromas. Avoid a violent rolling boil.

Vessel: Spacious gaiwan or clear glass teapot (minimum 120ml interior)

Ratio: 4g per 200ml

Water Temperature: 85°C - 90°C (185°F - 194°F)

First Rinse: 5 seconds then discarded, to open the bud and warm the vessel

Steeps: 6-10 successive infusions, beginning at 15 seconds and increasing gradually as the session deepens

Teaware Pairing

The slender yellow spears require space to express their delicate alchemy. A clear glass vessel allows you to watch the downy gold buds float and descend in slow motion, turning the brewing process into a silent visual meditation.

Suitable Teawares

A breath of mountain spring delivered to the throne, carrying a two thousand year lineage of imperial silence.

問余何意棲碧山

Why do I live in the green mountains?

笑而不答心自閒

I laugh and answer not, my soul sereneI

唐, 李白 Tang Dynasty, Li Bai

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