2025 Yunnan Sourcing "Forest Tea" Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake
A small harvest of just 24 kilograms of tea from wild tea trees in a forest setting in the Bang Dong area of Lincang.
True wild tea with a full-bodied and textured mouthfeel. Cooling effect on the palate and a long-lasting mouth-feel.
Hand-crafted and pressed into 250 g cakes; wrapper design by María Mergruen.
Why it’s special
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True wild origin: Naturally grown forest trees deliver layered aromatics, mineral clarity, and a palpable, cooling vitality.
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Bang Dong character: Lincang brightness and resinous lift over steady sweetness and clean structure.
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Focused micro-lot: Only 30 kg produced (≈120 cakes), a rare, site-specific expression.
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Built to integrate and round out with age: The firm structure and clean profile promise graceful development in storage.
Tasting notes
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Aroma: Cool camphor and pine resin, wildflower honey, fresh cane, citrus peel, light woodland florals.
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Liquor: Pale gold → light amber with clarity; supple, textured mouthfeel.
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Flavor: Sweet cane and light stone fruit up front; spruce/pine freshness and gentle herb; tidy green bitterness that frames, not overwhelms.
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Finish & feel: Marked cooling effect, long hui-gan, persistent shengjin (mouthwatering return), steady, uplifting cha qi.
Origin & processing
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Region: Forest setting near Bang Dong, Lincang, Yunnan
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Trees: Wild (yesheng) tea trees, naturally grown
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Harvest: April 2025
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Pressing: June 15th, 2025 (traditional stone press)
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Format: 250 g per cake (7 cakes per bamboo-leaf tong)
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Scale: 30 kg total (≈120 cakes)
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Craft: Hand-picked • sun-withered • hand-rolled • sun-dried • pressed
Brewing guide
(Great water and short early steeps highlight the cooling sweetness.)
Gongfu (recommended)
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6 g / 100 mL
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98–100 °C (208–212 °F)
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Quick rinse, then 5s • 8s • 10s • 12s • 15s, adding gradually for 10+ infusions.
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Tip: If structure feels too firm, shorten early steeps or pour at 95–96 °C.
Western
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3–4 g / 300 mL (10 oz)
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95–98 °C • 2:00–2:30
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2–3 infusions, extending 20–30s each round.
Grandpa style
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1–1.2 g / 100 mL, 90–95 °C
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Top up as you sip. Cool, resinous freshness with sweet, steady depth.
Cold brew
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8–10 g / 1 L, room-temp water; refrigerate 6–8 hours.
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Crisp, mint-camphor coolness with clean cane sweetness.
Pairing & occasions
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Keep snacks light, plain nuts, unsweet biscuits, fresh pear, so the forest perfume and cooling finish shine. A great meditative session tea and a fascinating compare-and-contrast with your other Lincang or Bang Dong productions.
In Summary
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Caffeine: Medium-High
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Storage & aging: Store cool, dry, odor-free, away from light; allow gentle airflow. Expect increased sweetness, deeper resin/honey notes, and softer edges over 5–15 years, it’s built to integrate and round out with age.
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Name: 2025 Yunnan Sourcing “Forest Tea” Raw Pu-erh (Sheng)
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Region: Bang Dong, Lincang, Yunnan
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Trees: Wild
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Harvest: April 2025 • Pressed: June 15th, 2025
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Net weight: 250 g per cake (7 cakes per tong)
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Production: 30 kg total (≈120 cakes)
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Wrapper Illustration: María Mergruen
In short: A micro-lot wild-tree Forest Tea from Bang Dong, textured, cooling, and long-finishing, already delicious and poised to deepen as it ages.
Previous pressings from this same grove of trees can be found here:
- 2024 Yunnan Sourcing "Forest Tea" Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake
- 2023 Yunnan Sourcing "Forest Tea" Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake
- 2022 Yunnan Sourcing "Forest Tea" Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake
- 2021 Yunnan Sourcing "Forest Tea" Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake
- 2020 Yunnan Sourcing "Forest Tea" Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake
This tea has been tested in a certified laboratory for 404 pesticides, and is within the EU MRL limits set for those 404 pesticide residues. For a full list of the 404 pesticides we tested for and more information about MRL testing and the EU Food and Safety commission click on this link.