Yiwu Lucky Bee

This tea was the first release of the Luck Bee series and, like the Mansa Gushu, dates back to 2016. It has been stored by Peter in Switzerland ever since. As his personal favorite, the Mansa Gushu 2016, has now also arrived in the Swiss warehouse and requires additional space, he is parting with this very first self-pressed Pu-erh tea with a heavy heart.

Together with our friends, Tea Masters Yang Ming and Panda, we originally set out to find suitable leaf material for our own Pu-erh. The search proved to be short, as Yang Ming’s own tea gardens offered exactly the quality we were looking for. Since no pesticides or artificial fertilizers are used there, the gardens support a healthy and vibrant ecosystem – including the bees that gave this tea its name.

For this Pu-erh, tea leaves from the 2016 harvest were used, sourced from the same tea bushes that later provided material for Yiwu Lucky Bee 2017, 2018, and subsequent vintages. After pressing, the tea was stored for a full year in Xishuangbanna before being moved to Switzerland. Thanks to this early storage in its natural environment, the tea shows a rounder and more settled character than it would after being stored exclusively in Switzerland.

Who are Tea Masters Panda and Yang Ming?

Tea Masters Panda and Yang Ming are good friends and experts when it comes to Pu-erh. Yang Ming is a local tea farmer of Yiwu and descendants from a family with a long tradition in Pu-erh making. Incidentally, our popular Yiwu Lucky Bee teas are from Yang Ming’s tea fields. Tea Master Panda is originally from Sichuan (hence the name) and came to Yunnan due his passion for Pu-erh tea. In addition to Pu-erh, he is also a Master of calligraphy and has extensive knowledge of Chinese history.

Harvest: Spring 2016
Pressed: 2016
Typ: Sheng
Aroma: Honey sweet and a bit mineral
Terroir: Yiwu, Xishuangbanna, prefecture, Yunnan province, China
Preparation: Appx. 3g per tea pot, temperatur 100°C. Rinse the tea leaves bevor infusing with boiling water