2024 Baifu Xing Cha Yao

2024 production from high end boutique brand Baifu Xing. They take fairly unique approach, as every year they venture out to find the best material they can, which they press into one tea. This yields a bit over 200 individually numbered cakes annually. As you can imagine, the tea is difficult to find and commands high prices.

This year is Cha Yao – Tea Fairy or Tea Demon, of which 230 cakes were made. The brand’s philosophy is very much that of less is more, so you won’t find detailed claims about particular villages or tree ages. After all they don’t have a lineup of products they need to differentiate.

This is ancient tree tea blended from various regions including Banzhang. The claim is that it is different from traditional mountain ancient tree tea.

In my personal experience, there is indeed an element of magic with this tea. The dry leaves have pronounced lingering smoke aroma from drying of the mocha. But the resulting brew is not what you would expect from smoky 2024 tea. The smoke does not stand out and instead it is a cohesive and complex tea with quality, pronounced yet relaxing qi.

Highly recommended to try.

Cakes are approximately 357g.