National Forest tea, or Guo You Lin in Chinese, refers to tea leaves harvested from a deep forest. Most national forest tea is found in the Yiwu mountains. These national forests have existed for centuries, usually along the borders of Laos and Myanmar. As it grows in the most natural ecological environment, tea from the national forests has very limited production, and thus it increasingly has become the most sought-after tea among Chinese Pu-erh tea connoisseurs. Forest tea is rarely accessible even from within the Chinese Pu-erh market. Due to its popularity and high quality, there are some copycats and faked teas, intermingling leaves from other areas or simply using inferior Pu-erh leaves that are labeled Guo You Lin. 

Yiwu is one of the six ancient Pu-erh tea mountains in Qing dynasty. This tea is a rare find in Victoria’s 2019 tea trip. This tea is from the first spring harvest of Three Family Village, San Jia Zhai in Chinese, a very rare micro-lot of deep Yiwu forest tea. San Jia Zhai translates in Chinese as three families, that it is said only a few families were stayed in the area due to a historical tragedy, and it is still a very small villages today. Tea from this three-family- village is almost none offered even in China's domestic Pu-erh tea market.

This tea is rich in content and taste, very smooth and creamy, a strong saliva producing huigan and Hou Yun, with a taste of the wilderness, producing a long-lasting aftertaste. It can sustain up to 20 steeps. Hou Yun is the sensation in one's throat that Pu-erh connoisseurs always search for. It surely showcases the very essence of one of the best sheng pu-erh tea. It is a truly special tea that will expand the horizons of your tea journey.  

Note: This cake contains 100% pure leaves from the national forest, no blends, no intermingling of leaves from other areas or with inferior Pu-erh leaves, which is unfortunately all common in the pu'erh tea market. 

Click here for steeping instructions. 

Additional Info

Origin:                      San Jia Zai, Yi Wu mountain, Yunnan province 

Harvest Time:          April 8 2019

Elevation:                1600m

Bush Varietal:         Yunnan Da Ye (large leaves)

Tasting Notes

Very floral and fruity, smooth, full bodied, strong cha qi and huigan, with a long-lasting aftertaste.