This Meizhan cultivar is made to customs of processing known in China as "fresh tea" denoting it is made to local timing of harvest, processing, and flavor profile. Not made to a standard and certainly varied in its taste each season, this tea well exemplifies China's small farm tea culture. Our lot was grown on a farm that practices organic, traditional farming methods. The farm is located at an elevation of approximately 700 meters in the mountains of the Fuding area, Fujian Province. Lot #6.
Lot Notes. This lot is single-origin, handcrafted offering a high aroma with notes that are varied - sweet and malty to fruity. Hand crafted to preserve and develop the natural flavors of the cultivar, a deft hand in firing has clarified the liquor and notes and deepened its body. Tasting this lot, we think it offers unusually clean, marbled flavors and aromas in your cup. Lot was harvested March 2026.
Tea Facts. Black Cloud is made from a slow-growing, high-mountain cultivar known as Mei Zhan. The plant's bud and leaves are dense yielding multiple steeps.
Tasting Notes. The leaf is distinct in its aroma – think semi-sweet chocolate. The leaves are oxidized with a focus to creating flavors that linger. Opens to a clear amber liquor with flavors of malt and chocolate, molasses and stone fruit combining to leave a sweetness long after drinking. Second steep yields fuller flavors.
Brewing Suggestions. We suggest 3 grams per 6-8 ounces of water. A round tablespoon of leaf will brew up to 12 ounces of tea. Use water at 195-205 F right up to boiling; steep the leaves for 2.5 minutes and taste. For more flavor, steep with added time. Drain the leaves between steeps and the leaves will yield multiple infusions.
SKU: B-MZB-6
Black Tea
Add 30 seconds for each successive steep — flavors evolve.
Black tea is a leaf that has been fully oxidized. This rigorous oxidization produces a tea of hearty rich flavors while reducing its astringency and bringing out a natural sweetness.
Flavors will range from bright, brisk, peppery, clean, and smoky to aromatic, bold, malty, nutty, spicy, and sweet. Blacks are known for long, delicately aromatic, and comforting aftertastes. Note, they are often enjoyed with milk or sweetener.