Gardenia Mao Feng Green Tea

We're used to drinking many types of jasmine scented tea, but this gardenia green tea surprised us. It is made of the spring tea material which were harvested before Qing Ming on Mt. Mengding, Ya’an, and blended with the local gardenia flowers which bloomed in early summer. The tea is flavorful and has a melodic flowery scent that is highly appealing.

As soon as we opened the package, we could smell the lovely gardenia aroma. Heated and clean the tea cup, then add the dry leaves and gently shake. The fragrance of the warm leaves is deeper, and it is coupled with the fresh perfume of green tea, which is mentally pleasant.

After five times scented with gardenia flowers, the floral fragrance was completely integrated into the tea liquid, not overwhelming but wonderfully blending with the tea fragrance. Just like it transports us to a sea of flowers, with the summer wind giving bursts of aroma.

About Scenting Process

The scenting material of this gardenia Mao Feng is the gardenia flowers that have just bloomed in the early summer in Mt. Mengding, because the scent of the gardenia during this period is the strongest. (Unlike jasmine scented tea, which is normally selected while the flowers are not open, this is due to the "temperament" of these two types of flowers being different: the fragrant oil of jasmine will gradually form as the petals open and will drop after the flower has entirely opened. As a result, it must be blended with tea when the flowers are ready to open; nevertheless, the aromatic oil of gardenia resides in the petals in free form, so it has a scent whether it is open or not, but the aroma is more plentiful after opening.)

Tea farmers will clean the well-picked gardenia flowers, cut off the flower diameter, leaving only the white flowers; and then spread the flowers on the tea leaves, letting them to slowly absorb the fragrance of the flowers. During this period, the tea leaves need to be turned over and the flowers need to be replaced. The whole process will be repeated many times until the fragrance of the flowers completely integrate into the tea leaves. Usually, it takes half a month from picking flowers to completing the scenting process, and making 500g tea needs 2000g-5000g fresh flowers.

	Cup Method		Chinese Gongfu Method
	Teacup: 12oz / 355ml		Gaiwan: 3.8oz / 110ml
	185℉ /85℃		185℉ /85℃
	2g Tea		4g Tea
	Brewing time: 3 - 5 mins		7 steeps: rinse, 10s, 15s, 25s, 45s, 75s, 115s, 180s

This tea comes from the Mt. Mengding Tea Area at the average elevation of about 800-100 meters, which is located in Ya 'an, known as “the Rain City”. The ecological environment here is excellent, especially the misty and rainy climate provide advantageous conditions for the growth of tea, which help the formation of nitrogen in teas and increase the content of amino acids and other substances.

Views of the tea mountain. It is sparsely populated, quiet and beautiful, which belongs to the national protected natural scenic area.

Ya’an City, located in the west of Sichuan Basin, is not only a city of mountains and rivers, but also a city with tea fragrance. People began to plant teas at Mt. Mending of Ya’an in the Western Han Dynasty, which not only has more than 2000 years of tea planting history and rich cultural heritage, but also has the reputation of “Like the water in Yangtze River, the Mengshan tea has the top quality”. The average temperature here is 14.5℃ and it's drizzly all year round. This special ecological environment can reduce direct sunlight, which is very beneficial to the growth of tea trees and the formation of nitrogenous substance in tea leaves.

Fuding Xiao Bai is a group species of tea tree that reproduce sexually, commonly known as "cai cha" and "tu cha". The leaves are small and uniform, with natural floral fragrance. Tea made of this tea bush also contains a a faint floral aroma, taste mellow and sweet. In Fujian, it will also be used to make Gong Mei white tea.

Meng Ding tea is one of the birthplaces of Chinese tea planting industry and tea culture. As early as the Western Han Dynasty (more than 2,000 years ago), artificial tea cultivation began here. Mengshan tea area has unique natural conditions and historical origins for the development of the tea industry. Mengshan tea has been recognized all over the world for its wonderful taste, superb craftsmanship, and high quality for over 2000 years in Chinese tea history. So there is an old saying in China: "like the water in Yangtze River, the tea from Mt. Mengding is of the high quality."