Hand-Made Wild Jin Mudan (手工金牡丹) 2025
Tea Profile
Type: Wuyi Yancha (Rock Tea)
Location: Wu Sandi Village (吴三地村), Wuyi Mountain, Fujian
Altitude: Approximately 1000 m
Harvest Date: April 27, 2025
Cultivar: Jin Mudan 金牡丹
Roasting Level: Twice-roasted, traditional charcoal method
The Story of This Tea
When I first stepped into the forgotten slopes of Wu Sandi Village, the silence felt alive. The tea garden had long been abandoned. No pruning, no fertiliser, no interference. Just nature reclaiming it's rhythm. From this quiet wilderness, the Jin Mudan bushes had grown freely, rooted deep in mineral-rich rock and bathed in the cool breath of Wuyi’s high mist. Their leaves carried the scent of time itself.
This tea is entirely shou gong (手工), hand-made with devotion. During oxidation, instead of using machines, we lay each batch gently on flat bamboo sieves, turning and feeling the leaves by hand to guide their slow transformation. It takes great skill and patience to achieve harmony this way; even a moment’s misjudgment could ruin the entire batch. The yield is small, but each gram embodies the mountain’s untamed beauty.
Mr Zhou and I rarely encounter such tea. Pure wild Jin Mudan is almost impossible to find, and even rarer to craft entirely by hand. This is not just tea; it is the living expression of a mountain’s forgotten heart.
Aroma and Flavour
This hand-made Jin Mudan opens with the scent of oats, honey and red fruit, deepening into spiced warmth that feels both comforting and elegant. The flavour unfolds like autumn light through old bamboo: layered, soft, and endlessly changing. A tea to drink slowly, to listen to.
- Aroma: Digestive biscuits, oats, berry skins, orchid, and honey
- Flavor: Fruity, ginger, clove, cinnamon, plum, black cherry, and warm honey and oat sweetness
- Texture: Full-bodied yet silken, coating the mouth with warmth
- Aftertaste: Strong returning sweetness (huí gān 回甘) that lingers long after the cup is empty
- Steeping Endurance: 15 - 20 infusions
Brewing Guidelines
Gong Fu Style
- Teaware: Zhuni 朱泥 or Hongni 红泥 Yixing teapot for warmth and focus, or porcelain gaiwan for clarity
- Ratio: 6–8 g per 100 ml water
- Water: 95–100°C, ideally soft spring water
- Infusions: Quick rinse, then 5–7 seconds for the first infusion, 8–10 seconds for the second, and extend gradually; the leaves yield gracefully for 15–20 steeps
Western Style
- Teaware: Porcelain or glass teapot; a small Zini 紫泥 teapot also enhances body and spice depth
- Ratio: 3–4 g per 250 ml water
- Water: Around 95°C
- Steeping: 2½ - 3 minutes for the first infusion; resteep twice, adding 30 seconds each time
Why Choose This Tea
Our hand-made Jin Mudan (金牡丹) from Wu Sandi Village is a living treasure of Wuyi Rock Tea craft. It grows wild at 1000 metres among the same cliffs that nurture old-bush Shui Xian. Every leaf is shaped by hand, with no mechanical aid, guided only by my senses. The result is an extraordinarily pure tea. Vibrant, aromatic, and lingering with layers of spice, fruit, and honey that speak of wild mountain air and ancient stone.
For those seeking authentic Chinese tea made with rare skill and reverence for nature, this Jin Mudan is one of the finest expressions of Wuyi’s soul.