Spring Anhua Hei Cha

This dark from Hunan, China offers a distinctive drinking experience. This aged Tian Jian presents a rich and complex character, unfolding with sweet, full-bodied molasses notes intertwined with a delicate smoky and peaty essence. A hint of astringency adds a refreshing. It sits in the "Smoky" and "Sweet" and "Earthy" flavor families, so expect a cup that leans smoky and sweet and earthy.

Aim for water around 95–100 °C (203–212 °F). Western style: steep for 3–5 minutes in a mug or teapot. Gongfu style: use 5–7 g per 100 ml, 10–20 s steeps (10–20+ infusions) for multiple short steeps — this way you can taste how the flavor evolves. Give the leaves a quick rinse with boiling water before your first real steep — it wakes up the flavors and removes any storage dust.

This dark is grown in Hunan, China and is made from the Wild cultivar. This particular batch comes from the Spring 2016 harvest.

Prices start at $10.50 through Yunnan Sourcing — that works out to about $0.16 per gram. A 50g package gives you roughly 8 gongfu sessions at ~6 g each, which puts each session at around $0.96. You can compare prices across all vendors carrying this tea on the Teadar product page.