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MENG DING GAN LU

MENG DING SWEET DEW
GREEN TEA
★ PESTICIDE-FREE GARDENING

Huang Cha Yuan, Meng Ding Shan, Ya’an, Sichuan, China

Meng Ding Gan Lu “Mengding Sweet Dew” is a celebrated Chinese green tea from the legendary Mengding Mountain, known for its delicate sweetness and fresh, floral aroma. Its tender leaves produce a bright, clear infusion with smooth, mellow flavors that embody the harmony of ancient tea craftsmanship and pristine terroir. MORE

AROMA
Herbal, floral

TASTE
Floral, fruity

CULTIVAR: Xiao Ye Lao Chuan
HARVEST: Early spring (Pre-Qingming), 2025
ORIGIN
Meng Ding Gan Lu, translated as “Sweet Dew from Meng Mountain,” is a premium Chinese green tea from the Meng Shan Mountain range in Sichuan Province, China. Located in the misty highlands of western Sichuan, the mountain range provides an ideal environment for tea cultivation. Abundant rainfall, rich soil, and year-round cloud cover help protect delicate tea leaves from harsh sunlight and enhance their natural sweetness. Meng Shan Mountain is historically significant as one of China's earliest tea cultivation sites, often called the “cradle of tea farming.” This tea comes from the Huang Cha Yuan "Imperial Tea Garden," a historic and culturally significant tea garden located on Meng Ding Shan Mountain and renowned for producing the highest-quality and most authentic Meng Ding Gan Lu.
ABOUT
Meng Ding Gan Lu is typically harvested in early spring, with the finest teas picked before the Qingming Festival (around April 4–6). Only the youngest buds and the first tender leaves are selected, ensuring a tea of exceptional tenderness and purity. Slender, curly, silver-green leaves are often covered in fine white hairs. The leaves go through three pan-frying and three rolling rounds, all done with charcoal heat only. This labor-intensive process preserves the tea's natural shape and enhances its flavor, resulting in a clean, sweet taste with honey and fruity notes.
ORGANOLEPTIC
Tightly curled, downy buds and tender leaves form a delicate spiral. The leaves are slender, covered in fine silvery-white fuzz, and exhibit a vibrant, emerald-green color with a pale tip, indicative of early spring plucking and meticulous hand-processing. The aroma of dry tea leaves is subtle yet complex. Initial aroma suggests sweet pea blossoms and chestnut flowers, underlaid with a soft marine freshness. Faint notes of steamed asparagus and tender bamboo appear as the leaves warm in the gaiwan. Pale celadon to light lemon-green infusion. A shimmering translucence reveals high amino acid content, characteristic of slow-grown high-mountain teas. The fresh and vegetal aroma of rinsed tea leaves rises with notes of soybean milk, sweet corn husk, and green melon. A fleeting floral accent reminiscent of gardenia or jasmine wafts through the steam, deepening with each steeping. Elegant and ethereal, the tea opens with a gentle sweetness on the tip of the tongue, followed by a soft umami character. Mid-palate unveils refined vegetal layers like fresh pea shoots, young fava beans, and cucumber ski, interwoven with a subtle chestnut warmth. A silken minerality hums beneath the surface, reflecting its Sichuan mountain terroir. Soft, smooth, and buoyant. Almost weightless on the palate, yet leaves a lingering, plush coating. Lightly viscous, encouraging salivation and a delicate hui gan (returning sweetness) in the throat. There is a lingering, cooling, and crystal-clear aftertaste. A mild sweetness persists, accompanied by a cooling sensation akin to mint without menthol. The aftertaste evokes dew-covered spring herbs and high-altitude air—clean, vital, and quietly expansive.

Meng Ding Gan Lu is a tea of restraint and purity, demanding quiet attention. Its flavor is not forceful but unfolds in quiet layers, reflecting the misty highlands of Meng Ding Mountain. A masterclass in subtlety, this tea is best appreciated in silence, with multiple infusions revealing a serene depth. It is ideal for those seeking elegance, refinement, and a meditative experience in the cup.
CHINA CLASSICS
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