Summer/ Autumn 2023 was especially rainy in NW Vietnam with heavy rain and landslides in many mountainous areas. Making Autumn tea in Vietnam can be a gamble as earlier in the season there can be an abundance of raw material but poor weather while at the end of the season there could be better weather but very little raw material. 
We got lucky with 6 days of pretty stable sunny weather after some rain towards the end of August and decided to head up to Giàng Pằng village to make some tea!
 
Making tea at this time ended up being a good decision as the rest of the season was quite rainy.
 
This tea was made from ancient trees growing at about 1400m. It brews up slowly into a rich, hazy golden, green soup. Heavily sweet and floral with a melon fruit range and vegetal forest/ almost leathery notes. Low-medium bitterness and astringency. Rich huigan that builds after a few steeps and energizing qi.
 
Due to being an early season tea, we decided to go with a younger/ buddier pick to minimize huangpian. Expect a more fragrance/ flavor heavy tea this season.
 
200g cakes ($0.19/ gram)
 
Season: Autumn 2023
Picking Standard: 1 bud, 2 leaves
Region: Giàng Pằng, Yên Bái
Elevation: 1400m