White Paper '24

Pressed for clarity and graceful aging, White Paper is a 2024 old-tree Yunnan white tea cake from Mi Feng Shan in Lincang, Yunnan, China. Hand-picked in April and grown at 2050 m, it uses Mengku Daye — a tea cultivar usually reserved for pu-erh — crafted fully as white tea. The result is bright and poised: honeyed aromatics, snow-pear and white peach, and a cool, mineral line that feels alpine and clean. Old-tree leaf supplies natural balance and stamina; high elevation deepens perfume; low-intervention handling keeps buds downy and the liquor luminous.

Origin

Mi Feng Shan rises above the Mengku basin, where tea trees share space with pines and wild herbs. Cooler nights slow growth at 2050 m, concentrating aroma precursors for livelier fragrance and a longer aftertaste. Morning mists clear to steady sun, ideal for slow, even withering — a key to white tea that tastes lifted rather than grassy. The cooperative’s 65 ha are patchwork plots interplanted with native shrubs and flowers, a mixed canopy that shades leaves, moderates heat, and keeps soils moist. In the cup this reads as pale gold with fine minerality, wildflower honey, and a gentle, resin-tinged lift.

Cultivar

Mengku Daye is a tea cultivar famed in pu-erh for body and length; in white tea those strengths turn into texture and endurance. Larger leaves hold more amino acids for sweetness and bigger polyphenols for structure, so the infusion feels round instead of thin. Old trees amplify this naturally, their deeper roots tapping stable moisture and trace minerals for steadier balance. The spring pick favors bud-and-one or bud-and-two leaves, letting tender buds drive floral top notes while a touch of mature leaf adds grain and warmth. Using pu-erh-type material doesn’t make it pu-erh — it simply gives this white tea the bones to age.

Craft

This is white tea from start to finish. Fresh leaf, picked in April 2024, was sun-withered the same morning it arrived, allowing gentle, natural oxidation to build aroma without cooking away high notes. There is no kill-green and no rolling, choices that preserve the silvery bud coat and keep texture silky. Once moisture stabilized with a low, slow finish, the tea was pressed into cakes under moderate pressure — a format that slows airflow, encourages even maturation, and keeps leaves intact for clean flavor. Produced with Shao’s family and a local farmer cooperative, tidy handling and short transport keep bitterness at bay.

Character

First cups open soft and bright: wildflower honey, snow pear, and white peach over a quiet mineral snap. With each infusion the liquor grows plusher — a hallmark of large-leaf Mengku Daye and old-tree leaf — yet the finish stays cool and precise. As the session develops, fruit shades toward delicate apricot skin and meadowy grain, never heavy, always clear. Pressing sets a measured trajectory: drink now for lift and perfume, or expect a glide toward honeyed depth and gentle spice over the coming years while that alpine line remains refreshing. Limited single-season material underscores its calm, confident pace.

Brewing

For gongfu-style sessions, start with 5 g per 100 ml at 85 °C. Rinse swiftly if you like, then infuse 30 seconds and add 10 seconds to each subsequent round; this teases body from the thick leaves while preserving high notes. For a simple western-style cup, use 3 g per 250 ml at 85 °C for about 3 minutes; expect a pale gold liquor with clean sweetness and a crisp, mineral finish. Adjust time in small steps for either approach to steer intensity without losing the tea’s freshness.

FAQ

What is this tea exactly — white or pu-erh?
It’s a pressed white tea made from Mengku Daye leaf; processing is fully white tea, so it brews clear and aromatic, not like fermented pu-erh.

Where does the high-elevation character show up in the cup?
Cool nights and strong sun at 2050 m lift fragrance and lengthen the finish, giving honeyed top notes and a distinct mineral line.

How was the leaf handled to keep flavors clean?
Same-day sun-withering, no kill-green, no rolling, and a gentle, low-temperature finish before moderate-pressure pressing preserve clarity.

Why choose old-tree Yunnan white tea?
Older trees yield thicker, steadier leaf with natural balance and stamina, so the tea feels plush yet composed and develops gracefully.