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“Did I really just backspace myself out of another tea-crazed and long-winded note? Dang it, derk, you dolt. Something akin to the original note: A good while ago (who knows when, my sense of time...” Read full tasting note
Grown high on Thyolo Mountain in the Shire Highlands of Malawi, our Bvumbwe Handmade Treasure is lovingly crafted by hand so as to preserve the long, sturdy leaves and their complex flavors. This is a more lightly oxidized tea when compared to other black teas, resulting in a softer, smoother liquor with a subtle, sweet fragrance. The dry leaf evokes the shape of the horn of the rare nyala antelope accented in a Maravi gold color. (“Maravi” is the name of the tribe that inhabited the region covering Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia from the 16th to 19th centuries. The word means “fire flames.” ) The brewed cup has the aroma of sweet orange blossom and honey with the taste of orangette, the Belgian orange sweet dipped in dark chocolate, and a hint of maltiness. To achieve the right flavor profile Bvumbwe Handmade Treasure is only plucked the day after a period of abundant sunshine. The profile expresses a true “high grown” character.
Bvumbwe Handmade Treasure is crafted from the Bvumbwe cultivar, a Superior cultivar bred by the Tea Research Foundation of Central Africa in Mulanje, Malawi. These Superior Cultivars are bred for drought tolerance, cup characteristics and health benefits. They have been shown to have higher levels of theanine, antioxidants and catechins than teas from other origins. Also, the growing conditions in Malawi are known to favor higher production of the gallated catechins.
Ingredients: Artisan black tea
Origin: Satemwa Estate, Malawi
Brewing Instructions
Water Temperature: Just off the Boil (205 degrees)
Water Quality: Best with Spring Water
Amount of Leaf (per 6 fl oz water): 1-2 Tbl.(3-5 grams)
Steep Time: 1-3 minutes
Number of Infusions: 2-3
When measuring it is best to weigh your tea. (I use a small pocket scale. We have a few or you can get good inexpensive scales at Old Will Knotts) Measuring volume with a teaspoon or tablespoon is not accurate because whole leaf teas take up much more space than broken, graded teas.
We highly recommend brewing your tea in a teapot or mug with a removable infuser so that you can remove the leaves at the end of the steeping time. Whole leaf teas of this quality need room to unfurl and expand in the water in order to perform their “magic.” However, leaving the tea leaves in the water will result in an over-infused, bitter (or at best, unpleasant) tea. If you want a stronger cup of tea increase the amount of leaf rather than the steeping time. If you don’t have a removable infuser, you can brew the loose leaves directly in the pot. At the end of the steeping time, pour all of the tea into a warm serving pitcher or pot.
While many black teas are frequently served with milk & sugar, we strongly recommend NOT doing so with this excellent tea! In doing so you will miss out on the subtle nuances that make this such a wonderful tea!
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Did I really just backspace myself out of another tea-crazed and long-winded note? Dang it, derk, you dolt.
Something akin to the original note:
A good while ago (who knows when, my sense of time is all screwed up these past few years) I fell in love with a black tea that Leafhopper extracted from the depths of her “Tea Museum”: https://steepster.com/teas/what-cha/56348-malawi-bvumbwe-handmade-treasure-black-tea That tea just lit me up in all the right ways.
I searched high and low for this Handmade Treasure from Satemwa, the Malawi tea estate that in the western reaches of the internet is famed for its white teas. I ended up finding Handmade Treasure last year?? at A Thirst for Tea’s online store but didn’t order because for some reason I had the sense that the business was no longer operational. Possibly because, looking at the site now, the aesthetics feel more rooted in an older generation than the soft, round and minimalist yet somehow noisy sites of most current vendors. Anyway, I could’ve had this tea in my own tea closet back when I originally found it but I am a reticent dolt who rarely communicates with tea vendors.
Under the influence of supposedly toxic Brazilian pink peppercorns (totally up for debate if you ask me; I’m severely allergic to poison oak which, like this plant, is also under the same familial umbrella as cashews and mangoes to which I exhibit no allergic response) while visiting my mother in Florida a few weeks ago, I finally took a gamble and ordered from A Thirst for Tea.
This self-professed tea addict Frankee, whose business flies under the radar, clearly wants curious sippers to appreciate the world of loose-leaf teas. The website offers a lot of information on many of the teas, including some rather long descriptions, backgrounds on the tea farms or style of tea and detailed preparation notes. For each tea I ordered, a full 8.5″×11″ print-out accompanied it. Every tea came in a high quality, thick roll-top bag. I do wish harvest seasons were offered on all the teas. I did put my faith in her judgement to not sell stale teas considering she’s an ITMA Certified Tea Master (again this could’ve been a non-issue if I had simply asked). Oh, and she wrote a full paragraph in the lost communication form of cursive, expressing thanks and adding a description of the sample Nepal black included in the box.
Anyway, this low-oxidized black tea is a near facsimile to the 2014 shared by Leafhopper. I even wonder if it’s the same harvest and kept well stored for nearly 8 years. So far I’m 2 for 2 with this company, one being this beloved black tea and the other a brand new experience with a type of green tea I had not yet tried before.
I’m delighted that you found this tea again!
I have got to check out this vendor!
Ooh, I’ve visited A Thirst For Tea when trying to hunt down photos of some of my teaware that I’ve been too lazy to photograph myself but I don’t think I’ve looked at their teas! The list of tea places I want to order from is already out of control so I might as well add one more.