2012 Three Cranes 25017 Recipe Traditional Liu Bao Hei Cha of Guangxi

25017 is the recipe number for this traditional medium level fermented Liu Bao tea from the oldest producer of Liu Bao in Guangxi (Three Cranes / Wuzhou Tea Factory). Much like ripe pu-erh tea, liu bao is wet piled for for several weeks to allow fermentation to take place. The degree of fermentation depends on the amount of time the tea is wet piled and can differ depending on the intended outcome. The 25017 is wet piled for about 29 days, which is typical for classical Liu Bao. The result is a liu bao with some bitter, sweet, chocolate and betel nut flavors. It’s got an obvious “chen xiang” (old taste) due to classic style processing and 5 years in hot and humid Wuzhou storage condition.

This has been stored since 2012 and then in 2014 packed into 15 kilogram baskets. The wet storage conditions in Wuzhou have fast aged this tea, but at the same time the tea is not funky or moldy.