Banzhang

This 2006 Raw Pu-erh offers a deep, complex profile, evolving with notes of damp earth, forest floor, and a hint of dark fruits. Its robust body and lingering finish showcase the distinct terroir of B. It leans earthy, woody and robust.

Water around 95–100 °C (203–212 °F). In a mug, steep 3–5 min. For gongfu, use 5–7 g per 100 ml, 10–20 s steeps (10–20+ rounds). You'll get to see how the flavor changes across multiple rounds. Rinse the leaves once with boiling water before your first real steep. It cleans off storage dust and gets the flavor going.

Grown in Yunnan, China. This batch is from the 2006 harvest.

Starts at $9.99 from King Tea Mall, or about $0.48/g. A 7g package gets you around 1 gongfu sessions at ~6 g each, which works out to about $2.88 per session. Explore more dark teas on Teadar.