DRAGON CLAWS L5 | Classic Dragon

Minimally processed, wild tea buds from northwest Vietnam's mountains brew a mind-blowing cup.  This lot, bright green and vibrant, is an accurate copy of the tea that we first tried in Vietnam in 2022 - and have sourced since.

Trà Móng Rồng (Dragon Claw Tea) is known as 芽苞 (Ya Bao, literally translated as 'bud') in Yunnan.  Needless to say, the Vietnamese get the award for the cooler name.

Tasting Notes: green apricots, retsina (wine), and wooden spice cabinets from Provence.

Origin:  Nậm Piên, Nậm Ty, Hoàng Su Phì, Hà Giang

GPS:  22.6°N 104.8°E

Harvest:  November 2022

Tree type:  wild, ancient

Bud type:  plump, green with hints of purple

Brewing Suggestions:  pour 200ml of boiling water on 5-6 tea leaves; steep for 4-5 minutes.  You may steep these leaves about 5 times.  

Tea Artisans: Trieu Quy Menh and Hoang Chai, husband and wife, started a small tea production business after years of working for a local tea cooperative.   Being both native people of Nam Ty, they are extremely well familiar with the wild tea plants in the rainforest. Also importantly, they are aware of the importance of these ancient trees and harvest them sustainably.

Photo credit:  Nguyễn Lam