Tea: Melon Seed Green (Lu'an Guapian - 六安瓜片) Type: Anhui Green Tea Harvest: Mid April 2026 Region: Lu'an, Anhui, China Producers: Wang Family Tasting Notes: Nettle, Kale, Cabbage, Daffodil
This year we got something special from the Wang Family. Due to the general downturn in the green tea market, prices have dropped substantially. This means we were able to buy a grade of Guapian that was once 30% more expensive than the usual mid-season grade that we buy. Lighter in color and taste, this more tender pick has all the richness and power you can expect from Guapian, but with less bitterness and homeliness in shape.
Guapian is a type of green tea that has survived in roughly the same form since antiquity. These wok-fried leaves are large, natural, and a little ugly. Guapian has been one of China's top ten teas for hundreds of years, and the methodology behind this tea is very unique, featuring whisking the leaves with a hand-held straw broom in a wood-fired wok. This processing creates the iconic wabi-wabi leaf shape iconic to the Guapian, or Melon Slices.
As this tea consists of larger leaves, there is very little 'mingqian' guapian made in Luan. The tea is thick, rich, and delivers a powerful cup of tea without too much bitterness. This is a great tea for those who want a little force in their green tea selection, and are not afraid of some big ugly leaves.
The brew starts off very vegetal, but gets sweeter and creamier as the session progresses, and even positively floral by the final infusions.
We recommend brewing this tea in a gaiwan (2.5 grams to 100ml water with flash infusions) or in a tall glass grandpa style (3 grams to 8 oz of water with a death steep).
Delicious, fruity, fresh, energetic black tea. Love it. It’s smells fantastic as you pour water over it.
Deserves Giawan brewing over a time out tea session.
Let's start with the bad: I feel like the processing-quality on this one is not as high as with other teas from this site. I found quite a few non-tea-leaves in my cake and even a small rock. Also the pressing is very loose (cake nearly coming apart in my hands), making it less suited for further aging.
So why still 4 stars?
Because it's god damn delicious! The fragrance when you open the wrapper is already intoxicating, reminiscent of red fruit, jam and sugar. The taste is fruity, sweet, with some subtle spices and a mouthfeel and aftertaste to die for. It is really, really enjoyable! Just rinse well and you can enjoy a lovely tea :)
The tea has layers of textures and flavors to experience, and is unfussy in brewing. It has become one of my favorite to sit with for longer sessions. After drinking 50g I decided it was worth it to purchase the full brick.
This is a fantastic white tea, the condensed cherries is the prominent note for me. It has a long lasting sweetness and a tart fruitiness. I have been loving whites from Lincang, and this one is a unique special treat, a blend of older and ancient trees. I decided to grab a tong after flying through a cake, it will age beautifully I think.