Yiwu Gaoshan 2025 autumn danzhu

Year: 2025, autumn
Weight: 10 grams sample and 250 grams bing*
Country of origin: China, Yunnan province

* This autumnal collection is wrapped in the same wrapper design, distinguished only by a stamp with Chinese characters indicating the name of the tea. A few bings’ wrappers also have hand-written names in Latin letters on them, written by Milos Karasek himself—a well-known Slovak artist who designed the wrappers for these cakes.

Details:

— the story of Yiwu Gaoshan zhaizi

Gaoshan Village is a Yi ethnic village and a place blessed with excellent feng shui. It faces Mahei Village across the mountains, yet its character is distinctly different. Gaoshan Village is located in the ancient Yiwu tea mountains of northeastern Xishuangbanna. Perched atop high mountain peaks, it earned the name “Gaoshan” (High Mountain), at an elevation of over 1,200 meters. Clouds and mist linger here year-round.

Legend has it that in the 1970s, when the government called on tea farmers to cut down tea trees and plant other crops, many ethnic minorities did not share the same awareness as the Han people, and a large number of old tea gardens were destroyed. Only the Yi people of Gaoshan Village were too indifferent to comply — they simply left the tea trees untouched and went hunting in the mountains with their rifles.

Within the Yiwu tea region, Gaoshan Village has the largest number of ancient tea trees that have never been dwarf-pruned. The old tea gardens coexist with a wide variety of large trees, with most tea trees being over a hundred years old. The ecology is excellent, and the tea trees grow vigorously.

Tea from Gaoshan is one of the finest representatives of the Yiwu tea region. Compared with teas from other Yiwu villages, Gaoshan tea is known for its high aroma and outstanding returning sweetness (huigan).

— tasting notes

The first brew is sweet, gentle, and caring — a classical Yiwu tea full of aroma and flavor. It is smooth and round, with a woody *gushu*-like feel that is comforting and friendly. The tea still feels quite fresh, with no clear autumnal notes. A tasty, nutty aftertaste lingers.

When brewed longer, the tea liquor becomes stronger and more fermented in character. The flavor profile grows denser, yet remains very enjoyable and well balanced. I almost feel as if I have moved from a fresh tea to one that has already aged for at least five to eight years. Minerality becomes more pronounced, adding structure and depth. The aftertaste is long-lasting, with baked, caramelized sweetness.

In later, stronger brews, autumn-like characteristics begin to emerge. The robust body of this tea — supported by the *danzhu* selection (only a few old tea trees harvested) — makes this a remarkably pure *gushu* pu-erh, without any leaves from small tea trees added.

—