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Wu Niu Zao Green Tea
Wu Niu Zao 烏牛早 is one of the earliest harvested Green Tea in Zhejiang area, having a history of more than 400 years. The name “Wu Niu” is the township name of its original place – Wu Niu Town in Yong Jia, Zhejiang. And its name “Zao”(早) means “early”. We purchase this early harvest batch of Wu Niu Zao from a small tea farm in Lingxia Village, located in Wu Niu Town. The tea is grown in above 500 meters, which is pretty high in Zhejiang area. As it is the first flush batch of tea, its dry leaves looks very small with fat buds, it is sweet with a mixed floral, refreshing vegetal and chestnut notes.
One of the Earliest Harvest Teas
As its name indicated, “early harvest” is its biggest feature. Wu Niu Zao is generally harvested between mid of February and mid of April every year, a month prior to other green tea variety in Zhajiang area, like Longjing and Bi Luo Chun Tea. Unlike other tea trees which can be picked in spring, summer and autumn, its harvesting period only last for around a month in spring.
How to distinguish Wu Niu Zao and Longjing Tea?
The green tea made by Wu Niu Zao is indeed very similar to Longjing. But if you look a little closer and taste-test between them, there is still a big difference. In fact, Wu Niu Zao is not inferior to Longjing Tea. The tea tree varietal of Wu Niu Zao is called “Jia Ming No.1”, which sprout very early in Spring.
In terms of appearance, both Wu Niu Zao and Longjing tea has flattened, needle-like leaf shape. Wu Niu Zao looks small and short with fat buds, typically has a more greenish leaf color compared to Longjing tea; Longjing No.43 looks thinner and longer, and the colour is yellow-green, which looks more yellowish than Wu Niu Zao.
In terms of the tasting profile, Wu Niu Zao has a very special variety fragrance, the mouthfeel is very refreshing and clean, having a unique umami, floral, refreshing vegetal notes and chestnut notes; Longjing tea is more like a mix of floral and bean notes, the mouthfeel is a bit thicker than Wu Niu Zao, more apparent in its nutty notes and sweetness.
Harvest Date: 6 March 2024
Weight per pack: 25g/ 50g/ 100g
Tea Farm Location: Wu Niu Town, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China
Varietal: Wu Niu Zao
Types of Green Tea (Green-killing method): Chao Qing/ Pan-fried Green Tea
Tasting Notes: refreshing, sweet, umami, refreshing vegetal notes mixed with floral and chestnut notes
Dry Leaves Appearance: short and fat, flat, green
Tea Liquor Colour: bright and clear light green
Brewing Method (Adjust with your own taste):
Gaiwan Style: 3-4g Tea| 150-200ml water (85-90°c) | 1-3 infusion : 10-15’s, After : Add 5’s each
Glass Style: prepare a tall glass, pre-warm the glass by rinsing it, fill your glass with 85-90°c water, add tea leaves (3g), let it rest for 1 minute, enjoy (Don’t drink the whole glass, left 1/3 of Tea liquor in the glass for resteeping, add 30’s each time)
