Jing Shan Lu Cha

Jing Shan Lu Cha is a local maofeng-style green tea from Jingshan Mountain. From time to time, we like to bring lesser-known teas to Nannuoshan when we come across particularly good examples. They might not have the fame of Long Jing or Bi Luo Chun, but they give us the opportunity to explore another corner of the tea world and expand our tea knowledge together. Jing Shan Lu Cha is one of those discoveries.

Light and refreshing, yet with a surprisingly full presence in the mouth. The first infusion has a smooth, buttery texture and a gentle vegetal sweetness, reminiscent of tender spring vegetables. There is very little sharpness or astringency; instead, the liquor feels soft, rounded and mouth-filling. The second infusion brings out the tea's more savoury side. The fresh green character deepens into a distinctive note of stewed potatoes, accompanied by hints of sweet peas and warm cooked vegetables. The buttery texture remains, giving the tea an almost creamy quality, while a clean vegetal freshness keeps the cup lively. A gentle and comforting green tea, combining spring freshness with an unusually savoury, creamy character.

Written by Gabriele

The history of Jing Shan Lu Cha

Jing Shan Lu Cha has a history stretching back more than a thousand years. Tea cultivation on Jingshan Mountain began around its Buddhist temple during the Tang dynasty. The temple and its tea became so renowned that Lu Yu, author of the Cha Jing — The Classic of Tea — spent time in Jingshan studying tea.

Its influence reached beyond China during the Song dynasty. Japanese monks studying at Jingshan Temple returned home with tea seeds, cultivation knowledge and the temple's elaborate rituals for preparing and drinking tea. These practices contributed to the development of Japan's tea culture and, over the centuries, to what became Chado, the Japanese Way of Tea. Few green teas connect the everyday pleasure of a fresh spring harvest with such a remarkable chapter in the history of tea.