Wu Yi Shan: Day 3 (With some tasting notes)

9/5/07
-Up late, 10:00 though unsuprising the others also weren't up. Meet for breakfast/lunch.
-Get bus with plan to go to Da Hong Pao. Home of the famous 6 mother tea plants.
- Hot!
-Ask old man where to go. WL and I want to get a move on but the others amble a long. Wonderful natural surrounding with tea growing in a seemingly more mature way compared to the recent visit to Zhen Shan. Get called back by the others. Have been walking wrong way.
-Long walk but very peaceful
-Fresh roadside fruit delivery
-Buddist statue and carving with fresh mountain water.
-Get to Da Hong Pao entrance. Lots of Chinese tourists.
-Take the quiet routes!
-Tea growing amongst the almost jungle vegetation. Very dream like.
-Arrive at the sacred plants. Strange to think that some years only 100g of dried leaf can be made from these plants. Would be interesting to know who is chosen to process the wet leaf.
-Have to rush back to town to meet WL's friend. The other head to Shui Lian (Water curtain) waterfall.
-Dinner with WL's friend is a little odd, very stilted, but none the less a very pleasent man. I look forward to meeting him again once back in Shanghai.
-Wonder back from the hotel where we have dinner. Look at some of the lovely wood carvings that Wu Yi Shan has to boast.
-Find another teashop that I invited to taste some teas. I end up chatting to 2 Korean guys who are very knowledgable in their teas. Probably the highlight is tasting some old tea tree oolong. the trees are around 100 years old and the leaf shows the same characterists as is seen with the Pu Er's from Yunnan i.e. much broader leaf growth. This tea has plenty of Cha Qi. Before long my feet and legs are tingling nicely and getting quite hot, not long after this spreads to my hands. Lovely to be high on tea.
-Head back to the tea house from the previous day to buy some teas for WL to test out at her shop. Spot the others. Get them to test more teas.
-Packed up head back to hotel. The Owners of the tea shop give us some local Huang Jiu (Yellow Wine) to try.

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