Watch Video: Unwrapping and breaking down.
This is the 2002 LiuDaChaShan (Six Famous Tea Mountains) “Nan Nuo - Ye Sheng Cha” (Nannuo Mountain - Wild Tea) cake: a 357g sheng (raw) puerh pressed from wild tea from Nan Nuo Mountain in Menghai County, Xishuangbanna. Nan Nuo’s ancient gardens, at around 1,400m, are home to a roughly 800-year-old cultivated tea king tree, and the mountain is known above all for fragrance.
Appearance: The wrapper may show wear. The cake is a hard-pressed disc with a dense center and looser edges, so some leaf threads may detach at the rim. The strands are long and tightly rolled, typical of Nannuo tea.
Liu Da Cha Shan (Six Famous Tea Mountains) is a Yunnan puerh company founded in 2002 by Ruan Dian Rong, a former manager of Menghai Tea Factory. It takes its name from the historic Six Famous Tea Mountains of southern Yunnan, and produces raw (sheng) and ripe (shou) puerh from regions such as Jinggu, Youle, and Banzhang.
Tea Profile
At a glance: 2002 · Sheng (raw) puerh · 357g cake · LiuDaChaShan
- Liquor: Golden and bright.
- Aroma & Flavor: Fragrance leads — a floral, honeyed aroma over a full, smooth liquor. Bitterness is weak and the returning sweetness comes quickly and lasts, with a clear mountain character. The mountain’s own hallmark: aroma first, sweetness close behind.
- Aftertaste: Fast, lasting hui gan (returning sweetness) with good saliva production.
- Best for: Drinkers who put aroma first — a fragrant, sweet Menghai mountain sheng in an aged early LiuDaChaShan pressing.
Brewing Guide
Water: 100°C (212°F), fully boiling.
- Preheat the vessel; add around 5g per 100ml.
- One rinse to open the leaves, then a covered rest of about 10 minutes.
- Steep 10–15 seconds at first, adding ~5 seconds per round.
- Always pour out completely into a fairness cup before drinking.
- Keep steeping — sheng rewards patience with many rounds.
These are starting guidelines, not fixed rules. Adjust pour and timing to taste.
Storage
Store with air, coolness, and dryness; keep out of sun and away from strong odors. For long aging, paper or unglazed clay breathes better than sealed plastic.
This cake has been naturally aged in Guangzhou for about two decades.
A Note on Appearance
Not every cake shows these, but they can occur after many years of storage.
- Bamboo powder (zhu fen): a natural sign of traditional bamboo-husk packing. In Guangdong's warm, humid climate, tiny bamboo insects may nibble the husk and cotton paper while leaving the tea untouched, leaving a fine powder. Harmless; brush off before brewing.
- Tea oil spots: yellowish spots from natural tea oils; not a flaw.
- Torn wrapper: small tears or holes in the cotton paper can happen in storage and handling; the tea inside is unaffected. A lower-priced option with a nearly fully torn wrapper may also be listed.
