Xishuangbanna, June 23rd

We welcome our guests to our place, in Xishuangbanna valley, for a comfortable rest with tea, seasonal fruit and food to recover from the fatigue of your travel. 

We stay in a villa next to our studio, that will be your base for the whole duration of our trip to the lands we love so much.

Nannuo forest, June 24th

Nannuo mountain has a thousand-year history with tea, and due to its wilder history has an incomparable richness of tea forests: our travel into pu’er starts from here, walking to pay homage to the oldest 800-year-old tree, which is considered the king of Nannuo mountain, and whose location and story are so meaningful for our travel into pu’er tea.

After a typical Hani culture lunch in the mountain, with locally grown raw material, herbs, and spices, we have an incense workshop and seminar: we go through 2000 years of fragrant history, actively studying the most important components, benefits, and interaction of different agarwood with different teas.

Gallery: Nannuo

Menghai, June 25th

Menghai is the centre of the most renowned - and busiest - area for the production of pu'er tea: it is surrounded by the Bulang area with Laobanzhang and Laoman'e, Pasha, Nannuo, Naka and many others, and brings together all the best professionals and factories. 

We visit a pu'er tea refining workshop and explore the local economy while dedicating our day to sampling the greatest teas.

In the afternoon, on the way to Xishuangbanna, we stop by our Pu'er shupu master for a specialised tasting, to smooth our way into the night.

Gallery: Menghai

On the way to Kunming, June 26th

We go to Kunming, the capital of Yunnan, located at 2,100 meters above sea level between the tropical south and the Himalayan north. We go to the freshness of Spring City, the capital of pu'er tea, where twenty-five cultural groups still live and thrive.

We visit the local tea market for professionals, with multiple chances to review and enrich the leaf-based experiences we had during our travel. It is an important place to feel the contemporary tea-scene in Yunnan: here every notable company is represented, with the best of its production.

Photo gallery: Kunming

Kunming, June 27th

We meet Li Haibo and Li Jiajia, the teacher who teaches gongfucha practice and ceremony: we study technique and movements to brew Chinese teas properly, preparing some leaves from his impressive collections. 

After a lunch with private chef, we will join Master top teacher Li Haibo for an in-depth seminar on Yixing clay: he will prepare several teas using different Yixing pieces from his collection, telling about their history and most important shapes.

Photo gallery: Kunming

Kunming to Dali, June 28th

We arrive in the Dali highland by train: in front of us the Erhai Lake, that for the 40Km of its majestic length is crowned by the Cang Mountain Range, one of the most spectacular in China.

This land flourished since the VIII century with the Nanzhao Kingdom, and all around the shores of the Erhai lake, where multiple preserved remains of many dynasties.

The landscape sweetens our day dedicated to history, culture and tea: we are going to taste pu'er teas that once transited here through the Ancient Tea Horse Road paired with local delicacies, tea leaves, and medicinal herbs, that grow in this incredible biodiversity.

Photo gallery: Dali

Dali, June 29th

We wake up with sunrise on the crystal clear lake, and we head to the Zhang Family Residence: it is an architectural masterpiece that best represents the Bai architectural art in place in this same location since Tang dynasty.

We continue our day visiting one of the most stunning Chinese landmarks: the Three Pagodas that surround the Chongsheng Temple, a symmetrical complex built in the 9th century and survived intact until nowadays.

We end our days in the hot-springs nourished by the Cang mountains spring water, to restore us and to sweeten the evening chill.

Photo gallery: Dali

Dali to Kunming, June 30th

In the morning, we leave Dali and travel to Kunming by express train.

As the most valuable hub for the trade of Pu'er tea, Kunming offers us the perfect setting for an in-depth afternoon tasting with aged-tea professionals who contribute to its importance in the contemporary tea scene.

We carefully select prominent experts based on their availability, including tea collectors, dealers, and respected tea publishers with established reputations in the Chinese tea market.

Photo gallery: Kunming

Kunming to Xishuangbanna, July 1st

In the morning we head south towards the ancient Dai kingdom of Xishuangbanna, where most of the premium pu'er tea is produced and enjoyed.

After checking in, we have a quiet lunch and we dedicate the afternoon to the study of locally grown teas: it is the cradle of pu’er tea, with great and rising aged white teas and continuously evolving Dianhong red teas.

Gallery: Nannuo mountain

Bulang mtn., July 2rd

In the morning we head to Laoman’e village, the most historical and cultural village in the area, with a lively ancient temple that is the old keeper of the local culture and pu’er tea.

After lunch, we visit the most famous village in the area, a symbol of the skyrocketing prices of pu'er tea: Laobanzhang, with its historic trees, evidence of ancient domestication, and the maximum security village that protects its treasure.

During this day at the origin of tea, we will live and drive through scenic ridges and valleys; and in both villages we visit we will notice the same timeless connection between the Bulang and Hani people and their tea forests, a tradition passed down for over a thousand years.

Gallery: Laobanzhang and Laoman'e

Nannuo mountain, July 3th

In the morning we plan a walk to explore the height of Nannuo and reach its Bama side, the most prestigious and isolated.
Note: for whoever feels uncomfortable with the hike, most of the walk can be supported by SUV or small bus.

We will explore different tea-gardens and forests, cultivars and species, and we will have a picnic on the mountain. It is a unique chance to be immersed in the tea mountain, participating in its daily life and fragrances, step by step. 

Our day includes a visit to the peaceful and hidden forest in Lunan/Pasha to our ancient trees: it is often immersed in the fog, and gifts us with a magical atmosphere.

Gallery: Nannuo mountain

Yiwu, July 4th

We head southeast toward the border with Laos, with the Yiwu peaks as our destination. This region is home to a diverse range of flavors, landscapes, and producers; forests of ancient tea trees stretch through the valleys, connected by the same road that hosted tribute tea caravans for centuries.

Upon arriving in Yiwu town, we settle into a small hotel with a well-kept garden, a terrace, and multiple tea rooms. We then take a walk through Yiwu’s most historically significant homes and lanes, visiting the square where pu'er tea was loaded and traded for generations, as well as the local museum, located at the first stop of the Ancient Tea Horse Road.

Gallery: Yiwu

Yiwu, July 5th

We wake up surrounded by the peaks and scents of Yiwu, and after a proper tea session we head for the inner land of the area, diving in the cultural diversity of te area.

We visit two different tea villages and forests: Luoshuidong, with its remarkable trees, a sanctuary to its king-tree, and the ancient road; we take a long walk through its lanes and its trees, on the same stone-path that men and horses walked since the origin of the trade.

The second village is Mahei, an old Han culture village that determines what Yiwu means and taste. It is inhabited by the first migrants that settled here during the early tributary era,

Xishuangbanna, July 6th

In the morning we immerse ourself once more, for our last intense day, in the most important pu'er teas of Yunnan: after many days visiting terroir and farmers, it is time to follow a tasting seminar to review the most important knowledge and create a solid taste-database of the area that welcomed and enchanted us.

In the afternoon we visit a lush tropical garden surrounded by forest, which houses the ceramic workshop of an innovative master we love: Qiu Laoshi and his creations. His work is deeply rooted in his territory: he uses only local sands and plant-based ashes for his glazes, and each of his production-season has a different hue. 

Galleries: Qiu Laoshi

Xishuangbanna, July 7th

It is time to wrap-up all the tastes, teas, people, places and experiences we have encountered through our travel: we meet in the morning in our tea studio to brew together the very best mountains and vintages. 

We prepare some Guanguan tea on the fire to warm up our soul before saying our goodbye.