From the old caravan routes to your cellar
Amgalan Chin, our cross-regional tea expert, has been sourcing directly from the Xiaguan factory for over a decade. Xiaguan, in western Yunnan, is renowned for its iron-pressed tuochas, a style originally developed for the yak caravan trade to Tibet and Mongolia. Chin’s connections along the old Russian–Mongolian tea routes give him unique access to factory-fresh 2024 batches that seldom reach the West. The tea is made from blended spring leaves across Lincang and Dali prefectures, withered, pan-fried, rolled, and sun-dried before being steamed and pressed under extreme pressure into the classic bowl shape. The result is a tea that ages slowly, rewarding patience with deepening complexity — from smoky youth to dark, medicinal elegance after a decade.
Chin stores a portion of each batch in his private cellar in Mongolia, where dramatic seasonal temperature swings accelerate aging in unique ways. He recommends cellaring this tuocha for at least five years before enjoying, by which time the smoke mellows and the honey-and-leather notes emerge. For those who collect, this is a foundational sheng, as essential as a Burgundy in a wine cellar.