first kiss (soft•bloom pressing)

an aging pressing of our best selling ancient tree red tea from hoang su phi, vietnam.

we pressed these cakes as an experiment 4 years ago, to see what would shape from the contemporary strengths we had come to anticipate with first kiss. what we’ve received is a tea so deep, so rounded and profoundly special. the fire has rested, bringing out immense honey-filled viscosity. the cha qi seems to have rounded out too, exploring an encompassing range that grounds internally, while very much ascending and permeating outward. 

this is one of the most special teas we have ever shared.

previous to pressing, first kiss is known to be a deep & complex red tea made by our dear friends hoang & yen from the wild tea trees directly across the path from their production hut. these are trees under humble care of the quang family, a little red ddal family of three generations under one roof, with these trees as their backyard for the past 200 years at least. 

“When the first rays of spring's sun come to dispel the dull cold of long winter days, the old tea tree wakes from a long sleep, 
sprouting green shoots that stand out above musty spindly branches.
I gently work with the young buds, but tremble with intense emotion.
Each hour, every minute, and every second the tea leaves change,
giving off the fragrance as if telling me the story of the season.
Then she changes her young green outfit to a dark pink wing, dotted with distant chalk rose pink.
A seductive floral scent that contains all the scents of spring flowers, 
A delicate silk-like sweetness that makes me flutter. 
Suddenly I see a couple in naive, naive confusion.
I call it the first kiss.”