At a glance
This entry concerns Mengku Daxueshan in Shuangjiang. Daxueshan alone is an incomplete source description: identify the actual area, tea material and maker rather than assuming every same-named product comes from one wild forest.
| Detail | What to know |
|---|---|
| Chinese name | 大雪山普洱茶（勐库） |
| Tea family | Pu-erh tea |
| Associated origin | Mengku, Shuangjiang County, Lincang, Yunnan; this article covers the Mengku name |
| Leaf form | Leaf tea sold in loose or compressed forms; check the actual product |
Taste and appearance
The original describes large plump thick leaves, hairy buds, strong aroma and a full mellow cup with long sweet return. Its table retains dark-green material, bright golden liquor, orchid/honey and wild-floral impressions, and a rich fine smooth taste. These are sensory comparisons, not an extract-content test or proof that a packet was gathered from ancient wild trees. Its shared cup picture is withheld; the leaf reference remains.
The original liquor photograph is withheld because identical pixels were assigned to another tea name. Its named identity could not be confirmed; the original file is preserved.
The cover is the original dry-leaf illustration. These images are not TeaPlain tasting samples or proof of origin, grade, age, authenticity or image rights clearance.
Grade characteristics
This preserves the earlier Chinese edition’s sensory comparison. It is not a complete verified current standard table and does not grade your packet. Plant material, growing area, processing and grade are separate details. Decorative star rankings are omitted.
On a small screen, scroll the table sideways to compare the grades.
| Feature | Extra grade (old comparison) | Grade 1 (old comparison) | Grade 2 (old comparison) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shape | Plump lustrous hairy strands with moderate compression | Plump strands with some visible hairs | Plump strands with some visible hairs |
| Dry colour | Dark green tending black | Dark green tending black | Dark green |
| Liquor | Bright golden | Bright golden | Fairly bright golden |
| Aroma | Wild-floral with orchid, rich and high with honey sweetness | Lasting orchid/honey sweetness | Rich orchid/honey |
| Taste | Full mellow rich fine smooth cup with marked sweet return | Fairly mellow rich cup with sweet return | Fairly mellow rich cup with sweet return |
| Infused leaves | Even tender lively yellow-green | Lively yellow-green retaining tenderness | Fairly lively yellow-green retaining tenderness |
The duplicate third shape wording is consolidated. No single modern grade, exact wild species or universal extraction measurement is established. The unusually low old Grade 1 price is preserved with an explicit verification gap, not silently changed.
Names and origin
The inherited scope is the Mengku/Bangma mountain area. A university resource account and a separate local institutional account put the peak at about 3,233 m, rather than the old rounded 3,300 m assertion. Peak height is not the growing altitude of every leaf in a packet. The wild tea-tree community and commercial tea sold with a mountain name are different things; an old forest description does not prove species, tree age, permitted collection or suitability of unidentified material. No claim of all products having high extract content, tiny output or superior ageing is verified.
Everyday benefits
Brewed without added sugar, this is an ordinary tea drink that can be an alternative to sweetened drinks and contribute to fluid intake. It contains caffeine. These everyday properties do not establish that this named tea treats disease, lowers blood sugar or improves sleep. No TeaPlain clinical or brewing test is claimed here.
Who may enjoy this tea
For people comparing an identified Mengku-area tea with a rich aromatic cup. Choose a clearly labelled finished food product rather than seeking unverified wild collection.
When to take care
- Caffeine sensitivity or sleep problems: consider your total intake and timing if tea affects your sleep. A pale infusion is not a caffeine-free claim.
- Pregnancy, breastfeeding or medicines: ask a clinician or pharmacist about your actual product, caffeine intake and relevant medicine instructions.
- Iron supplements: follow the medicine’s instructions about separating tea from the dose. Do not use tea as treatment for anaemia.
These are product and individual considerations, not a blanket ban based on traditional “hot” or “cold” labels, age, sex or a constitution category.
How to brew
Original prose: glass vessel with full separation
The original says heat-safe glass, 1:18, 100°C / 212°F, moisten/rinse the leaves, then pour off the drinking infusion after 10 seconds. It mentions more than ten infusions, a possibility rather than a guarantee. No duration or water volume is given for the initial moistening/rinse. Use heat-safe teaware with a strainer or another way to separate all the liquid promptly.
| Detail | Original prose with explicit ratio arithmetic |
|---|---|
| Tea | 5 g loosened from the compressed tea, an arithmetic example |
| Actual water | 90 mL / about 3 US fl oz measured actual water at 1:18 |
| Vessel | Heat-safe glass brewing vessel with a safe way to strain/decant fully |
| Water | 100°C / 212°F |
| Initial moistening/rinse | Mentioned, but no time or water amount specified |
| First drinking infusion | 10 seconds, then separate the tea liquor |
| Later infusions | Adjust to the actual leaves; more than ten is not guaranteed |
The 5 g / 90 mL example is arithmetic, not a measurement from a picture. These inherited directions are awaiting hands-on testing. Vessel capacity, water poured and liquid recovered are different quantities. Keep the original gaiwan illustration below separate. Take a measured portion, rather than steeping a whole cake, brick or large tuo in a mug, and let the drink cool enough to sip. A rinse is not a means of making mouldy tea suitable to drink.
Read the original illustration separately
Illustration: gaiwan. Caption 8 g, scale appears 8.1, water 100°C / 212°F. The first waking step holds 5–8 seconds, and the second infusion is filtered/decanted within five seconds. It gives no actual water volume or vessel capacity, and does not explicitly state disposal of the first liquid. Keep this separate from the old prose’s ten-second drinking infusion and 1:18 ratio.
For ordinary teaware options, see brew without a gaiwan. Keep each complete method together instead of selecting temperature, dose and time from different preparations.
Adjust your cup
| What you notice | One change to try |
|---|---|
| Too strong, bitter or drying | Separate the liquid from the leaves; shorten contact time or use less tea next time |
| Weak or watery | Keep the measured water fixed and try a longer infusion before changing the leaf dose |
| Later infusions become stronger | Check whether liquid was left sitting with the leaves |
| Different from a flavour description | Compare the actual product and method; a description is not a promise for every cup |
Change one variable at a time. For a fuller sequence, see fix a disappointing first cup.
How to buy
Require the full place name, identified tea material, producer, raw/ripe or other process, dates and storage. Do not assume a mountain nickname is a wild-harvest certificate.
See buy your first Chinese tea for packet comparisons.
China price reference
Undated figures retained from the Chinese edition, in Chinese yuan (CNY). No original brand, batch, harvest or quotation date was recorded. These are not verified current retail quotes, a market average or manufacturer-suggested retail prices.
| Chinese-edition tier | CNY per 500 g (one jin) | Equivalent CNY per 100 g |
|---|---|---|
| Extra grade | 1,680 | 336 |
| Grade 1 | 119 | 23.8 |
Per 100 g is an arithmetic conversion, not a quoted packet. Do not infer a missing sensory or price tier. Compare actual growing area, style, harvest, roast, weight and channel. A currency conversion does not make a UK or US retail offer comparable to a China historical figure.
Source anomaly: Grade 1 was recorded as CNY 119 per 500 g, alongside CNY 1,680 for extra grade. The original provides no dated quote or packet to resolve this large gap. It may need correction, but no replacement digit or current offer is invented; CNY 23.8 per 100 g is only its arithmetic conversion.
How to store
Original storage method
The old method describes conditional long-term storage, with duration depending on the tea, processing and actual storage history. It uses a clean, odour-free, shaded, relatively ventilated place, a clean carton or kraft bag without fully sealing the outer package, and original bamboo-shell wrapping where supplied. It keeps tea on shelving above floor level, away from walls, separates different types and batches, and checks it every few months.
Its targets are below 25°C / 77°F and below 70% relative humidity. These are inherited environmental references, not a validated universal ageing optimum, a target humidity to create, or a guarantee of remaining life. A partly closed carton is appropriate only where the surrounding conditions are clean, dry and suitable; it is not protection from a damp room. Follow the actual label and its specified conditions first.
In a UK or US kitchen
Choose a dry, stable place away from the stove, dishwasher steam, sunlight, spices, chemicals and food smells. Ventilation does not mean leaving tea exposed on a worktop or near an open damp window. Protect both the bulk pack and a small working portion from moisture and contamination. Do not deliberately humidify tea to imitate a factory fermentation pile. Check condition as well as dates; reject obvious mould, water damage or abnormal mustiness rather than trying to rinse it away. Long-term keeping is conditional, not a promise that every tea improves indefinitely. See storing opened tea.
Origin, processing and history
The shared illustration shows picking, withering/spreading, fixation, rolling, sun-drying, pressing, drying and packing. It is a simplified sheng-style sequence; the second drying is labelled sun-drying in the picture, not a rule for every producer. GB/T 22111 distinguishes making sun-dried tea from refining, steaming/pressing, drying and packing sheng. The picture does not demonstrate a particular harvest, old-tree origin or brand, and is not a shou pile-fermentation map. This generic raw-style cake diagram does not identify wild species or establish that every Mengku Daxueshan product was sourced from the ancient wild community. Identified finished products and unknown forest plants are not interchangeable.
Common questions
Does Daxueshan on the wrapper prove wild ancient-tree material?
No. Ask which Daxueshan, the source garden and actual plant material, maker, process and dates. Mountain ecology and a high peak do not authenticate a packet or establish that unknown wild leaves are suitable for drinking.
Can I move one number from this recipe into a different vessel?
Keep leaf form, measured dose and actual water, temperature, timing and separation together. Nominal capacity or a fill fraction is not a measured ratio.
Compare Xiaohusai Puerh, or browse the pu-erh tea overview.
Editorial notes and updates
Updated 16 October 2026. Valid original descriptions, sensory comparisons, prose and image methods, storage handling, China price figures and usable pictures are retained with their scope. Doubtful medical, ranking and exact historical claims are revised or omitted. Current full grade clauses and historical prices are not certified. Original Chinese-labelled graphics have English reading notes; no TeaPlain tasting or brewing test is claimed. Internal research and image audits record the decisions.