XIAGUAN TUO CHA | Classic Pu Er Tea Collection

This is a small collection of Xiaguan Tuo Cha products that we find very interesting.  

Xiaguan Tuo Cha (下关沱茶), based in Dali, Yunnan, is one of China’s top two Pu Er tea producers by volume (~5000 tons per year).  The company’s history dates back to 1902, in the late Qing Dynasty.  Today, Xiaguan is recognized as "Intangible Cultural Heritage" of China; the company is also at the forefront of  poverty alleviation enterprise in its home province of Yunnan.

Xiaguan also played a very important role in the development of "cooked" Pu Er in the 1970's.

OUR XIAGUAN TUO CHA LEARNING PROJECT

In 2024, we hosted a Pu Er learning group focused on this very important tea producer.  The inspiration for this was our dear friend, Mr. Zhang Tao, who encouraged our team to branch out out from our 'small producer' comfort zone and learn about a a company that has played an oversized role in China for more than a century.  

Collection:

1) 2014 Xiao Fa Tuo (100g).  This recipe was developed in the 1980s and quickly became Xiaguan's major success in a Western market, particularly in France.  Relevant facts:

Experience:  it is an extremely easy-drinking cooked tea; smooth, earthy, naturally sweet.

Formula Created:  1976

First exported:  1977

Formula:  code 7663

Exported to date (Nov. 2020):  4620 tons

Originally available (in France) only in pharmacies!

Key Character:  Fred Kempler, a French WWII veteran who tried Xiao Fa Tuo in 1976, financed the first western study about the health benefits of Pu Er, and popularized this tea in France.

2) 2014 Jia Ji Tuo (销法沱  100g).  Xiaguan's traditional 'Grade A' recipe, produced with a 70/30 blend of young leaves and buds from Mengku (勐库), Fengqing (凤庆), and Lincang (临沧).

Experience:  powerful, bitter-turns-to-sweetness mouthfeel with very pleasant hints of smoke (typical for Xiaguan).  

First production for this formula:  1951

4) 2009 T8603-9 Iron Cake 357g.  This is a 2009 re-interpretation of a legacy tea cake.  The composition is approximately 50% leaves, 40% buds and 10% stems, sourced from Xiaguan's Menghai tea plantations. These cakes were developed mostly for collectors to age and treasure over the next few decades. The material is generally considered to be a higer grade of the more readily available T8653.

Experience:  very bold tea with hints of smoke.  

First production for this formula:  1986

5) 2009 T8663 Iron Cake 357g.  This is a more affordable version of the original 1986 iron cake recipe, created with more mature leaves from Yibang, Jingu and Menghai.  Compared with T8603 and T8653, you will find more stems and older leaves. The pressing (albeit tight) is a bit looser vs. T8603.

Experience:  full bodied, surprisingly easy to drink, less complex than 8603.

First production for this formula:  1996 (modified from the 86 recipe)