Pasha Tea Plantation in Menghai County, XishuangBanna

Pasha Tea Base Overview

The Pasha tea base is located in the Pasha tea district, southwest of Gelanghe Township in Menghai County, at an elevation of over 1700 meters. Nestled between Nannuo Mountain and Bulang Mountain, this area is characterized by year-round mist, abundant rainfall, and lush vegetation, allowing the tea trees to thrive, resulting in long, robust tea leaves of excellent quality.

Geographical and Cultural Context

Pasha encompasses several Hani villages, including Pasha New Village, Pasha Old Village, Pasha Middle Village, Nangan, and Laoduan. The Hani people have resided here since the Tang Dynasty. The ancient tea trees found in Pasha can be traced back to this era. Thanks to the diligent efforts of their ancestors in cultivation, the Hani people have inherited a rich legacy of over 2900 acres of ancient tea gardens surrounding their villages, creating a landscape where green trees are predominantly tea trees.

Pasha Village is part of the Hani Ethnic Township in Gelanghe, located 6 kilometers from the township government and 33 kilometers from the county seat. It borders Pazhen Village to the east, Nampo Village to the south, Guanggang Village to the west, and Suhu Village to the north. As of the end of 2008, the village included several groups: Pasha Middle Village Team 1 and 2, Old Village Team 1 and 2, Pasha New Village, Laoduan, and Nangan, covering an area of 61.78 square kilometers, with elevations ranging from 1200 to 2000 meters, an average annual temperature of 22°C, and annual rainfall of 1500 millimeters, making it suitable for cultivating rice, sugarcane, and tea.

Ancient Tree Tea Distribution

The ancient tree tea of Pasha is primarily distributed around the villages, with the highest quality found in Pasha Old Village. These cultivated ancient tea trees are between 300 and 600 years old, alongside some younger tea trees of a few decades.

Tasting Profile

Authentic Pasha tea is renowned for its refreshing sweetness. Generally, the higher the elevation, the richer the tea’s flavor. Despite the abundance of famous teas in the Menghai area, Pasha’s reputation is relatively modest. However, it is recommended for collectors of raw tea. As the altitude increases, the quality of Pasha’s ancient tree tea improves. Initially, the raw materials may have a stronger astringency, but once processed into cakes, this astringency diminishes. With aging, it undoubtedly develops into a fine tea.

• Brewing Characteristics:
  • First to Third Infusions: The tea liquor is a青绿色 (greenish) hue with a high aroma. The mouthfeel is smooth, not dry, with a refreshing quality. The taste exhibits a mild bitterness and light astringency that dissipates quickly.
  • Fourth to Eighth Infusions: The liquor remains greenish with sustained aroma. The texture is soft, with continuous sweetness and salivation, and noticeable flavor transitions, presenting mild bitterness while the astringency is nearly imperceptible.
  • Ninth to Fifteenth Infusions: The tea liquor continues to exhibit a greenish hue, retaining good aroma and soft, sweet liquor. The flavor develops layers with slight bitterness and no astringency.
  • Fifteenth to Twentieth Infusions: The color lightens, the aroma diminishes, but the liquor remains soft and sweet, with lingering salivation and slight bitterness without astringency.

Pasha and Haiwan Tea

The unique geographical and climatic conditions of the southern Hengduan Mountains have given rise to a special species of wild large-leaf ancient tree tea, producing what is celebrated as “liquid gold”—Pu-erh tea. The Menghai tea district in Xishuangbanna, situated near the Tropic of Cancer, is home to some of the best-preserved tropical rainforests, earning its title as the “hometown of Pu-erh tea.”

Established in 2004, Haiwan Tea Industry operates a raw material procurement and fermentation base located 8 kilometers from Manwei Village in Menghai County, covering 25 acres. The initial processing sites in Yushou, Pasha, and Pazhen within Haiwan Tea Industry can supply over 1000 tons of raw materials annually, ensuring a steady supply of high-quality and uniquely flavored teas to consumers.

Yushou Mountain, at an elevation of 1721 meters within Menghai County, features beautiful surroundings, enveloped in subtropical rainforest, fostering the high-quality tea produced in the area.

Pasha tea base, positioned within the Pasha tea district of Gelanghe Township, benefits from high elevation, year-round mist, ample rainfall, and thriving vegetation, yielding robust and superior quality tea.

Pazhen base, located on the southern foothills of Pashen Old Village, belongs to the Bulang Mountain system and extends from an elevation of 1600 meters to the peak, characterized by a misty landscape and an ancient atmosphere.

In 2005, Haiwan Tea’s Pasha raw material base became the first in Yunnan Province to be approved as an export tea raw material base. The teas produced by Haiwan Tea are made from high-quality, pollution-free tea leaves sourced from the Menghai tea district, adhering to the classic formulas of Master Zou Bingliang, utilizing Menghai’s unique climate and geographical advantages, combining traditional and modern fermentation techniques to create meticulously blended teas. Haiwan Tea’s commitment to “making tea for the world” is a promise to the national drink, contributing to its global popularity among consumers.