Sifu Lao Cha handed a cup of freshly brewed bitter sheng from Lao Man’e to his young disciple:
– This tea, my boy, is a great representation of the Tao itself
– Oh, how so?
– Its bitter taste soon turns into long-lasting sweetness.
This exceptional sheng pu-erh comes from the heart of the Da Ban Zhang tea area – Lao Man’e village in Xishuangbanna. Lao Man’e is one of the oldest Bulang villages on Bulang Mountain, with a history that goes back well over a thousand years. It’s also one of the oldest villages in the wider Ban Zhang area. If Lao Ban Zhang is the crown everyone talks about, Lao Man’e is next in line to the throne. It doesn’t have the same celebrity status as LBZ, but among people who know these teas firsthand, Lao Man’e has a strong, well-deserved reputation of its own.
Lao Man’e is famous for bitterness. It's the type of firm, upfront bitterness that quickly transforms into rich and long-lingering Hui Gan (回甘). That “bitter first, sweet later” profile and strong, clean Qi (茶气) is what makes Lao Man’e one of the defining tea villages of Bulangshan.
We’re getting this tea from Sister Yu-er, who comes from the Bulang people – one of the oldest tea-growing peoples in Yunnan. The Bulang are widely regarded as descendants of the ancient Pu tribes, who are often associated with some of the earliest cultivation and use of tea in southwest China. Tea has been part of their culture for centuries upon centuries. There’s an old idea in Bulang country that every village has its tea forest. Wherever the Bulang settled, they planted and lived alongside tea. That long relationship is still very much alive in places like Lao Man’e.
One more detail is worth knowing. In most parts of Yunnan, a tree 100 years old or older is called Old Tree (古树 – GuShu). In Lao Man’e, the standard is much stricter: only trees over 300 years old are considered GuShu. Trees younger than that are called Big Trees (大树 – DaShu). So this tea is considered DaShu by Lao Man’e standards, even though in most other parts of Yunnan it would easily be called GuShu.
• Place of Origin: Lao Man’e Village, Bulangshan, Menghai County, Yunnan, China
• Altitude: 1600m
• Harvest Time: March 2026
• Picking Standard: one bud, two leaves
• Aroma: Meadow, orchids, wild honey
• Taste: Apricots, baked apples, sour apples, grapefruit. Pleasant bitterness followed by the immediate long-lasting sweetness.
• Tea Tree: Yunnan Da Ye Zhong (云南大叶种)
Brewing guidelines:
212℉ / 100℃
1g per 70-100ml 
3-5min
1g per 20ml 5sec + 5sec for each subsequent infusion