Bright Way Forbidden Essence (炜道禁质, Wěi Dào Jìn Zhì, "Bright Way Forbidden Essence") - is a unique green tea by Master Lan. Based in Guizhou, Master Lan is the artist behind two of our most popular and unique red teas, Violet Crown and Ruby Solstice, both made from Yunnan tea leaves. Bright Way Forbidden Essence is a 2025 wild green tea harvested without adhering to a specific plucking standard such as pure bud 单芽, one bud one leaf 一芽一叶, one bud two leaf 一芽二叶, etc. This more naturalistic approach is in line with the philosophy of Living Tea expounded upon by our friend Rui Liu of Grass People Tree. This approach, rather than separating the parts of the harvest into different grades, treats the leaf-bud as the head, the leaves as the limbs, and the stem as the body of the tea. They believe this conveys more of the true essence of the tea and its qi, and the qi of the land it is grown in.
Philosophy aside, this truly remarkable green tea is one of the most exciting additions to our catalogue in a long time. It has complex fruity notes that range from berry to nectarine as the tea unfolds, and the sweet rich fragrance that can only be described as the smell of freshly-picked tea leaves hitting a hot wok. Even when steeped with boiling water and for an uncontrolled duration, this tea remains sweet and has a very low propensity for bitterness and astringency. A great candidate for steeping in a Yixing teapot, as well as in a glass, mug, or drunk directly from a gaiwan "grandpa style".