What is Dark Tea? The sixth type of tea is typically fermented and aged, giving it a complex, sophisticated flavor, as well as the additional health benefits that come with fermented foods. Though often referred to as "Pu-erh" tea, only Dark Tea from Yunnan province can rightly be called Pu-erh.  These teas traditionally were pressed into bricks or cakes for trading on horseback with central Asia and Mongolia. Today that practice continues, making them convenient for storing and aging to perfection.
 
This gift set contains 4 Dark Teas to discover, in 10 gram quantities, good for 3 tea times each:
Golden Flower (Fu Cha): This tea from Shaanxi province develops the famous jin hua ("golden flower") during fermentation, a gold-colored dust that imparts an aroma of orchids to the tea, with a light sweetness.
Dark Moon (Shu Pu-erh): the darkest tea, shu ("ripe") pu-erh's pitch-black brew keeps you grounded with a compelling organic flavor.
Snow Mountain (Sheng Pu-erh): Many Dark Tea's are deliberately fermented, while others are aged, letting nature take it's course.  This tea was picked in 2012, and the years have mellowed the flavor and imparted a rich honey-sweetness.
Heart of Gold: In the style of unfermented "raw" pu-erh from Yunnan, this tea from the Nilgiri Mountains in Tamil Nadu, India, has a crisp minerality with a light peach note.