Jin Jian金尖茶

Jin Jian is a hunan-dark pu-erh & dark tea from Anhua, Hunan, China. Brew it at 100°C with 6g of leaf per 100ml of water; expect up to 9 short infusions in a small gaiwan or teapot. A quick rinse is recommended.

Tasting notes

Jin Jian is the working end of the Anhua tip hierarchy. Tian Jian gets the tender buds, Gong Jian takes the middle grade, and Jin Jian catches the mature leaves — thicker, stemmier, less refined. You can see it in the dry leaf: bigger, darker, more structured. And you can taste it. Where Tian Jian is all pine smoke and huigan, Jin Jian is blunt and full — dry wood, a mineral-earth base, a smoke note closer to old wood stove than campfire, and a flat sweetness that takes a few steeps to open up. It doesn't reward careful gongfu the way its siblings do. What it does reward is abuse: boiling water, a full steep, a side-handle kettle on a hot plate, a bowl, and hours. Rural Hunan drinks this with food, and that's the right frame. It cuts through oily dishes and a full cup sits comfortably in the stomach. Cheap, honest, and it just keeps going — eight or nine infusions and it still has something to say.

Flavor profile

The third and most robust of Anhua's three tip grades (Tian Jian, Gong Jian, Jin Jian). Made from coarser, more mature leaves than its siblings, giving it a thicker, earthier body with less nuance but more staying power. The flavor is straightforward — woody, slightly smoky, with a mild sweetness that emerges in later infusions.

Terroir

Mountainous Hunan, same growing region as Tian Jian and other Anhua tip teas

Brewing

Rinse: Rinse 10 seconds — mature leaves benefit from a good wake-up.

1. Quick rinse — pour off immediately.
2. Steep 1: 15 seconds
3. Steep 2: 20 seconds
4. Steep 3: 25 seconds
5. Steep 4: 30 seconds
6. Steep 5: 40 seconds
7. Steep 6: 50 seconds
8. Steep 7: 60 seconds
9. Steep 8: 80 seconds
10. Steep 9: 120 seconds

Tolerates aggressive brewing well. Can be boiled for a thick, campfire-like cup. Pairs with food — popular as a daily drinker in Hunan.

Aroma & taste

Processing

• kill-green
• rolled
• pile-fermented
• dried
• loose-leaf or lightly compressed

Sources

• https://yunnansourcing.com/pages/understanding-anhua-tian-jian-dark-tea
• https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/hei-cha
• https://pathofcha.com/blogs/all-about-tea/a-deeper-look-into-hei-cha