Mangzhi Ancient Tea Mountain is located in Xiangming Township, Mengla County, Xishuangbanna Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. Starting from Xiangming Yi Township, travel more than ten kilometers towards Menglun and then turn towards Anle Village Committee to arrive. According to legend, Mangzhi is where Zhuge Liang buried his copper (‘ma' in Chinese), hence the name Mangzhi. It was formerly known as Niuguntang and is now under the jurisdiction of Anle Village Committee.
Tea plantations have been present on Mangzhi Tea Mountain at least since the Yuan Dynasty. Villages such as Mansai and Sudi at the foot of Mangzhi Mountain have a history of over a thousand years, with ethnic minorities living and cultivating tea there for a millennium. Although not extensive, the quality of tea from Mangzhi Ancient Tea Mountain is high. At its peak, it produced up to ten thousand piculs of tea annually. From the inscription on a stele erected in the eleventh year of the Qianlong era (titled “To Be Permanently Observed”), we can still glimpse the prosperity of the tea mountain at that time.
In the early Qing Dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Kangxi, Niuguntang Street on Mangzhi Tea Mountain was one of the four major market towns in Xiangming. The tea from Mangzhi was of good quality and reasonably priced, attracting merchants from inland regions who would buy at low prices. According to the records in Ni Tui's “Chronicles of Yunnan Over the Centuries,” in 1728 (the reign of Emperor Yongzheng), tea from Mangzhi was purchased by merchants who would often stay with tea farmers and directly purchase tea, then transport it to inland areas in shifts. From the Qianlong to the Xianfeng eras, Mangzhi Tea Mountain entered its heyday, bustling with merchants and activity. However, the prosperity of Mangzhi was accompanied by frequent ethnic conflicts, which made the prosperity less peaceful. One notable event, the Niuguntang Incident, had a profound impact on the history of Pu'er tea.
The ancient tea gardens left behind on Mangzhi Ancient Tea Mountain are distributed across various villages under the administrative jurisdiction of Anle Village Committee, mainly concentrated in areas like Yanglin, Hongtu Slope, Manya, Jiangxi Bay, and Kuduo. Among these, the village with the most concentrated ancient tea gardens is Yanglin Village, which is also worth visiting on Mangzhi Ancient Tea Mountain. In Yanglin Village of Mangzhi Tea Mountain, there are more than 100 acres of contiguous ancient tea gardens. A dirt road extends directly from Xiangming Township Government to the edge of the tea garden, about 30 kilometers away. In recent years, however, excessive picking and frequent human management have led to the destruction of large trees in the ancient tea forest. This has damaged the ecological environment of the tea garden, reduced vegetation coverage significantly, and lowered water retention, resulting in a decline in the quality of the ancient tree tea.
The characteristics of Mangzhi tea include: a soft and mellow soup texture with brief bitterness and astringency; a distinct floral aroma that is high and fragrant, with a good aroma in the cup; rapid return of sweetness, with a slightly astringent taste in the middle and back of the upper palate; due to the ecological damage to the tea garden in recent years, the overall mouthfeel of the tea soup is slightly rough, with light bitterness and slightly stronger astringency upon entry, but it dissipates very quickly. The taste is rich, and the tea soup has a strong sense of layers and a lingering aftertaste. The return of sweetness and salivation is swift, and the stable floral honey fragrance is submerged in the tea soup. After drinking, the mouth is filled with lingering fragrance. The smoothness, thickness, and fullness of the tea soup are all good, and the tea energy is abundant. It is very resistant to brewing. “A woman is naturally gentle, but becomes strong when she becomes a mother.” Mangzhi appears soft on the outside but is strong within, leaving one unable to resist. Today, Mangzhi has gained a calm and gentle demeanor after experiencing the vicissitudes of life.