Gong Ting is rightly called the “imperial” or “palace” tea. It represents the highest quality Shu Puerh made from the smallest tea buds and leaves (small grade). It is obtained by sifting the already processed Shu Puerh and constitutes about 10–15% of the total mass. Farmers usually keep Gong Ting for a “rainy day” because it is a highly liquid asset that can be sold at any time. Moreover, high-quality Gong Ting only increases in value over the years.

This Shu Puerh was produced in the summer of 2016 from spring Mao Cha harvested in the Ma Deng tea garden, using the classic wet fermentation technique called Wo Dui, lasting 45 days. Master Zhou used a batch of 400 kg in special wooden boxes for the fermentation. After the Wo Dui process, the Shu was dried, broken down, and sifted. This particular Gong Ting was kept by the master himself and, after 5 years of storage in a mountain village, following long persuasion, he kindly agreed to sell it to us.