This is a Sheng Pu Erh, otherwise known as "raw" which refers to its fermentation being considered "unfinished". It comes from a biodiverse cultivated semi-wild tea tree forest in the Nyot Ou district of Phongsaly province in Northern Laos. The province is 77% forest, and borders China to the North. The ethnic people of the local Yao mountain tribe have a tradition of collecting wild tea leaves that spans centuries.

Only the two youngest leaves and single bud at the end of each branch is picked and used for this tea during the spring months, ensuring the best quality. The processing methods are done by hand in Nyot Ou, by ethnic community members who use large round bamboo trays to spread the tea leaves over for drying over a period of a few hours.

Once this is completed, large woks are used to heat the tea leaves in order to stop oxidation, preparing the tea leaves for rolling which is done by hand. At the end of this process, the tea leaves are dried in the sun.