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“Fresh Tea” – The Artistry of Chinese Tea

"Fresh tea" takes on a new meaning in China.  In the West, where fresh is understood as recently harvested or new; on China-side, fresh tea is a type or class of tea produced in the spring and made to local customs.  Typically not highly processed, these teas are made without a prevailing standard, are handmade and offer a rich palette of flavor defined by local custom and taste.

While the varietal may be known, such as a Mao Feng or Mei Zhan in Fujian Province, tea farms and local farmers harvest these teas and process them according to their taste or the prevailing local flavor.  The resulting "fresh" tea has aroma and flavor qualities usually not found beyond the local area and they are produced in comparatively small quantities.   

These teas often vary in appearance and taste year-to-year.   The flavors vary as there is no blending and no standard beyond the color of the leaf and the discretion of the tea maker. The result is "fresh" teas, not well known but certainly some of China's most interesting and prized teas.

Difficult to find, rich in palette flavors, these rare varietals offer an opportunity to enjoy some of China's finest teas.

Silk Road Teas "Fresh Tea" offerings:

  • Wild Green

    Wild Green

    Known for its mountains, bamboo forests and abundant springs, Anhui Province each year produces teas of exceptional quality. The elevation and soils rich in humus and iron, bring forth a number of wonderful green teas. Wild Green tea trees blanket...
    High mountain, spring flavors!

  • Black Peony

    Black Peony

    The famous Da Bai cultivar has been crafted to a black tea offering a flavor preferred in the area. After shaping the leaves, they are fully oxidized and then fired slowly at a comparatively low temperature. This slow firing style accentuates cherished...
    Thick leaves , lush, wet notes of fruit.

  • Small Green Leaf - Xiǎo lǜyè

    Small Green Leaf - Xiǎo lǜyè

    Spring teas in China embody tradition, terroir, and skill. In FuAn traditions in farming and processing of tea run deep. Their cultivars are famous, their flavors in demand. Each year, we look for thse early spring green teas that taste wonderful and...
    Fresh asparagus, a bit of nuttiness

  • Fragrant Flower - Xiang Hua

    Fragrant Flower - Xiang Hua

    Early harvest teas, even when processed to black style, often have fragrances reminiscent of spring flowers. In this tea, the teamaker found hints of flowers thus the name. The aroma of the wet leaves is light evergreen, almost mint. Taste reminds us of...
    Ambrosial, fragrance of spring flowers

  • Green Fragrance - Lu Se Xiang

    Green Fragrance - Lu Se Xiang

    FuAn area farms are widely recognized for the quality of their cultivars, particularly the famous Da Bai. A mountainous area along the coast of the China Sea, FuAn offers a terroir ideal for developing nuanced, rich tasting teas. In the last few years,...
    Bright, fresh, enlivening
  • Empress Green - Lu Huanghou

    Empress Green - Lu Huanghou

    There is a class of teas harvested early in the spring & processed to local customs of appearance, flavor, and aroma. Typically made in small lots and rarely exported, these teas are often exceptional and offer a window into the great...
    "Fresh tea", strong flavors, nuanced & refreshing

  • Black Fragrance - Hei Xiang - Rare

    Black Fragrance - Hei Xiang - Rare

    Black Fragrance is in the class of early spring teas known as "fresh tea". These are early spring harvest teas made to local customs of processing to bring out the favored aromas and flavors of the surrounding population. Typically, they are made in...
    "Fresh tea", notes of molasses & fruit, with a lingering finish.
  • Big White

    Big White

    Big White is an exceptional, handmade "fresh" white tea grown in Fujian Province. This is a tea not typically sold outside of its area as it is made in very small lots and consumed locally. This white has a very evident, pleasing flavor as, in this case,...
    Herbaceous, notes of stone fruit.

  • Black Cloud - Hei Yun

    Black Cloud - Hei Yun

    This Meizhan cultivar is made to customs of processing known in China as "fresh tea" denoting it is made to local timing of harvest, proccessing and flavor profile. Not made to a standard and certainly varied in its taste each season, this tea well...
    Malt, chocolate & molasses!