It's All About Tea — chinese tea

We all know China is a big country! With many varying climates, traditions and culture. This is also true when it comes to Chinese tea. And while tea is grown in many of China's regions, prominent tea growing regions occupy less than 50% of the whole country. The perfect tea calls for a very particular climate, ideally with high moisture and not too cold.

When purchasing loose leaf tea you’ll see that each tea comes from a different region. But would you be able to identify where it comes from based on the tea? Possibly not, but if you know which teas are grown in which region you can probably make a close guess. (Read more)

Chinese vs. Taiwanese oolong. This is a tricky topic. And for the most part, it will depend on the specific type of oolong. Of course, oolong was originally born in China, but the growing conditions and skills of the farmers allowed for Taiwanese oolong to quickly catch up to China’s quality within a couple centuries. (Read more)

Phoenix Dan Cong – Fenghuang Dancong (凤凰单枞) – is one of China's most celebrated oolong teas, grown in the Phoenix Mountains of Guangdong province. What makes it unique: each named variety is propagated from a single mother tree, with its own distinct aroma – from gardenia and honey orchid to almond and osmanthus. (Read more)

The popularity of Pu-erh spread like wildfire near its region of origin in Southern Yunnan. Soon enough, the famed Tea Horse Road (茶马古道 – Chamagudao) became a popular trade route between Yunnan locals and the Buddhists of Tibet. The Chinese nobles were in need of horses for the transportation of goods, and the monks were more than grateful for the fermented tea... (Read more)

Oolong (meaning "Black Dragon"), also known as Qingcha (Dark Green Tea), is a partially oxidized tea whose taste and aroma range between green and black tea. 

Fujian province has been a center of Chinese tea culture for over a thousand years, and it is here that oolong, as a distinct style of tea, is believed to have first emerged during the late Ming to early Qing dynasties (17th century), as tea makers began experimenting with partial oxidation of the leaf. (Read more)