Verdant Tea

A member of the Solanaceae family, the caffeine-free Goji berry plant (Lycium barbarum) grows wild across Northern China - including on the slopes of Laoshan in Shandong. Though the plant is most famous for its berries, its dried leaves have been a part of traditional medicine in China for centuries. Early this spring, the He Family foraged young and tender spring goji leaves and carefully finished them with green tea processing and an open leaf style. We are so excited for the opportunity to share this another experimental tea from the He Family!

Gan Zao Ye (Wild Jujube) is a naturally caffeine-free herbal tea that grows unmanaged and wild on the slopes of Laoshan. The He family forages a limited quantity each spring and hand-processes it just like a traditional green tea with withering, firing and curling. The final result is packed with just as much flavor complexity (and antioxidants) as a traditional tea with a striking barley and walnut flavor. 

Honeysuckle bushes grow across Laoshan and Mr. Lu knows just the right secret spots and picking windows to capture juicy sweet wild honeysuckle, drying it at his Laoshan workshop in bamboo baskets and offering it up as an exquisite and unique caffeine-free herbal tea.

While the He Family produces a beautiful Huai Flower tea of their own, they personally recommended the Lu Family's stunningly tiny huai blossoms as showing off another side of Laoshan's unique flavor. The Lu family works with the He Family in the same cooperative, so they collaborate on exciting projects like this one. The Huai Flower is a member of the Sophora family and has sweet rich notes of honey, cherry, licorice and sesame.

Delicate Laoshan Artemisia blossoms are wild-picked by Mr. Lu in the spring to capture their intensely sweet flavor. Artemisia is related to mugwort and wormwood, but instead of vegetal flavor, it is uniquely sweet, floral and chocolatey. As a member of the He Jia Cooperative and friend of Mr. He, Mr. Lu is dedicated to finishing caffeine-free herbal teas like this one in Laoshan.

Dandelion grows wild across Laoshan, and while the He Family finishes dandelion leaves as a green tea, the Lu Family digs up the roots to dry and toast for a rich deep complex caffeine-free herbal tea harvested at the peak of sweetness for a malty, honeyed flavor and notes of vanilla, nutmeg, and licorice.

The Lu Family wild-forages Yu Zhu (or Solomon's seal) root within the Laoshan Ecological Preserve and gives it a deep dark roast on their tea finishing equipment back at the workshop. This is a far cry from typical pale sliced Yu Zhu you might see at a traditional Chinese medicine apothecary - the Lu Family keeps their Yu Zhu in big whole pieces for an even roast, yielding rich peanut butter flavor and sweet notes of brown sugar.

Grown by the Lu Family, harvested with hulls intact (like brown rice), this is then toasted on the Lu Family’s tea finishing equipment for an even toastiness. This tea is nostalgic like Genmaicha or Korean barley tea, and makes a fantastic addition to your favorite Laoshan Green. Their finishing craft makes this incredibly rich, deep, creamy and packed with notes of caramel and brown sugar.

This bundle includes four 100g mini cakes for 400 total (80 sessions) Crassicolumna is an ancient, wild near-tea relative to the modern camellia sinensis plant, native to the tea forests of Qianjiazhai deep in the mountains. Naturally caffeine-free, Crassicolumna is packed with captivating deep spiced flavor and texture. It has the complexity of pu’er, but a wild flavor all its own.

This unique black tea is picked from the early spring leaves and tender buds of the Camellia Crassicolumna tree, a close relative of the tea plant native to Qianjiazhai. Crassicolumna is naturally caffeine-free and high in antioxidants. Since Crassicolumna is native to the Qianjiazhai region, there are many examples of staggeringly old Crassicolumna trees. Mr. Li of the cooperative is actually employed by the local government as an environmental protection officer to make sure these ancient trees are protected from poaching, where outsiders would sneak in in the cover of darkness to cut the tall trees and quickly harvest their precious leaves. Mr. Li has found that the best way to protect the trees is to allow sustainable wild foraging by the people living in the protected region in exchange for their help watching over remote Crassicolumna groves. This extremely rare and labor-intensive to harvest offering is allowed to slowly sun-roast to oxidize and finished as a unique black tea with a rich fruity but wild flavor, all without the caffeine you’d see in camellia sinensis. 

This tea is sustainably wild-foraged from ancient Camellia Crassicolumna (厚轴茶) tree, a close relative of tea native to Qianjiazhai. This year's tea is available both loose and in 100g cake pressings. Crassicolumna is naturally caffeine-free and rich in antioxidants. The giant leaves and buds picked from this wild-growing tree stock are allowed to gently sun dry without any heat processing to keep the most natural flavor. Wild crassicolumna trees can be anywhere between several hundred and over a thousand years old, and are incredibly tall and difficult to climb to harvest these precious leaves, but the rich nuanced flavor and lingering aftertaste is worth the effort.

This unique black tea is picked from the early spring leaves and tender buds of the Camellia Crassicolumna tree, a close relative of the tea plant native to Qianjiazhai. Crassicolumna is naturally caffeine-free and high in antioxidants. Since Crassicolumna is native to the Qianjiazhai region, there are many examples of staggeringly old Crassicolumna trees. Mr. Li of the cooperative is actually employed by the local government as an environmental protection officer to make sure these ancient trees are protected from poaching, where outsiders would sneak in in the cover of darkness to cut the tall trees and quickly harvest their precious leaves. Mr. Li has found that the best way to protect the trees is to allow sustainable wild foraging by the people living in the protected region in exchange for their help watching over remote Crassicolumna groves. This extremely rare and labor-intensive to harvest offering is allowed to slowly sun-roast to oxidize and finished as a unique black tea with a rich fruity but wild flavor, all without the caffeine you’d see in camellia sinensis. 

This unique black tea is picked from the early spring leaves and tender buds of the Camellia Crassicolumna tree, a close relative of the tea plant native to Qianjiazhai. Crassicolumna is naturally caffeine-free and high in antioxidants. Since Crassicolumna is native to the Qianjiazhai region, there are many examples of staggeringly old Crassicolumna trees. Mr. Li of the cooperative is actually employed by the local government as an environmental protection officer to make sure these ancient trees are protected from poaching, where outsiders would sneak in in the cover of darkness to cut the tall trees and quickly harvest their precious leaves. Mr. Li has found that the best way to protect the trees is to allow sustainable wild foraging by the people living in the protected region in exchange for their help watching over remote Crassicolumna groves. This extremely rare and labor-intensive to harvest offering is allowed to slowly sun-roast to oxidize and finished as a unique black tea with a rich fruity but wild flavor, all without the caffeine you’d see in camellia sinensis. 

The Li Family and other members of the Dongsa Cooperative sustainably forage from towering crassicolumna trees to harvest the early spring woody buds that make this brand new black tea. Camellia Crassicolumna (厚轴茶) is a wild near-relative of tea native to Qianjiazhai; because this plant currently a protected species. one of the cooperative's responsibilities is to protect these trees from poaching. The incredibly-sweet. flavor-packed buds are traditionally piled and allowed to oxidize fully in the Mt. Ailao sun without heat treatment, locking in the natural flavor and aroma of the region. Crassicolumna is naturally caffeine-free and rich in antioxidants.

Available both as a pressed 250g Xiao Jin gua, this tea is picked from the early spring buds of the Camellia Crassicolumna (厚轴茶) tree, a close relative of tea native to Qianjiazhai. Crassicolumna is naturally caffeine-free and rich in antioxidants. Yabao buds are extremely sweet and packed with flavor since they are the early shoots of the plant that would otherwise become new branches. The giant buds picked from this wild-growing tree stock are allowed to gently sun dry without any heat processing to keep the most natural flavor. Wild crassicolumna trees can be anywhere between several hundred and over a thousand years old, and are incredibly tall and difficult to climb to harvest these precious buds, but the rich nuanced flavor and lingering aftertaste is worthwhile.

This tea is sustainably wild-foraged from ancient Camellia Crassicolumna (厚轴茶) tree, a close relative of tea native to Qianjiazhai. This year's tea is available both loose and in 100g cake pressings. Crassicolumna is naturally caffeine-free and rich in antioxidants. The giant leaves and buds picked from this wild-growing tree stock are allowed to gently sun dry without any heat processing to keep the most natural flavor. Wild crassicolumna trees can be anywhere between several hundred and over a thousand years old, and are incredibly tall and difficult to climb to harvest these precious leaves, but the rich nuanced flavor and lingering aftertaste is worth the effort. Master Zhou pressed the leaf material from part of this years harvest into 100g cakes and 205g Xiao Jin Gua perfect for aging and long term storage.

Biluochun is He Changke’s very favorite tea. He loves the way it shows off the minerality of Laoshan. His family's biluochun is made with tender young buds picked at the perfect moment of autumn when cool weather makes for sweet rich tea. After picking, withering, heat-fixing and hand-shaping into twisted biluochun, the He Family takes this tea as it dries and mixes it with their foraged Laoshan osmanthus blossoms, allowing the green tea to absorb the floral aroma. The effect is subtle, but stunning, giving the biluochun deep, rich creamy texture and a sweet honeyed flavor. 

For the second year, Li Xiaoping has set aside her beautifully-crisp textural masterpiece that is Shi Feng Dragonwell and scents it with fresh osmanthus blossoms. Her incredible plot sits on a quartz-laden rocky hillside in the tiny Shi Feng microclimate, where sweet mountain spring water, designated national treasure protection from development, and misty mornings yield sweet clean nuanced green tea that sets the standard for all green tea in China. With such famous and in demand tea, it is remarkable that Li Xiaoping is still incentivized to do such bold experiments like this osmanthus scenting, but we're so happy she did! The results are spectacular, and perfectly balanced. The osmanthus notes are light, accentuating the natural sweet juicy qualities of the Dragonwell.

The years-long search is over! With help from Wang Yanxin, we've finally found a blooming tea flower that tastes as beautiful as it looks. These pearls are made from traditionally-scented Fuding Silver Needle White tea buds, spread in bamboo baskets with fresh-picked spring jasmine to slowly absorb the rich aromatics. After scenting, the buds are carefully gathered with colorful aromatic flower blossoms and tied together in a way that allows them to unfold dramatically in a teapot like peonies blooming in early summer.

This spectacular high elevation yellow tea is made entirely from perfect buds, and scented with orchids for a deep, rich, well integrated flavor and aftertaste. Called Ta Xue Lan Fei  Yellow Tea, or snowy orchid Yellow Tea, the tiny buds are allowed to wither with fresh Xuelan varietal orchids and slowly absorb their aroma over several days. The yellow tea process requires a 'smothering' or covering of the buds for more complex oxidation after sha qing. These unique steps lock in a fresh flavor somewhere between white tea and green tea with all the textural silkiness of Silver Needle White and the minerality and crisp aftertaste of Dragonwell Green.

Huangshan, the home of Qimen Black Tea, is almost as famous for its scenting craft, specifically with jasmine-scented Huangshan Maofeng. It is no surprise that the Cheng Family would tap into this scenting tradition to give an even deeper more honeyed complexity to their reserve-level Qimen Black using golden osmanthus blossoms. The blossoms are spread through the black tea as it dries so that they fresh leaves can absorb all the natural aromatics of the osmanthus.

This bundle includes size 25g bags of scented + blended floral tea for 150g total (about 30 sessions).

This special tasting kit includes hand picked white, black, and green teas scented traditionally with beautiful jasmine and osmanthus flowers. Each tea is scented traditionally - without artifical or added aromas or flavorings - using simply the natural fragrance of the blended jasmine or osmanthus flowers. These traditional methods produce teas that are full and rich,  with brews that hold their intense sweetness and natural potency over many steepings. 

The He Family is known for their bold willingness to innovate, and this singular tea is a perfect example of the way they push the boundaries of genre. Wild-picking Laoshan osmanthus and using it to scent buddy resrev-level black tea is still a new craft in Laoshan, just a few years old, but the results have been spectacular, juicy, a and almost oolong-like. This year, He Qingqing wanted to push the idea of oolong inspiration, borrowing roasting craft from Wuyishan and giving her family's black tea a special secondary wood-firing to bring out deep toasty depth. The results really are in the style of teas like Tieluohan. Instead of overwhelming the osmanthus, the roast balances it, adding depth to the honeyed dessert-like qualities of the He Family's black tea.

This "eight treasures" herbal tisane is made with rose petals, goji berry, chrysanthemum, marigold, orange peel, licorice root, cornflower, and jasmine oil.

Floral and fruity, rich and soothing, Amethyst is inspired by a special herbal blend called Eight Treasures Tea - not so much a recipe as a format all about abundance, harmony, and balance. The perfect Eight Treasures calls on all types of ingredients, bringing them together into something beautiful and supremely comforting. Not to mention - with gorgeous chrysanthemum and rose blossoms, this tea is meant to look beautiful brewed in glass to show off every ingredient.

This tropical herbal tisane blended with cinnamon, pineapple, lemongrass. coconut, orange peel, turmeric, vanilla, and yuzu oil.

Sunburst is a joyous celebration of sunny days and sweet air carrying the scent of tropical flowers, ready to kick back and take it all in.

This blend uses dried (not sweetened!) pineapple and coconut for no added sugar, while still giving Sunburst a sweet, rich flavor with fine Madagascar vanilla and juicy yuzu. The result is a tropical tea as good hot as it is iced.