Silver Needle

In this tea we see pioneering craftsmanship from Mr. Tang, who has applied the Fujian method for white tea to the leaves of Jinggu Big White pu'erh trees, which he planted himself. This method took years of experimentation, an intimate understanding of the climate in Jinggu, and has produced something truly phenomenal.

The Jinggu Big White varietal of pu erh trees were widely planted between 1985 and 1993 and were popular for their beautiful leaves and high yield. Most tea farmers either processed the leaves as pu erh, sold them as Mao Cha to bigger pu erh factories, made them into silvery green tea, sold them to Guangxi to be turned into jasmine tea, or made them into golden tips black tea. Never, to our knowledge, were they crafted as a white tea.

For Mr. Tang, crafting beautiful teas from a clean and balanced ecosystem is sacred. He is deeply dedicated to the craft of traditional tea making; this philosophy guides everything he does, and is embedded in every single tea he makes. Alongside being an expression of this special ecosystem, his teas are so distinctly peaceful, and feel extremely clear, just as he feels as a person.

Here we see these fluffy silver needles pressed into a cake that looks like a shimmering silk cushion. The taste of this tea is very clean and precise, with a long lasting finish. It is both sweet and sustained, giving us time to marvel at the new experience we are being offered.