Every year, we look forward to tasting the freshest white teas we can out of Fuding. Fresh white tea, when made right (picked properly, carefully withered, charcoal dried) is soemthing ethereal and worth savoring. This box is a shortcut to trying some of the cleanest, truest expressions of tea we can find in the depthless sea of Chinese tea, they are afterall, jsut leaves picked from trees and naturally dried.
Silver needle is harvested before mingqian dates for green tea (April 4th), as the tea comprised almost exclusively thick furry tea buds. White peony has three main grades: King Peony (picked a few days after silver needle season ends), Exceptional Peony (consisting primarily of one bud and one to two small leaves), and White Peony (any production thereafter until harvest ends in May).
In the set:
- 30g Silver Needle 2025 Spring
- 30g King White Peony 2025 Spring
While these are some of the earlier picks of white tea available on the western market, their flavor profile is not necessarily delicate. While the fresh Silver Needle provides notes of sweet grass and baked cake, there is an unmistakable savoriness which comes out when brewed with boiling water. The Mudan Wang on the other hand is a full gale of spring flavors tied together with a deep huigan, a thick golden liquor, and a savoriness fit to match any umami-rich green tea.
The Fuding White tea selections in this box all come from a beautiful garden in the costal and mountainous village of Panxi, located inland of from Fuding proper. This is one of the three main villages to produce Fuding White Tea, and while the others (Taimushan, Diantou) have a longer history of tea production, the dedication of Panxi farmers, and the purity of the land cause most tea connoisseur in China to believe that the best white teas come from Panxi.
We recommend brewing 6-7 grams of tea in a 3-4 ounce gaiwan with water right off the boil, though we also suggest experimenting with cooler temperatures to bring out more texture in the mouthfeel of these white teas.
All Fuding white teas were sourced from Qiu and his incredible collection of meticulously curated white teas! Check out more of Qiu's white teas and read up on your general Fuding white tea knowledge
