It is no coincidence that Yunnan is considered the birthplace of white tea. This seems only natural, as it is here that the native regions of the first tea plants domesticated by humans are located. White tea, in turn, was most likely the first tea ever made by humans, owing to its simplest processing chain — harvesting the leaves and drying them.

The traditional technique of white tea production — provided it is not industrial-scale manufacturing with aggressive cultivation and air-conditioned drying — has changed very little since ancient times. The foundation, without question, is the raw material itself. For this white tea, Master Xiang selected her favorite material from small ancient tea trees aged 150-200 years. Long ago, according to local tradition, these cultivated trees were pruned in a particular way. As a result, they do not grow taller than 2-3 meters, making the harvest easier to gather. These trees grow in one of the tea gardens of Maden, spread across the slopes of the Ailao mountain range at elevations of 1600-1800 meters. At the same time, the entire harvest consists exclusively of flushes. A flush is a transitional stage between a bud and a leaf, when, before fully opening, the leaf forms an elongated fuzzy “needle.” This is precisely what gave the tea its Chinese name — Bai Hao Yin Zhen (白毫银针), which translates as “Silver Needle with White Fuzz.” Today, this name is used for all white teas produced from such material.

The second and most important factor influencing the quality of white tea is the drying stage. The master spreads the needles in a thin layer across woven trays and mats, drying them outdoors for several days. When the sun becomes too intense or rain begins, the trays are moved beneath a shelter. The master checks the condition by touch, determining the degree of the tea’s readiness. All of these seemingly simple operations require great experience, as it is precisely the drying process that allows the master to bring out the fullest potential of the selected material.