Yunnan Spring Tea Harvest
Yunnan Spring Tea Sourcing and Harvests
Yunnan province is known worldwide for the very, very high quality of its tea. This is especially true for ‘wild’ older trees, as lax production management can often pose a challenge when large tea trading companies rely exclusively on prefabricated teas. Quality then often becomes a victim of quantity.
In the case of old tea trees, harvesting begins in April and it is advisable to be there early to inspect the tea gardens before deciding on the purchase of the harvests.
The tea gardens must be cultivated naturally and be uncontaminated by neighbouring plantations for other agricultural products such as maize or walnuts. Walnuts in particular are quite troublesome. This precaution is necessary because pesticides or herbicides are often used on these neighbouring plantations, which carries a high risk of contamination.
The tea of 2024 had an exceptional quality because there was little rainfall in the growing areas, causing the trees to wash more slowly.
However, when there are daily light rain showers before the harvest at the end of March, which give the tea trees just the right amount of moisture, the leaves naturally become ‘juicier’. Then the tea at an altitude of around 2000 metres will be of just the right quality from April and the picking season can begin. With tea trees that are 300 years old and older, growth is naturally much slower and harvesting is only possible in May.
The tea season begins with the production of white tea
From March to mid-April, the weather is usually relatively cool and the ambient temperatures are lower, which is ideal for the production of white tea. The quality of white tea is significantly influenced by the weather. In bad weather, such as cloudy or rainy days ventilation and fans are a must, otherwise the tea can develop a musty odour. The optimum period for producing high quality white tea is quite limited in time as well.
Yunnan province is known worldwide for the very, very high quality of its tea. This is especially true for ‘wild’ older trees, as lax production management can often pose a challenge when large tea trading companies rely exclusively on prefabricated teas. Quality then often becomes a victim of quantity.
In the case of old tea trees, harvesting begins in April and it is advisable to be there early to inspect the tea gardens before deciding on the purchase of the harvests.
The tea gardens must be cultivated naturally and be uncontaminated by neighbouring plantations for other agricultural products such as maize or walnuts. Walnuts in particular are quite troublesome. This precaution is necessary because pesticides or herbicides are often used on these neighbouring plantations, which carries a high risk of contamination.
The tea of 2024 had an exceptional quality because there was little rainfall in the growing areas, causing the trees to wash more slowly.
However, when there are daily light rain showers before the harvest at the end of March, which give the tea trees just the right amount of moisture, the leaves naturally become ‘juicier’. Then the tea at an altitude of around 2000 metres will be of just the right quality from April and the picking season can begin. With tea trees that are 300 years old and older, growth is naturally much slower and harvesting is only possible in May.
The tea season begins with the production of white tea
From March to mid-April, the weather is usually relatively cool and the ambient temperatures are lower, which is ideal for the production of white tea. The quality of white tea is significantly influenced by the weather. In bad weather, such as cloudy or rainy days ventilation and fans are a must, otherwise the tea can develop a musty odour. The optimum period for producing high quality white tea is quite limited in time as well.