Processing
Deliberate long-term storage that transforms certain teas — pu-erh, white tea, dark tea — into something deeper.
A cake of sheng pu-erh changes character every year; older white teas develop honeyed sweetness. Aging requires the right humidity and airflow. Properly stored, some teas appreciate in value as much as in flavour.
From the Journal
Sheng, shou, and the only tea family that genuinely improves over decades. A practical primer on the world's most rewarding (and confusing) tea.
by Sameera
The wild tea forests of Yunnan are still home to 1,000-year-old trees. A journey to the misty origin of every cup on Earth.
by Sameera
Emerging microbiome research suggests tea's complex polyphenols may feed beneficial gut bacteria in ways we're only beginning to understand. Here's what the science actually says—and which teas show promise.
by Sameera
Long before shipping containers and DHL Express, tea travelled the Silk Road in compressed bricks worth more than gold. The routes from Yunnan to Europe forged the supply chains we still depend on today.
by Sameera
Deep in China's southwestern mountains, ancient trees tell the story of where tea began. This is the landscape that shaped civilisation's most enduring ritual.
by Sameera
The Tea List dispatch
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