Eco-Cha Tea Club

Batch 113 of the Eco-Cha Tea Club is an early spring Bi Luo Chun Green Tea harvested on March 12, and cured by our ongoing source in the Sanxia District of New Taipei, Taiwan. The leaves are very tender leaf buds that are only about 7-10 days into their growth cycle, with almost no stem material. These delicate buds are still coated with their protective "peach fuzz" micro fibers that will become suspended in the brewed tea, and are an integral aspect of the character and profile of Bi Luo Chun tea.

Batch 113 of the Eco-Cha Tea Club is an Early Spring Bi Luo Chun Green Tea from Sanxia, Taiwan. These leaves were plucked on March 12, and we picked them up the next day. The leaves were still being cured and dried when we arrived at the factory. The photo above shows the leaves after they slowly wilted overnight. We purposely waited for more than a week after the harvest began this year. Last year we procured the very first day of spring harvest, and it was amazingly fragrant and quite distinct in character. But we learned that the very first sprouted leaves of spring are extremely delicate. We decided to go for the second week this year in order to get more substantial flavor. It was a good idea!

We can see in the photo of the dried leaves above that they were hand-plucked while still very young and tender. This is evident not only by the size of the leaves, but also in the protective fur that is still on the whitish colored leaf buds. It is this stage of leaf growth, along with the heirloom cultivar of tea tree that give Bi Luo Chun its distinctive character among Green Teas — especially when it is from the first flush of spring tea buds!