Shan Tuyết · Sat Apr 18 · 6′
Shan Tuyết: old trees and the white down
The name comes from the down on the bud, not from snow on the peak. The trees live on mist, stone and time.
Shan Tuyết is not a brand. It is the Vietnamese name for old tea trees in the northern highlands — Hà Giang, Yên Bái, Lào Cai, Sơn La, Lai Châu. The leaves are larger than plantation tea. Young buds wear a fine white down, like frost. “Tuyết” is that down.
The trees live many years on the mountain. Trunks can be too thick to put two arms around. They stand on poor, steep ground, in mist and cold nights. They should not be forced to live like industrial tea.
Altitude and climate
Most old Shan gardens sit between 1,000 and 2,000 metres. Some higher. Winters can bring frost. Growth is slow. Buds are fewer, denser, more aromatic. That is why a kilogram of old-tree white tea cannot be priced like lowland leaf.
The trees were there before the brand. Our work is not to spoil that.
Four directions of making
From one tree you can make white, green, yellow or black tea — depending on the pluck and the work. Shan Mộc keeps those paths distinct, named by garden and season, rather than blending them into a generic “Shan tea”.