STAR of CHINA

Upon first opening this packet of tea, you may be inclined to believe that these little handmade stars are designed to symbolize the communist star on the Chinese flag. However, hundreds of years before the birth of Mao Tse-Tung, Vladimir Lenin, or even Karl Marx for that matter, the tea factories of Fuding had already begun manufacturing the famous Star of China. Although the exact date of its initial production is not known, records held in Fuding indicate that the tea was first made sometime in the late 1400's.

Fuding, located in the North-Eastern portion of Fujian province is considered by many to be the epicentre of hand-made tea production. The town also has an international reputation for producing some of the world's finest Jasmine and green teas, but it is the quality of the hand-made white teas that really set the region apart. The Star of China is an excellent example of this high quality. The tea is manufactured using a grade that translates into English as, Fuding Big White Tea Buds. While there are many gardens that produce this tea, the buds from which our Star of China is made come from the Rui Yun Tea Base, one of the finest gardens in the region. Once the large leaves have been steamed and are still damp, they are hand-stitched into the distinctive 5-pointed star shape. The tea workers who stitch the tea are respected specialists, and many of their families have been making the star for generations. Current annual production of the tea is roughly 6 tons. (Keep in mind that each individual star weighs less than a gram - that's a lot of sewing!)

So if it was not to represent the flag of China, why was the tea given its starry shape? Well, legend has it that back in China during the 1400's, a tea manufacturer who lived near Fuding, in an effort to bypass paying his taxes with real money, decided to create a tea that was more precious than money itself. The tea grew in popularity over the years and by the time of the early Qing Dynasty in the late 1600's, the Star of China was selected as a royal tribute from Fuding to the Manchu, the rulers at the time. The Manchu, who were great lovers of tea, prized the Star of China for its fragrant aroma and mellow, pleasant taste.

We're confident that when you brew this tea, you too will appreciate its delicate complexities. Like many white teas, the Star of China can be brewed more than once. With each infusion, notice the subtle shifts in its pale yellowy green color and delicate flavor. The Star of China truly deserves its long-standing reputation as one of the world's most complex teas.