Tong Mu White Tea 桐木白茶（2025）
Tea Profile
Type: Wuyi White Tea
Location: Gu Wan Keng Village 古玩坑村, Tongmu Guan 桐木关, Xingcun Town, Wuyishan, Fujian
Altitude: Approx. 1,200 m
Harvest Date: October 2025 (Autumn harvest)
Cultivar: Cai Cha 菜茶, also known as Qizhong 奇种
Growing Style: Ecologically grown
Format: Loose leaf
The Story of This Tea
This autumn white tea comes from Gu Wan Keng Village in Tongmu Guan, high in the mountains of Wuyishan. It is made from Cai Cha 菜茶, also known as Qizhong 奇种, the traditional local tea population closely associated with the historic Zhengshan Xiaozhong teas of Tongmu.
Cai Cha produces relatively small leaves and tender shoots with a naturally concentrated character. When processed as white tea rather than black tea, the material reveals a very different expression of its Wuyi origin, retaining high-mountain freshness while developing pronounced sweetness, ripe-fruit depth and a gentle mineral quality.
This tea was harvested in October 2025 after the long summer growing season. Compared with spring material, the autumn leaves are more mature and substantial, producing a fuller and more settled liquor with an especially mellow sweetness.
Do not be misled by the rugged appearance of the dry leaves. Once hot water reaches them, the fragrance appears immediately and gives a much clearer indication of the quality inside. The liquor has a distinctive sweetness that reminds me of fresh sugarcane water, accompanied by floral honey and ripe fruit.
This is a tea I highly recommend. It can certainly be prepared in a gaiwan, but I particularly enjoy it brewed more slowly in a large teapot or gently simmered on the stove. The mature autumn leaves respond beautifully to longer contact with hot water, becoming increasingly sweet and full without losing their clean character.
Aroma and Flavour
The first infusion releases a clear sweet fragrance almost immediately. Floral honey leads the aroma, accompanied by ripe fruit and a soft longan-like sweetness that becomes more noticeable as the leaves fully open.
The most distinctive characteristic of the liquor is its sugarcane-like sweetness. It is clean and refreshing rather than syrupy, with a soft mineral foundation and enough body to give the tea depth. The high-mountain material keeps the liquor lively even when brewed for longer periods.
As the session develops, the floral character becomes rounder and the fruit sweetness deepens. The tea remains smooth and easy to drink, with a persistent sweetness continuing through the throat and into the finish.
- Aroma: Floral honey, ripe fruit and soft longan sweetness
- Flavour: Naturally sweet and mellow, with a distinctive sugarcane-water character, honey and gentle fruit depth
- Texture: Smooth, rounded and full-bodied
- Aftertaste: Persistent floral-honey sweetness with a clean, refreshing finish
- Liquor: Clear, bright and golden
- Steeping Endurance: Highly tolerant of repeated and extended brewing, maintaining sweetness and body through a long session
Brewing Guidelines
Gong Fu Style
- Teaware: Porcelain gaiwan or glazed ceramic teapot
- Ratio: 6–7 g per 100 ml water
- Water: 95–100 °C, ideally soft spring water
- Infusions: Brief rinse; begin around 8–10 seconds and gradually extend. The mature autumn leaves tolerate longer infusions particularly well
Large Teapot / Stove Style - Recommended
- Teaware: Large glazed ceramic, porcelain or heat-safe glass teapot
- Ratio: 5–7 g per 500 ml water
- Water: 95–100 °C
- Brewing: For a large teapot, begin with approximately 3–5 minutes and adjust to taste. Alternatively, gently simmer the leaves for several minutes over low heat to bring out deeper sugarcane, honey and ripe-fruit sweetness
Why Choose This Tea
This autumn 2025 Tongmu white tea offers an unusual expression of one of Wuyishan’s most traditional tea materials. Cai Cha is best known for its connection with Zhengshan Xiaozhong, yet here it is processed as white tea, revealing a completely different side of the leaf.
Harvested at approximately 1,200 metres in Gu Wan Keng, the mature autumn material produces a rounded and exceptionally sweet liquor. Floral honey, ripe fruit and longan-like fragrance sit above the tea’s distinctive sugarcane-water sweetness, while the mountain environment contributes freshness and clarity.
Its versatility is another reason I recommend it. It performs well in a gaiwan, but the tea becomes particularly satisfying when given more time in a large pot or gently brewed on the stove. The rugged-looking leaves open into a rich, smooth and persistent tea that is much more refined than its appearance suggests.
For anyone interested in unusual Wuyi white tea, traditional Cai Cha material or teas that reward relaxed and extended brewing, this is a distinctive Tongmu tea that is well worth experiencing.
