On May 1st, I headed out to the key growing areas of the ShanLinXi tea system: LongFengXia and Budongyu. Just to clarify, I only checked out tea plantations above 1,700 meters in LongFengXia. The roads between 1,300 and 1,650 meters are just too steep, and I didn’t want to risk driving down and not being able to make it back up.
LongFengXia Tea Region: Living up to its reputation as the king of the ShanLinXi tea system, premium tea regions have the resources to properly manage their fields. This is by far the healthiest-looking tea growth I’ve seen. Aside from a few poorly managed farms from previous years, top-tier tea factories have barely been impacted by the drought. In fact, a few plots look pretty much identical to last year—plump, robust tea shoots and solid yields. Sure, there’s some uneven growth here and there, but compared to Alishan, Fanzitian, Sansancengping, and Ruanan, it’s practically negligible. This area will be ready for a massive harvest in another 10 days. I’d give the LongFengXia region above 1,700 meters a solid 75 points.
Budongyu Tea Region: Compared to the stellar LongFengXia, Budongyu is a bit of a letdown. From the very top at 1,700 meters down to 1,400 meters, a lot of the bushes have sparse growth, uneven development, and multiple-bud formations (gongsun buds). It’s baffling how it can be so different when it’s just separated from LongFengXia by a single bend. The few silver linings are two or three decent plantations, but they’re just “decent”—they simply lack the vigor and presence of LongFengXia. I spotted some farmers harvesting around 1,500 meters on May 1st, but most of the other plots are still too tender and need another 4 to 5 days. I’d give it 65 points.
The tea farmers in LongFengXia are seriously hardcore. Even though yields are lower than last year, pulling off quality like this amid a drought is genuinely impressive. Last year’s LongFengXia spring tea outperformed plenty of Lishan teas, and honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if it happens again this year.
