Sanduo Festival: The Naxi People’s Roasted Tea — A Primal Flavour
At the Sanduo Festival in Lijiang, besides the sacrificial ceremonies and drinking pu-erh, there is something you absolutely must try — the Naxi people's roasted tea.
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Tea Journal & Cultural Notes
Tea notes, mountain context, brewing records, and manor updates.
Sanduo Festival in Lijiang: A Pot of Pu-erh Gazing at Jade Dragon Snow Mountain
The Sanduo Festival is a traditional Naxi celebration, held every year on the eighth day of the second lunar month in Lijiang.
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A Cup of Bingdao Raw Tea: Awakening the Body in Spring
In spring, when all things revive, the human body also needs a process of "awakening." After months of winter settling in, the digestive system grows sluggish and the mind somewhat foggy.
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The First Spring Infusion of Raw Tea: The Taste of All Things Awakening
After Jingzhe (the Awakening of Insects), a moist warmth enters the air. Even the tea cakes in the warehouse seem to sense it, releasing aromas richer than in winter.
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Lantern Festival Riddles: Testing You with Tea Names
Solving lantern riddles at the Lantern Festival is a cherished Chinese tradition. Every year I create tea-name riddles to test my friends.
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Lantern Festival Evening: White Tea’s Clear Sweetness with Tang Yuan
Lantern Festival night, the streets hung with colourful lanterns, brilliant and beautiful. Our whole family was on the rooftop terrace admiring the lanterns, the table set with tang yuan and a pot of white tea.
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Second Day of New Year: Bringing a Cake of Ripe Tea as a Gift to Mother’s Family
The second day of the New Year, visiting the wife's maiden home — a time-honoured tradition. Every year on this day I bring gifts to my mother-in-law's house.
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New Year’s Day, Opening a Ban Zhang Cake for Good Fortune
On the first day of the New Year, the first thing I do when I wake up is not to collect red envelopes—it is to boil water and brew tea.
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New Year’s Eve Closing, A White Tea Cake Hopes for the New Year
The last hour of New Year's Eve is the transition between the old year and the new. The reunion dinner is finished, the Gala show is over, the fireworks have been set off.
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After the Reunion Dinner, A Pot of Ripe Tea for Digestion and Staying Up Late
On New Year's Eve, the reunion dinner leaves you so full you can barely move. Roast chicken, roast pork, steamed fish, fat choy with dried oysters, tang yuan—everything is delicious, but afterward your stomach is inflated like a balloon.
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New Year’s Eve Night, A Family Reunion Over Ripe Tea
On New Year's Eve, the whole family gathers around for the reunion dinner. The table is loaded with wonderful dishes: chicken, duck, fish, meat, soups, desserts—everything is complete.
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Drinking Aged Tea in the Great Cold, The Warmth of Time
Da Han, the Great Cold, is the last of the twenty-four solar terms. The weather is so cold your fingers go numb, and you need several layers of clothing just to go outside.
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