This spring, "aged white tea" has become a new highlight in the tea market.
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2014-06-03
The Spring Guangzhou Tea Expo, hailed as the "weather vane" of the tea industry, opened yesterday at the Pazhou Zhongzhou Center. It’s reported that this spring, white tea has made a remarkable comeback, emerging as the industry’s hottest "rising star."
White tea is one of China’s six major tea categories and is unique to Fujian province. Tracing the evolution of Fangcun Tea Market, the 1990s to the 2000s were dominated by Tieguanyin; from 2000 to 2007, it was the turn of Pu'er tea. However, in 2008, as Pu'er faced a slump, it created market space for two rising stars—red tea (black tea) and black tea—both of which quickly gained traction. Then, starting in 2013, prices of Pu'er tea (especially ancient-tree varieties) and red teas like Yinghong No. 9 and Jin Jun Mei soared, prompting tea enthusiasts and consumers alike to seek out alternative teas. Among them, white tea—with its own "the older, the better" appeal—emerged as a standout success story.
Journalists visiting major tea markets across Guangzhou have observed that, thanks to growing consumer awareness and rising popularity of white tea over the past two years, prices for the premium variety—Silver Needle Baihao—have surged significantly. This year, its retail price has jumped by a remarkable 60% compared to last year, reaching 2,000 to 3,000 yuan per jin. Meanwhile, another high-end white tea, White Peony, has seen prices climb by about 30% from last year, now hovering around 300 to 400 yuan per jin.
Similar to Pu-erh tea, white tea is highly suitable for long-term storage and even develops enhanced value the longer it ages—a quality that makes it a promising investment. As the saying goes in folk tradition: "One-year-old tea is a treat, three-year-old tea is medicine, and seven-year-old tea is a treasure." Chen Jinshui, a veteran tea expert and former secretary-general of the Fujian Provincial Tea Association, explains that since the late Qing Dynasty, Beijing’s Tongrentang has annually purchased 50 jin of aged white tea to incorporate into its medicinal formulations. During the era of planned economy, the state itself regularly allocated white tea from Fujian’s tea departments to the National Pharmaceutical Corporation, specifically for use as a key ingredient (or "medicine guide") in crafting premium-grade medicinal remedies. Moreover, white tea is known for its remarkable health benefits and medicinal properties, including antioxidant, anti-radiation, anti-tumor, antibacterial, and antiviral effects—all of which contribute to its growing popularity as both a health supplement and a valuable therapeutic resource.
"White tea has captured people's attention not only because of its high nutritional value, refreshing taste, and health benefits, but also due to its collectible appeal," Wei Saiming, Deputy General Manager of China Tea Company and General Manager of Fucha Company, told reporters. He added that in 2011, at an auction held during the Yuyuan International Tea Culture and Art Festival in Shanghai, a 20-year-old Fuding Old White Tea cake weighing 375 grams was sold for 188,000 yuan.
In the past two years, with the growing popularity of "white tea," the market has seen a surge in information about this beloved beverage. Unfortunately, some of it misrepresents the tea’s production process, while others exaggerate its health benefits. There are even misconceptions about the proper storage conditions for white tea—and, shockingly, some have even confused its origins altogether. To set the record straight on white tea, *A Historical Record of White Tea Management* will be unveiled tomorrow at the Tea Expo. “In fact,” explains a seasoned tea expert who asked to remain anonymous, “‘aged white tea’ aged for more than six years is incredibly rare. Many products marketed as ‘old white tea’ on the market are either falsely labeled or artificially aged using techniques like water splashing and pile fermentation.” The expert goes on to explain that the scarcity of surviving old white teas stems from the fact that, historically, white tea was typically sold as loose-leaf tea—requiring significantly more storage space. Additionally, as a relatively niche tea category, white tea is often harvested and processed entirely by hand, making it even rarer to find well-preserved examples passed down through generations. With a wry smile, the veteran tea expert adds: “The reason state-owned tea companies still hold sizable stocks of ‘old white tea’ is largely tied to their unique corporate structures. Back in the day, teas that couldn’t be sold at discounted prices ended up sitting in warehouses—and today, those same teas have become priceless treasures.”
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