Full-Bodied Flavor
Explore the Rich & Earthy Collection by Blue Willow Tea. These hand-selected teas offer a robust cup with flavor notes of wood, earth, and toast, perfect for those who savor deep, comforting brews.
$ 48.00
This small leaf shou puerh is made from a blend of ancient tree leaf material across four districts in Lincang County. Fermented in 2007 and carefully aged in Kunming ever since, this tea straddles the balance between soft and bold. The aroma has notes of earth and raw chocolate and steeps a liquor that is rich burgundy with no murkiness. The initial steep is a soft introduction to the tea, with each steep reaching deeper notes. The mouthfeel is smooth washes down your throat, leaving lingering flavors of clean earth and smooth river rocks. The age of the leaves allows the tea to be steeped upwards of 10 times before losing flavor and has an uplifting effect on the psyche.
If you remember when we had this tea years ago, you will be so happy to see it back. We were able to get in touch with contacts in Lincang who have access to the same leaves we had previously, and it has only gotten better with age.
Origin: Yunnan, China
Harvest: 2007
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Plucked from wild trees growing high on Ai Lao Mountain, this loose leaf shou cha is perfect as an introduction to puerh or as a refreshing breather for the afficionado. It has been sorted to include only the tips and has an effect that is clarifying and uplifting.
The first steep yields a bright and vivid infusion, with each consecutive cup reaching deeper notes of the leaf. The mineral content of the soil is prevalent in the cup with bright, energizing notes of copper, and grounding undertones of cocoa and damp earth. The liquor has a silky mouthfeel and leaves a lasting coolness in the throat, unusual for a tea of this style.
Origin: Yunnan, China
Harvest: 2018
$ 24.00
This spring 2020 shou cha fits perfectly into our Puerh collection. Plucked from 200-400 year old trees, its perfectly balanced flavors of slightly dry raw cacao, damp bark and light minerality sit deep in the throat and belly. It has the ability to steep rich and deep while still maintaining a clear liquor. The small leaf grade is accented with bright red young leaves and is pressed into 100 gram cakes that are able to be broken up without the need for a pick. This tea creates a warmth and calmness that makes it idea in the evening or any time you need to get grounded. We recommend this tea for everyone from Puerh novices looking for an smooth cup, to aficionados needing something flavorful but calming.
We also offer this tea in 7g Baby Cakes!
Harvest: 2020
Origin: Yunnan, China
$ 14.00
These Baby Cakes are the perfect option for tea drinkers on the go! Easy to pack and portion, and cute as heck too. Each tong is wrapped and tied in bamboo and contains seven individually wrapped 7g cakes. Great for gifting, steeping and even flipping for making important life decisions.
This spring 2020 shou cha fits perfectly into our Puerh collection. Plucked from 200-400 year old trees, its perfectly balanced flavors of slightly dry raw cacao, damp bark and light minerality sit deep in the throat and belly. It has the ability to steep rich and deep while still maintaining a clear liquor. The small leaf grade is accented with bright red young leaves and is pressed into 100 gram cakes that are able to be broken up without the need for a pick. This tea creates a warmth and calmness that makes it idea in the evening or any time you need to get grounded. We recommend this tea for everyone from Puerh novices looking for an smooth cup, to aficionados needing something flavorful but calming.
We also offer this tea in 100g cakes.
Harvest: 2020
Origin: Yunnan, China
$ 30.00
We are so pleased to share this new tea with you. Harvested in the winter on Phoenix Mountain, this black tea is made from Mi Lan Xiang Oolong cultivars. Winter harvested teas grow slower in the limited sunlight, soaking up more minerals from the soil as they grow and often developing sweeter notes. The resulting flavor is unique and intense. The warm leaf offers notes of baked plum pie and a hint of citrus peel. Even with short steeps the tea is full bodied and has a nourishing intensity that settles deep in your throat. When allowed to steep longer, the leaves emanate distinctive chocolate flavors that wash over your senses like velvet.
Process: Organic
Harvest: 2023
Origin: Guangdong, China
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We are so happy to have a small amount of this spectacular tea to share with you. Hand-crafted by Yong Hao, who has been producing award-winning tea on Chi Lai Mountain for many years. This Qing Xin cultivar is expertly roasted over charcoal and rolled several times to achieve its shape. The aroma offers notes of baked yams and burnt sugar, with essences of warm cedar. Steeped, the tea is soft but complex. The toasty notes of the firing are at the forefront and give way to a sweetly satisfying cup with honeysuckle hints. Over time, the roast flavor will settle and reveal more flavors, which we are so excited to witness. This tea is grown with organic fertilizers and tested to assure cleanliness.
Harvest: Spring, 2023
Origin: Nantou, Taiwan
$ 17.00
Da Hong Pao is one of the better known Wuyi rock oolongs and we are so happy to have found this unique version. Large, medium oxidized leaves are perfectly roasted without losing any flavor in the process. Each steep brings more color to the leaves, revealing the darker oxidized edges and deep green centers. The aroma is toasty and fruity, like a fresh baked pie, and the flavors center around ripe fruit with warm wood and burnt sugar. Many Da Hong Paos have a deeply roasted finish, but this one is so balanced no one flavor overtakes the rest.
Harvest: Spring, 2024
Origin: Fujian, China
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This hearty, tippy tea was harvested before the rains to ensure a full-flavored cup. Golden Monkey gets its name from the shape of the leaves, and how they mimic monkey claws. The aroma is rich and chocolatey, and steeps to a gorgeous deep red liquor. Each sip has a progression of flavors that begin with cocoa powder, then take on notes of oak barrel aging with a light citrus finish. Compared to some of our other Chinese red teas, this one has a heavy body and I like to think of it as the main course, if Jinjunmei was dessert.
Harvest: 2024
Origin: Fujian, China
$ 20.00
These young buds are perfectly plucked and rolled. Each curled pearl is comprised of one tip with one bud and two young leaves. Made in the same style as our Golden Bud Biluochun, this year's tea is made of smaller leaves and has a decidedly juicier flavor. The aroma makes your mouth water with rich with dark chocolate and sweet grapes. Each steep brings our new flavors ranging from cocoa and cured tobacco to malt and tart cherries.
Harvest: 2022
Origin: Fengqing, Yunnan
$ 15.00
Grown in the foggy hills of Kirishima, this tea is made by two brothers who are producing some exceptional quality teas. The moisture of the air and fertile soil from the nearby volcano create a perfect environment for growing complex teas. This Hojicha is plucked from a single farm that is completely self-contained and bio-dynamic. The tea itself has an incredible union of flavors that rise above the toasty base. The roasted leaves are not burnt, but instead embody wonderful nutty quality that softens to a light nectar-like sweetness which lingers long after you sip. The bouquet of soothing aromas and flavors will leave you relaxed and the relatively low caffeine content makes this an excellent dessert tea.
Process: Organic
Harvest: 2023
Region: Kagoshima, Japan
$ 88.00
We are honored to offer you this tea. These 200g cakes are a community effort to interlace feral and old growth tea from around the village and mountains of Mangjing. The leaves were plucked and fermented in 2016 and have since developed into an incredible tea which we had pressed in 2023. The aroma is thick and earthen, yielding to a deep chocolate liquor with an incredible velvety mouthfeel. Each sip leaves traces of cacao, berries and peat all the way down to your stomach, where it fosters an internal warmth and grounding energy.
The village of Mangjing is situated in the ancient tea-producing Jingmai Mountain range and is home to the Bee Immortal Tree, central to the village's agricultural calendar. The immense banyan tree is draped in dozens of beehives, which are closely watched throughout the year. When the majority of bees return in the spring, it is the signal to begin plucking the tea trees.
This tea is a decadent shou cha that can be steeped all day long and still present new flavors. The roots of these trees tap into so many layers of minerals in the rich soil, that each steep unveils new depth and complexities.
$ 19.00
This is probably one of the most easy-to-drink and good-for-any-occasion offerings. Soba Cha is exactly what the name translates to - Buckwheat Tea. The buckwheat is roasted to perfection and packed with health benefits, without any caffeine. When steeped, soba is an inviting, aromatic drink that has a fresh baked, nutty, toasty flavor. It is mild and refreshing and can be steeped long without becoming unfavorable. And of course, it's gluten-free!
Buckwheat is full of antioxidants which help with digestion, promote heart health and boost the immune system, among other things. Please note that some people may have allergies to buckwheat.
Try this one iced in the summer or when you need a little extra comfort. It's a tea that makes you feel like you're getting a good hug.
Harvest: 2022
Region: Kagoshima, Japan
$ 18.00
This cake is a part of our Elemental Tea Series, a four-tea set of Puerhs that is meant to examine differences in Puerhs while also connecting us to the natural world through tea.
This tea was harvested in 2020 and pressed for us in 2024. It has relaxed into its pressed state and offers a full body drinking experience. The flavor is both deep and bright, as it is warms the throat while activating the roof of your mouth with an iron-rich tingle. The flavor gets richer with each steep and lingers long after each sip. Aromas of damp bark and rising dough give way to a smooth, deeply satisfying flavor. Each sip can be felt internally as it builds warmth.
Tea plants develops flavor through their connection to the air, water and the soil. Minerals are present in every soil structure and help to nurture tea plants and humans alike. When drinking this tea, notice the increasing depth in flavor that comes with each steep. As the water reaches deeper into the leaf it brings us closer to the heart of the tea through the veins carrying precious minerals. This tea has in innate ability to center us while nourishing us with the plentiful minerals it has absorbed.
*Wrapper art by Ali*
$ 10.00
In Scandanavian legend, the hero Beowulf battled monsters in the bitter chill of East Frisia, an area bordering the North Sea and the Netherlands. Now, the monsters faced by Frisians are bitter winds and harsh winters. As a result, the tea consumption is over 5 lbs. per capita annually. For those who live here, tea is an all-through-the-day ritual, prepared strong with the addition of cream and a lump of rock sugar.
Our brisk, custom blend employs the tradition of using a 2nd flush Estate Assam with tea from Ceylon and China. The tea itself has a full-bodied malty quality with long-lasting finish. Traditionally, East Frisians never stir tea in the cup. It is meant to be enjoyed in 3 layers; the cream or “sky”, the tea or “water” and the sugar or “land”.
$ 29.00
Forget that Lapsang you had at the coffee shop years ago, the one that assaulted your senses with smoke and clung to your mouth for hours after. This is not that tea. Grown in the Wuyi mountains, this Bohea cultivar is expertly crafted. The dry twisted leaves present an alluring aroma of pine smoke without taking over. Steeped, the leaves exude a gorgeous amber liquor and offer aromatic hints of toffee and tobacco. The soft veil of smoke clears with each steep, yielding to deeper notes of sherry and raw cacao within the leaves. Juicy and robust while sipping, the tea finishes slightly dry with just a hint of embers remaining.
Harvest: 2024
Origin: Fujian, China
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Grown at the base of the Luye mountains in Southern Taiwan, this highly oxidized oolong is produced by a mother and son team who grown exceptional teas on their organic farm. The tightly rolled leaves unfurl to beautiful deep, black red and impart an aroma of sweet maple. The tea itself has notes of tangy red wine with an equalizing undertone of toasty cedar. Pro-tip: Don't miss out on the aroma of the pot when you pour the tea out, it intensifies as the ceramic cools.
Process: Organic
Harvest: 2024
Origin: Taitung, Taiwan
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This is a new edition we were so excited to bring home from our 2023 Japan trip. Grown from the Ujimidori cultivar in Wazuka, this crafted on a woman-owned, organic family tea farm by Teruko Azuma.
Teruko has been pushing the boundaries of what Japanese teas can do, producing exquisite white teas, oolongs, black teas, and experimenting with innovative processing methods. This oolong is no different. The leaves are mid-high oxidized, heated, and then roasted in her hojicha roaster. The result is a tea with similar characteristics as Phoenix Mountain red teas: chocolately, fruity, nutty and toasty. The warm notes of roasted cedar fill the mouth, with a hint of plum-like fruit and lingering burnt sugar sweetness. We like to steep this in a gaiwan with short, repeated steeps, but it also does well with longer steeps without becoming bitter.
Process: Organic
Origin: Uji, Japan
Harvest: 2023
$ 10.00
This Yunnan red tea is great any time of day. The leaves constitute a good blend of leaf and curling golden buds, which combine to create a full bodied and flavorful cup. The taste is strong without being astringent and has a lovely aroma of earth and cedar wood. Excellent on its own or with the addition of milk and sugar.