What is Tea wine?

Since ancient times, traditional Chinese culture has promoted serving tea to welcome guests and offering alcohol to bid farewell, but in modern times, this can seem overly complex.

Through technological improvements, tea and wine have been blended into a new type of beverage. Let's learn more about it~

Tea wine refers to an alcoholic drink produced using tea as the main ingredient through fermentation or blending processes. It retains the style of traditional wine while also possessing the unique aroma of tea.

The idea of tea wine dates back to the Northern Song Dynasty when Su Dongpo conceived of brewing tea wine, described as “brewed with tea leaves, naturally fermented and distilled, its liquor is colorless, yet the fragrance of tea overflows.”

In the Qing Dynasty, the literary figure and dramatist Li Yu wrote a poem: “The eccentric Zhao monk, his dream wine like tea broth.” The poet-monk Huijue of Baoshan Temple wrote a poem about it: “The scholar from Mount Emei left behind a legacy, his dream and illusion recorded here. Yesterday, at the eastern pavilion, he expressed his heart's content, tasting tea that intoxicated like brewed tea broth.”

Classification and production techniques of tea wine

(1) Classification of tea wine

There are three categories based on processing methods:

a. Carbonated tea wine: made primarily from tea with added carbon dioxide.

b. Blended tea wine: made primarily from tea and supplemented with grain-based spirits for blending.

c. Fermented tea wine: made primarily from tea, with the addition of grains, yeast, or sugars for fermentation.

(2) Production process of tea wine

Taking the production of Phoenix single-variety tea wine as an example. First, tea is steeped in water at a specific ratio, and the tea residue is filtered out. The resulting liquid is the tea juice. Then, sugar is added to the tea juice, and the pH is adjusted.

The prepared yeast is added to the mixture under the appropriate conditions and placed in a fermenting tank to undergo fermentation. After fermentation, maturation (secondary fermentation) follows, and finally, sterilization completes the production of tea wine.

(3) Innovative creations of tea wine

Besides using fermentation technology, modern beverage shops also create tea wines by mixing tea infusion with alcoholic drinks. For example, Heytea and others have introduced alcoholic tea beverages that are not only visually appealing and tasty but also popular among young people due to their innovative form.

Although they contain alcohol, if the proportions are well-controlled, they can offer a new sensory experience. Those interested might want to give them a try~

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