White tea, with its basic processes including withering, baking (or shade drying), sorting, and re-firing. Withering is the key step in forming the quality of white tea. Its finished tea is mostly buds, covered with white hairs, resembling silver or snow, hence its name. These ten things are all based on the characteristics of white tea, reflecting its benefits and what sets it apart from other types of tea.
【No Fire Qi】
Ming Dynasty's Tian Yiheng wrote in "Boiling Spring Essays": "Tea made with fire is inferior, while sun-dried tea is superior, as it is closer to nature and free from the fire's qi." White tea, neither stir-fried nor rolled, is the closest to natural essence, containing no fire qi, offering a cool and refreshing taste.
【Elegant Charm】
White tea is subtle, with a clear and bright liquor and a delicate fragrance, pleasing in character.
【Lowers the Three Highs】
White tea contains essential active enzymes that significantly increase lipase activity, promote fat decomposition, effectively control insulin secretion, delay intestinal glucose absorption, break down excess blood sugar, and balance blood sugar levels. It is particularly effective in lowering blood lipids and blood pressure, making it suitable for people with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or hyperglycemia.
【Rich in Components】
In addition to the nutrients found in other teas, white tea is rich in amino acids. Its cool nature helps reduce heat and detoxify. Qing Dynasty scholar Zhou Lianggong noted in "Min Xiao Ji": "White Peony Silver Needle, produced in the Hongxue Cave of Taimu Mountain, is cool in nature and as effective as rhinoceros horn, making it a holy remedy for measles."
【Medicinal Use】
Prevents heatstroke, reduces fever, detoxifies, and treats toothache. Aged white tea can even be used as a fever reducer for children with measles, outperforming antibiotics.
【Pleasurable to Enjoy】
White tea has an attractive appearance. Silver Needle tea, with its downy buds, is adorable in water, while White Peony unfolds with leaves and buds complementing each other, making it trendy and fun, especially beloved by female tea drinkers.
【Brightens Eyes】
White tea is rich in vitamin A precursors, which convert quickly into vitamin A in the body. Vitamin A synthesizes visual purple, improving night vision and preventing dry eye syndrome. It also contains anti-radiation compounds that protect the hematopoietic system and reduce harm from computer and TV radiation.
【Protects the Liver】
White tea protects the liver and aids in sobering up. Its dihydromyricetin and other flavonoids accelerate the breakdown of acetaldehyde, a byproduct of alcohol metabolism, reducing liver damage.
【Prevents Summer Heat】
"Spring corresponds to the liver for nurturing life, summer to the heart for growth, late summer to the spleen for transformation, autumn to the lungs for harvest, and winter to the kidneys for storage." Summer, associated with the heart and fire, is a time of extreme heat. It’s important to nurture the heart, avoid irritability, and keep the mind calm. Drinking aged white tea, green tea, Tieguanyin, Taiwanese high-mountain tea, or raw Pu-erh helps adapt to the season.
【Aging Potential】
White tea is "tea for one year, medicine for three years, and treasure for seven years," meaning it improves with age. After five to six years, it becomes aged white tea. Over time, its compounds mature, developing a richer flavor while retaining its signature aroma. The liquor turns amber, bright and transparent. Aged white tea enhances its anti-cancer, anti-heatstroke, detoxifying, and anti-allergy properties. At the onset of a cold, a few cups of hot aged white tea can bring relief.
