Monday, May 05, 2008
Posted by Miss Neddy at 10:38 PM | Comments (1) | Permalink
Categories: Tea Related

Tea for so long has been the beverage of the upper class and good quality tea was priced beyond the reach of most hoi polloi. The last few decades have been a golden age for the gourmet tea drinker, as the low renminbi and Taiwan dollar meant that top notch tea could fit into most middle-class budgets. The most expensive tea, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, is a Tie Kuan Yin (unsurprisingly), as stated to be worth in excess of US$3000 per kilogram. Well, perhaps not all middle class budgets.

But good tea leaves don’t always cost the earth, especially if you can find an honest tea merchant or tea shop. The difference in price between good tea leaves and standard teabags may seem like a huge gap, but once you consider that you can get multiple infusions from one scoop of tea leaves, the price difference may not seem all that great.

This golden age, however, may be ending. Rising fuel prices aside, the burgeoning Chinese economy means that the Chinese population has become much more affluent, and can readily afford to buy up the stock of good tea leaves. The teahouse I frequent has difficulties recently to obtain certain types of teas, as competition from local buyers in China increases. While Chinese tea will probably always be available, many good quality leaves from the smaller plantations (many of which practice organic farming) will be snapped up by local consumers long before any stock can be exported. With the rising cost of transportation, and a growing concern over climate change, it will get more expensive and harder to obtain desirable tea leaves. Without air shipping, it may be impossible to export or import green and light wulongs, although technology has improved the storage of leaves tremendously, with airtight and vacuum packing. I particularly adore the resealable bag, which saves me from buying more airtight containers. 

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