Chen Qingwen was born in 1961 and began working in the tea business in the early 1980s, working in a government owned factory that he now owns. During his time working here, he learned to make multiple different types of tea, contrasting most tea makers who spend their whole lives learning one type of tea. He is a multitalented tea maker, specialized in white, green, black, jasmine, and wulong tea. He says he is most skilled in making white tea, his favorite tea being Baihao Yinzhen and Bai Mudan.
Chen and his business partner, Liu Guoqing, grow their tea near Heping town, home of some of the oldest buildings in China. Each tea season they travel to the countryside and especially enjoy buying antiques from the small families in the area.
Chen and Liu have been early advocates for sustainable and organic farming practices and continue to show their dedication to it through the care of his gardens. Liu Guoqing is often found in the garden, ensuring proper care of the plants. For example, all weeding is done by hand year round, as different weeds pop up at different times of the year. Liu tells us about Rattan vines, which are removed at the end of April to avoid them climbing and blocking sun for the tea bushes.
What makes Chen Qingwen even more special is his Baihao Yinzhen (Silver Needle) white tea. Most producers of Baihao Yinzhen harvest when the first leaf just barely begins to separate from the bud, and peel off that first slightly-opened leaf after the harvest. However Chen harvests the tea even before it begins to separate and keeps that first leaf attached to the bud, a Jianyang village tradition. This creates a plucking standard called shixinya (solid bud) meaning there is very little extra space or separation inside the bud. The result is a Baihao Yinzhen with an uncommon intensity and richness.
Along with his passion for good tea, Chen is equally passionate about good food. Tea and food are equally important for a healthy life to him. When you visit his tea factory in Shaowu, you’re just as likely to get a tour of the best local eateries in Heping, and Jianyang as you are to tour his tea gardens. He enthusiastically dragged us into tiny by-the-wayside restaurants with excellent local cuisine a number of times, one of his favorites being a small tofu shop. In Chen’s opinion, food and tea should speak for their origin. He says flavors are as much born from the local soil and climate as they are from the traditions and tastes of the local people. His favorite foods and his teas greatly reflect this.
