SILVER MOONLIGHT

Locals up in the Yunnan highlands swear by this. believe there’s a fantastic tale waiting to be told behind every cup of tea. White tea leaves, like those in Silver Moonlight White Tea, a gorgeous kind of white tea, are made up of fine silver needles. The Master Taster was told, while out in the province acquiring tea, that “many years ago, Silver Moonlight tea was discovered.”

One winter, the only child of a local farmer and his wife, a young lady from a little community at the foot of a mountain, became unwell. The village where the family lived was cut off from the rest of the world throughout the winter, making it hard to call for medical help. The family was at their wits’ end, so they decided to take a risk and hike to the top of the mountain, where they heard a wise old shaman lived. The farmer spent about a week making the journey, during which he had to carry his sick daughter. The girl was already dead by the time they reached the summit. After his disappointment, the farmer decided to consult the shaman. While she knew there was little, she could do to save the girl, she promised the farmer she would do everything she could. For his devotion to his only child, the gods would reward him handsomely if he buried his daughter at the peak of the mountain as a sacrifice. The girl’s spirit, the shaman claimed, would ascend into the clouds, and become moonlight, and wherever the moon’s rays hit the land in the spring, tea would grow. The man obeyed, and he went back to his house.
After a few weeks, the temperatures warmed up enough to melt the winter snows. After an unusually warm night, the farmer and his wife woke up to see fresh tea shoots sprouting all over their yard. After collecting a bowlful of leaves, they boiled them in water and discovered, much to their amazement, that the resulting beverage was rather tasty. They named the tea Silver Moonlight in honour of their daughter and have sensed her presence ever since. Try a cup of this tea and you will see why it is considered to be among the best white teas in the world. This tea is as soft as the moonlight since it is picked and prepared by hand.