Fuding Silver Needle
Silver Needle from coastal Fuding, made from the Fuding Da Bai cultivar and given a shorter, sunnier wither than the inland Zhenghe style. It is lighter, more floral and more delicate than Zhenghe material, and it is what is usually meant by unqualified 'Silver Needle'.
Character
Lighter and more floral than the Zhenghe style, with a cool cucumber-and-melon freshness. The county genuinely matters here.
- Flavour
- Sweet, Fruity, Floral
- Aroma
- Honeyed, Fresh
- Mouthfeel
- Light, Silky, Smooth
- Complexity
- Moderate
- Notes
- fresh hay, melon, light honey, cucumber
- Aftertaste
- Delicate, cooling and clean.
Delicate intensity: light in the mouth with little grip. forgiving of a long steep.
Provenance and production
- Origin
- China
- Region
- Fuding
- Cultivar
- Fuding Da Bai
- Oxidation
- Minimally oxidised
- Harvest
- Spring
- Processing
- Withering → Sun-drying (shai qing)
History
Fuding’s Da Bai cultivar was selected in the nineteenth century specifically for the large downy buds white tea requires, and the county’s white tea was an export product almost from the start.
Brewing
Western brewing (teapot or mug)
1.5–2.5 g/100 ml · 80–90 °C · 1 authored infusion
Gongfu brewing (gaiwan)
4–6 g/100 ml · 90–100 °C · 5 authored infusions
No caffeine estimate is authored for this tea. TeaHQ does not infer one from its category, because category predicts caffeine poorly — matcha and gyokuro carry more than many black teas.
If you like this
Grouped by why they were suggested, strongest reason first. Nothing here is a blended score — a suggestion appears under the best reason that exists for it, and never under a weaker one as well.
Editorially linked
Someone wrote down why these two belong together. The note below is theirs.
- Bai Mudan Wang
Up the grade ladder to buds only. More delicacy, less body, and a considerably higher price for a subtler tea.
- Zhenghe Silver Needle
The two counties that make Silver Needle, and the clearest cultivar-and-terroir comparison available inside one tea name.
Similar sensory profile
Shares controlled flavour, aroma and mouthfeel descriptors. A looser match — two teas can share descriptors and still taste nothing alike.
- Bai Hao Yin Zhen (Silver Needle)
Shares 8 descriptors with Fuding Silver Needle: sweet, floral, fruity, light, silky, smooth, honeyed and fresh.
- Bai Mudan
Shares 7 descriptors with Fuding Silver Needle: sweet, fruity, floral, silky, smooth, honeyed and fresh.
- Bai Ji Guan
Shares 6 descriptors with Fuding Silver Needle: sweet, floral, light, silky, smooth and fresh.
- Bi Luo Chun
Shares 6 descriptors with Fuding Silver Needle: floral, fruity, sweet, light, silky and fresh.
- Darjeeling white tea
Shares 6 descriptors with Fuding Silver Needle: floral, fruity, sweet, light, silky and honeyed.
- Jiu Qu Hong Mei
Shares 6 descriptors with Fuding Silver Needle: fruity, floral, sweet, light, silky and honeyed.
Journeys featuring this tea
- Exploring white tea — Someone who found white tea thin and suspects they are missing something.
- I want lighter tea — Someone who finds ordinary tea heavy, astringent or too strong.