Tea Cultivar Dictionary

Every tea we sell comes from a specific cultivar — a distinct, often centuries-old variety of the tea plant, selected and propagated for a particular character, aroma, or growing condition. Understanding cultivar is one of the clearest ways to understand why two teas from the same region, processed the same way, can taste entirely different — and why some lots cost what they cost. This is a living glossary: we add to it every time we bring in a tea built from a cultivar that isn't listed yet. Entries are grouped by country of origin, then alphabetized.

China

Ai Jiao (矮脚烏龍)

A Wuyi Yancha "Ming Cong" (famous bush) cultivar named for its distinctive growth habit — a squat, short shrub with small, rounded leaves (矮脚 means "short leg"). Grown in the protected Wuyi Mountain Gorge, Ai Jiao is deliberately processed to avoid floral notes, instead leaning into earthy, mineral, and nutty depth — a useful contrast to the more perfumed Wuyi cultivars.

Featured in: Short Stem Ai Jiao

Ba Xian (八仙, "Eight Immortals")

A Wuyi Yancha cultivar grown in Banyan, the lower-elevation ecological gardens outside the main gorge, typically from trees around 45 years old. It's slow-roasted at lower charcoal temperatures to protect its aromatics — elsewhere in China it's often processed in the Dan Cong style, but Yancha roasting brings out a cleaner, more purely floral character here.

Featured in: Eight Immortals Ba Xian

Da Bai & Da Hao (大白 / 大毫)

The two large-leaf, silvery-downed cultivars behind virtually all classic Fuding white tea. Selected for their thick coating of fine white hairs (bai hao) and high concentration of amino acids, they're what gives Silver Needle its downy texture and White Peony its balance of bud and leaf. Most Fuding-origin white tea, regardless of grade, is built from one or both.

Featured in: Super Fine Silver Needle Bai Hao Yin Zhen, Special Grade White Peony Bai Mu Dan, Fragrant Jasmine White Mo Li Yin Zhen, Fuding White Tea Sachets

Da Hong Pao (大红袍) — a special case

Worth flagging on its own: Da Hong Pao isn't a single cultivar. The name refers to tea made in the style of a handful of legendary mother bushes on Jiuxian Rock, and almost everything sold under the name today is a master blend of multiple Wuyi cultivars — our own releases use anywhere from four to six — assembled to recreate that original character. Da Hong Pao is a genre and a technique before it's a plant.

Featured in: Classic Da Hong Pao 2026 (4 cultivars: Rui Xiang, Huang Guan Yin, Qi Lan, Rou Gui), Zheng Yan Da Hong Pao 2008 (6 cultivars), Da Hong Pao Sachets

Da Shu / Gu Shu (大树 / 古树, "Big Tree" / "Old Tree")

Not a bred cultivar but a growth descriptor: large, old-growth Yunnan tea trees, often 70–100+ years old, grown from the region's indigenous broad-leaf population (Camellia sinensis var. assamica) rather than pruned, row-planted bushes. Older trees generally produce a deeper, more complex cup. For the full picture on how tree age and region shape puerh specifically, see our puerh guide.

Featured in: Sun-Dried Jing Mai Shai Hong, Sun-Dried Menghai Shai Hong, Yong De Tuocha 2018 Sheng Puerh, Bu Lang Yin Cha 2009 Shou Puerh, Shi Guang 10yr Aged 2013 Shou Puerh, Ban Pen 2001 Shou Puerh, Lao Ban Zhang 2005 Shou Puerh

Da Wu Ye (大乌叶, "Big Dark Leaf")

A local name used by Lincang growers for large-leaf tea trees with notably dark, thick, glossy leaves. It isn't a registered cultivar but a type within the broader Yunnan large-leaf family (see Da Ye Zhong below), commonly associated with the dark-leafed "Hei Da Ye" (黑大叶) form found in Lincang's tea populations. Producers prize it for a thick, sweet, full-bodied cup.

Featured in: Xi Gui 2021 Sheng Puerh

Da Ye Zhong (大叶种, "Large-Leaf Variety")

The large-leaf tea plants of Yunnan (Camellia sinensis var. assamica), and the raw material behind nearly all puerh and Dian Hong black tea. "Yunnan Da Ye Zhong" is an umbrella term rather than a single clone: it was among the first 30 tea varieties nationally recognized in China in 1984, and covers hundreds of local populations — the best known being Menghai (勐海大叶种), Mengku (勐库大叶种), and Fengqing (凤庆大叶种). Big, thick leaves rich in polyphenols give puerh its structure, its bitterness that turns to sweetness, and its capacity to age for decades.

Featured in: Lao Ban Zhang King 2001 Sheng Puerh, Yiwu Man Hei 2016 Sheng Puerh, Pu Hua 2019 Sheng Puerh, Yiwu 2021 Sheng Puerh, Bu Lang Shan Wild Arbor 2022 Sheng Puerh, Huang Shan 2022 Sheng Puerh, Mahei 2022 Sheng Puerh, Qian Jia Zhai 2023 Sheng Puerh, Lao Man E 2025 Sheng Puerh, Shi Nian Chun Tuocha Box 2014 Shou Puerh

Dong Ting (洞庭种)

The heirloom, seed-propagated bush population native to the Dongting hills on Taihu Lake — not a single clonal cultivar but a centuries-old local landrace, the traditional source of authentic Bi Luo Chun. The dense white trichomes typical of this population are a visual signal of quality and sweetness.

Featured in: Spring Snail Bi Luo Chun

Huang Guan Yin (黄观音, "Yellow Guan Yin")

A modern hybrid bred by the Fujian Tea Research Institute from Tie Guan Yin and Huang Dan (Huang Jin Gui), selected in 1990 and approved as a provincial variety in 1998. It inherits Huang Jin Gui's famous "tou tian xiang" (透天香), a soaring aroma said to rise to the heavens, and has become one of the most popular newer cultivars grown in Wuyishan, valued in blends for its lift and bright florals.

Featured in: Classic Da Hong Pao 2026 (blend)

Huang Mei Gui (黄玫瑰, "Yellow Rose")

A modern Wuyi hybrid, generally dated to 2002, bred by crossing two other named cultivars — sources vary on the exact pairing (Huang Jin Gui × Huang Dan is most commonly cited, though some breeding records point to Huang Guan Yin as a parent instead). Whichever the precise lineage, it inherits an unusually strong rose-like floral aroma layered over caramel and stone fruit, and remains one of the more distinctive modern additions to Wuyi's cultivar family.

Featured in: Yellow Rose Xian Yuan Yi Qing

Jin Yao Shi (金钥匙, "Golden Key")

One of Wuyi's Ming Cong "famous bush" cultivars, with a lineage of roughly a century and cultivation historically limited to just a few families within the Wuyi gorge. Less well-known than headline cultivars like Da Hong Pao, which contributes to both its rarity and its appeal among collectors. Deliberately processed away from floral notes, into nutty and vegetal territory.

Featured in: Golden Key Jin Yao Shi

Longjing #43 (龙井43号)

A modern clonal cultivar bred specifically for Dragon Well production — selected for early budding, high yield, and the flat, spear-shaped leaf the tea is known for. It's now the standard cultivar behind most commercial Long Jing, including prestige-origin lots like Shi Feng.

Featured in: Dragon Well Shi Feng Long Jing

Qi Lan (奇兰)

Originally an Anxi cultivar, now also grown as Wuyi Yancha, where the mineral "rock rhyme" (yan yun) of the terroir layers onto its naturally orchid-forward aroma. Requires an experienced hand at both very low and very high roasting temperatures to bring out its floral potential without losing structure.

Featured in: Pure Orchid Qi Lan Xiang, Classic Da Hong Pao 2026 (blend)

Qiao Mu (乔木, "Arbor" / Wild Arbor)

A growth form rather than a cultivar: tea that grows as a true tree with a single tall trunk, as opposed to the pruned, multi-stemmed bushes (灌木, guan mu) of most tea gardens. Yunnan's large-leaf tea naturally grows this way, and "wild arbor" (野生乔木) or "old arbor" on a puerh label signals tea from tall, deep-rooted, often century-old trees growing among forest rather than in terraced rows. See also Da Shu / Gu Shu and Ye Sheng.

Featured in: Ge Mian Qiao Mu 2018 Sheng Puerh, Hei Long Wild Arbor 2022 Sheng Puerh, Shuang Jiang Bang Mai 2020 Sheng Puerh, Ba Ka Liang 2018 Sheng Puerh, Wu Jia Zhai 2020 Sheng Puerh, Lao Gong Ting 2012 Shou Puerh

Rou Gui (肉桂, "Cassia")

Named for its aroma, which recalls Chinese cassia (cinnamon). Documented in Wuyi since the Qing dynasty, Rou Gui rose from a lesser-known famous bush to become, alongside Shui Xian, one of the two pillars of modern Yancha after it was widely planted from the 1980s onward. Its rise owed much to the state-run Chong’an Tea Farm, where Ye Xianshun (叶先顺), patriarch of the Ye tea family, championed its planting. It is bold, spicy, and unusually expressive of terroir, which is why growing site matters so much: Rou Gui from Niulankeng and Matou Yan (nicknamed "Niu Rou" and "Ma Rou") ranks among the most sought-after teas in Wuyi.

Featured in: Yancha Sampler Collection Set, Classic Da Hong Pao 2026 (blend)

Rui Xiang (瑞香, "Auspicious Fragrance")

A modern cultivar selected in 2003 by the Fujian Tea Research Institute from the hybrid offspring of Huang Dan. Not to be confused with the older Bai Rui Xiang (白瑞香), it's prized for a rich, rising aroma with a fresh, sweet floral-and-fruit character — more elegant than its Huang Dan parent — which makes it an excellent backbone for a Da Hong Pao blend.

Featured in: Classic Da Hong Pao 2026 (blend base)

Shui Jin Gui (水金龟, "Golden Turtle")

One of Wuyi's Si Da Ming Cong ("Four Great Bushes"), named for the turtle-shell-like pattern in its leaf veins. Thrives in mesophytic conditions along a constant water source, and is closely related in character to Tie Luo Han, though bolder and more layered in fruit.

Featured in: Golden Turtle Shui Jin Gui

Shui Xian (水仙, "Narcissus")

One of the most widely planted Wuyi Yancha cultivars, and one of the few commonly grown as "old tree" (lao cong) stock, with some bushes exceeding 60 years old. Old-tree Shui Xian is prized for a distinct mossy, orchid-and-woodsmoke complexity that younger plantings don't develop.

Featured in: Golden Bud Shui Xian, Old Tree Shui Xian 2022

Tie Guan Yin (铁观音, "Iron Goddess of Mercy")

Anxi County's signature oolong cultivar, roughly 300 years old and one of China's ten famous teas. Its importance goes beyond its own category: 20th-century breeding programs used Tie Guan Yin as a parent to create several of the newer named Anxi cultivars still grown today, including Jin Guan Yin and Huang Guan Yin. Can be finished in a heavily roasted Nong Xiang style or a fresh, barely-oxidized Qing Xiang style — two very different teas from the same plant.

Featured in: Zhen Nong Xiang Iron Goddess, Qing Xiang Xing Iron Goddess, Ye Hao He 8888

Xiao Ye Zhong (小叶种 / 中小叶种, "Small-Leaf Variety")

Not every puerh comes from large-leaf trees. A handful of historic growing areas — including Naka in Menghai and parts of the old Six Tea Mountains such as Yibang — are known for smaller- and medium-leaf trees growing alongside Yunnan's large-leaf population. They're generally considered variants within Yunnan's tea family rather than a separate species, and are prized for a fragrant, fine-textured cup with a gentler bitterness.

Featured in: Naka 2022 Sheng Puerh

Xiao Zhong / Hua Xiang (小种 / 花香)

The small-leaf indigenous varietal native to Tongmu Guan, the protected valley where Lapsang Souchong originated. Naturally floral and difficult to control, which is part of why it's traditionally worked into unsmoked black tea — though Wuyi producers have also started coaxing it into a genuinely striking Yancha.

Featured in: Aged Lapsang Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong 2015, Flower Scent Xiao Zhong, Lapsang Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong Orchid, Lapsang Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong Smoked

Ye Sheng (野生, "Wild-Growing")

Like Da Shu, this is a growth-type descriptor rather than a bred cultivar: tea trees that seeded and grew naturally, without cultivation or management, as opposed to plantation-grown stock. Ye Sheng trees tend to be older and more genetically varied than a single clonal planting, which shows up as more mineral, less uniform character in the cup.

Featured in: Sun-Dried Lincang Ye Sheng Shai Hong, Man Shu 2017 Sheng Puerh, Meng Hua 2025 Sheng Puerh

Zi Ya (紫芽, "Purple Bud")

A purple-budded cultivar whose distinctive color comes from a high concentration of anthocyanins — the same pigment family responsible for color in blueberries and red cabbage. Not a separate tea category; Zi Ya can be processed into green, white, black, oolong, or puerh. Our own lot is made into a sun-dried white cake from 70–80-year-old bushes in Menghai.

Featured in: Purple Jade Zi Yu Bai Cha

Korea

Hadong (하동)

Not a single bred varietal, but the native, seed-propagated tea population (jaeraejong) historically grown along the Jiri Mountains in Hadong County — Korea's oldest tea-growing region, with cultivation records dating back over a thousand years. Unlike the clonal Yabukita plantings common elsewhere in Korea's commercial tea industry, Hadong's bushes are grown from seed, which means more genetic variation planting to planting and, producers argue, more complexity in the cup. Every Korean tea we currently carry comes from this Hadong lineage.

Featured in: Organic Buddha's Woojeon, Organic Woojeon, Organic Balhyo

Japan

Asahi (旭)

A historic Uji cultivar, prized specifically for tencha and matcha production. Known for unusually deep umami and a dark chocolate, peony-like fragrance, it's a frequent placer in national tencha competitions despite being far less widely planted than Yabukita.

Featured in: 2025 National Competition 7th Place Winner Asahi No. 6007 Matcha, Genou Matcha, Shousui Matcha

Gokoh (ごこう)

A premium Uji cultivar bred specifically for gyokuro and high-grade matcha. Valued for low bitterness and a thick, sweet body that comes through especially well under the shade-growing that both tea styles require.

Featured in: Gokoh Uji Gyokuro, Genou Matcha, Shousui Matcha

Okumidori (おくみどり)

A late-budding cultivar registered in 1974, bred from Yabukita and a native Shizuoka strain. Named for its deep green color (midori), it's valued for matcha and gyokuro for its vivid color, mild astringency, and calm, rounded umami — and is often blended to balance brighter, sharper cultivars.

Featured in: Shouraku Matcha

Saemidori (さえみどり)

A Yabukita × Asatsuyu cross bred for vivid color and strong umami in sencha. Frequently used in competition-grade tea, and often blended with Yabukita itself to round out the profile — as in our current lineup.

Featured in: Tezumi Shizuoka Sencha 2026 (blended with Yabukita)

Samidori (さみどり)

Not to be confused with Saemidori above — a separate, earlier-developed Uji cultivar that forms the traditional backbone of Japanese gyokuro and ceremonial-grade matcha. Balanced umami with very little bitterness makes it a reliable, approachable everyday matcha base.

Featured in: Sokuchouzan Matcha, Genou Matcha, Shousui Matcha, Shouraku Matcha

Sayama Kaori (さやまかおり)

A cold-hardy cultivar developed in Saitama's Sayama tea-growing region, one of Japan's northernmost. Known for a distinctive rose-like floral character that comes through clearly in both green and black tea processing.

Featured in: Sayama Kaori Black Tea

Yabukita (やぶきた)

Japan's dominant cultivar by a wide margin, registered in 1953 after being discovered by Shizuoka farmer Sugiyama Hikosaburo. At its peak it covered over 90% of Japan's tea fields; today that figure sits closer to two-thirds as growers diversify into newer cultivars, but Yabukita remains the default character that every other Japanese cultivar gets compared against.

Featured in: Shaded Yabukita Kabuse Sencha, Shaded Yabukita Karigane, Shaded Yabukita Houjicha, Shouraku Matcha

Taiwan

Qing Xin (青心烏龍, "Green Heart")

Taiwan's heirloom oolong cultivar and the traditional backbone of high mountain oolong, Dong Ding, and Bao Zhong. Slower-growing and lower-yielding than newer hybrids like Sijichun, which is exactly why it's still considered the standard for serious Taiwanese oolong — the trade-off is depth and aging potential.

Featured in: Frozen Summit Dong Ding Oolong, Wen Shan Bao Zhong Oolong, Aged Green Heart Qing Xin 2007, Vintage Red Water Hong Shui 1984

Sijichun (四季春, "Four Seasons Spring")

A 1980s hybrid cross of a Wuyi cultivar and Qing Xin, bred for reliable, year-round production — hence "four seasons." Lower-temperature baking draws out a milky, creamy character that makes it one of the most approachable entry points into fresh Taiwanese oolong.

Featured in: Organic Four Seasons Sijichun Oolong

Tie Guan Yin (鐵觀音, Taiwan-grown)

The same Anxi cultivar covered under China above, transplanted to Taiwan generations ago and grown and roasted in a distinct local style. Aged Taiwanese Tie Guan Yin in particular develops a character quite different from its mainland counterpart.

Featured in: 140 Years Vintage Oolongs Boxed Set (1979 vintage)

Wu Yi (武夷, Taiwan-grown)

Unidentified Wuyi-origin cultivars brought to Taiwan in the late 18th century and cultivated since — many now growing as untended old vines. Distinct from the Wuyi Yancha cultivars still grown in Fujian today, having developed their own character after two centuries on Taiwanese soil.

Featured in: Organic Wok Fired Old Vine Wu Yi Oolong

India

AV2 (Ambari Vitro-2)

A tissue-culture-propagated Darjeeling clonal developed at the Tea Research Association's Darjeeling substation and released for the intense, sought-after muscatel character it brings to first-flush Darjeeling. It's now one of the most widely replanted clones on Darjeeling estates, valued for a consistency lot to lot that older seed-grown "China jat" bushes can't guarantee. We've carried AV2 Darjeeling before (a Thurbo Estate first flush), but don't have a lot in stock right now — we'll link the next one here once it arrives.

Assam Jat (Seed-Grown)

Distinct from the clonal selections that dominate most commercial Assam plantations, "jat" refers to Assam's traditional seed-propagated tea populations — grown from Camellia sinensis var. assamica seed rather than cuttings, which means more plant-to-plant variation and, producers argue, more complexity than uniform clonal rows. It's most often found today in old-growth, wild, or minimally managed Assam gardens.

Featured in: Wild Tree Assam

Sri Lanka

Camellia sinensis var. assamica

Most of Sri Lanka's low-country and mid-country tea gardens are planted with assamica-type stock rather than the China-type (var. sinensis) bushes more common in high-grown Nuwara Eliya teas — the larger leaf and more robust character of assamica suits the malty, full-bodied style low-country Ceylon black tea is known for. Our own listing for this lot notes "cultivar 2026," which appears to reference the harvest year rather than a specific Tea Research Institute clone number.

Featured in: Sinharaja Forest BOP