Da Hong Pao The most expensive tea in the world. Cost – $ 250,000 per 1 kg. Although this tea is classified as a green tea, it has an excellent rich and bright taste of red tea. 1st place is occupied by Chinese tea “Da Hong Pao” – “Big Red Robe”. This tea can rightly be called the most expensive tea in the world.
The culture of tea drinking has existed for more than one millennium. This magical drink not only quenches thirst, but also gives unforgettable moments spent with an exquisite, rich taste and a bright, balanced aroma. However, unfortunately, not every one of us can afford expensive teas of a well-known variety.
For some, due to their taste preferences, ordinary black or green tea of medium quality is enough. And someone would be happy to try the legendary Darjeeling or Da Hong Pao, for example, but these varieties are beyond his means. You don’t have to look far for examples. For the most expensive tea in the world under an exotic name
Da Hong Pao in 2005 at an auction held in Fujian Province, experts offered 25,000 US dollars (208 yuan) for just 20 grams (that is, 4 teaspoons). A week before this event, the same amount of expensive tea went under the hammer for no less than 24,000 US dollars. And this is not the only case of “tea fever”.
To date, experts have identified the 8 most expensive varieties of tea.
- The honorable first place was taken by the aforementioned aristocrat tea Da Hong Pao (or “Big Red Robe”). Its popularity is not falling. Most likely, due to the fact that now this variety is impossible to get for one simple reason – a moratorium has now been imposed on its collection, and the entire harvest of 2006 was transferred to the National Museum of China for storage.
Now you can get the most expensive Da Hong Pao tea only at auctions, where the price of the most expensive tea per kilogram sometimes reaches 700,000 US dollars. However, gourmets are ready to pay even such big money for tea with an unforgettable taste, in which there are noble wine notes.
- In the second, no less honorable place is Chinese expensive Tai Shi Oolong tea (aka “Taiwan Black Dragon”), which belongs to semi-fermented teas. Interestingly, this variety retains the fresh aroma of high-quality green tea, but its taste due to bitter-tart notes with hints of flowers is more typical of red tea. For a kilogram of such a miracle, gourmets are ready to pay 250,000 US dollars.
- The third place went to Chinese expensive white tea called An-Xi. This is one of the most fragrant and refined varieties. An-Si broth turns out to be a beautiful pale green shade with purple highlights. Gourmets say that the expensive An-Si tea has a refreshing, moderately tart and at the same time mild taste, as well as a noble aroma with notes of orchids and citrus fruits. This drink has a tonic effect. On the other hand, since tea contains amino acids and selenium, it also relaxes and does not let stress take over you. You can buy “meditation tea” for as little as $160,000 per kilo.
4. In fourth place is Indian expensive black tea Darjeeling. This variety is grown on plantations in the Himalayas and is produced using a very complex technology (which, of course, also affected its price). The expensive variety of Darjeeling tea is popularly called “tea champagne”. And this is no accident, because it is distinguished by a rather light shade of broth, an exquisite aroma with floral nuances and a slightly tart, intense taste with nutmeg tones. In England, the tea country, Darjeeling is valued above other black teas. Such a miracle costs 18,000 US dollars per kilogram.
5. Fifth place was taken by the famous Chinese expensive yellow Jun-Shan Yin-Zhen tea, whose name translates as “Silver Needles of the Jun-Shan Mountains. The secret of making this variety is still considered a great secret. Previously, this expensive tea was worth its weight in gold, and until the beginning of the twentieth century, its export outside the Celestial Empire was punishable by death. A decoction of Jun-Shan Yin-Zhen tea after brewing acquires an expressive light apricot hue. The drink has a tonic effect, activates mental activity and refines perception. This is a truly unique expensive tea that pleases gourmets with a sweetish, refreshing, smooth, velvety, balanced taste and an exquisite, multifaceted, fragrant aroma with floral tones and a long, sweet aftertaste. The cost of this tea is 8,000 US dollars per kilogram.
6. In sixth place is Japanese expensive Sencha green tea. Its specific taste is explained by the unusual way of processing the leaves. In production, they are not fried, but steamed, after which they are twisted into thin “spider legs”. Most of all, connoisseurs appreciate this expensive variety of tea for its mild effect on the body (it has less tannin than other varieties of green tea) and a luxurious bouquet of taste and aroma. For a kilogram of this masterpiece, gourmets will have to pay 6,200 US dollars.
7. In seventh place is a Chinese expensive tea called Tie Guan Yin, or “Goddess of Mercy.” This variety has been known since the eighteenth century. According to experts, it cannot be attributed with full certainty to any variety, it is neither black nor green tea. The tea masterpiece was appreciated by those wishing to lose weight, as this expensive tea has a fat-burning effect. Fragrant infusion of light green color with golden reflections will delight you with a rich, fresh, moderately sweet taste, exquisite aroma with floral-honey and fruit-spicy nuances and a bright, long aftertaste. The cost of this masterpiece of tea art is 1,700 US dollars per kilogram.
8. Eighth place is occupied by the famous white expensive Chinese tea Baicha, which grows exclusively in the vicinity of the town of Antsy (Zhejiang Province). The area’s fertile soil and frequent rainfall are ideal conditions for cultivating this prized tea variety. In the process of brewing, the tea leaves bloom and gradually turn white, and the shade of the infusion becomes yellow-green. Expensive Baicha tea has a soft, refreshing, tart-sweet taste and a persistent, multifaceted aroma. It is almost impossible to meet this expensive variety of tea in our penates, but this does not mean that we do not know and do not like it.
On the contrary, such a deficit is held in high esteem in our country, therefore, for the sake of this delicacy, gourmets are ready to part with a tidy sum, which is 1,200 US dollars per kilogram, without regret. Compared to the previous representatives of expensive tea, this is also a rather big price. Such a cost of Baicha tea is explained by the fact that such a rare variety is cultivated only in the vicinity of the town of Anji and is made exclusively from the first opened tea leaves.
One can hope that the list of the most expensive teas in the world will be replenished over time. After all, money comes and goes, but you always want to drink tea of the highest quality. Happy tea!
