明前春茶
Mar 10 – Apr 20
Early plateau spring harvest for Duyun Maojian and Meitan Cuiya.
贵州貴州
Guizhou
High-elevation, mist-shrouded plateau province in southwestern China known for Duyun Maojian in Qiannan and Meitan Cuiya in Zunyi.
- Level
- Province
At a glance#
Location
- Garden elevation
- Yunwu Mountain in Duyun (Qiannan) and Meitan in Zunyi sit on the Guizhou karst plateau between 800 and 1,600 m.
Where it lies#
Tea places nearby, plotted by their coordinates. Only physical positions are shown, no boundaries.
2513 places shown Across the view · 1,760 km
117 places shown Across the view · 1,160 km
Altitude#
Garden elevations here and in neighbouring places, as sourced.
- Dali730–4,295 m
- Jinggu813–2,920 m
- Kunming1,500–2,800 m
- Wuliang Mountains1,500–2,500 m
- Nanjian1,700–2,450 m
- Jingdong1,400–2,450 m
- Xiaguan1,960–2,200 m
- Yunnan1,000–2,100 m
- Yangta1,650–1,900 m
- Yiyang100–1,621 m
- Guizhou800–1,600 m
- Sichuan450–1,500 m
- Ya'an600–1,456 m
- Guangxi150–1,400 m
- Hunan80–1,400 m
- Enshi450–1,150 m
- Cangwu250–1,100 m
- Yichang200–1,100 m
- Anhua150–1,100 m
- Liubao350–1,050 m
- Chongqing300–1,000 m
- Wuzhou150–1,000 m
Picking calendar#
Terroir#
- Rock
- Karst limestone, dolomite, quartz sandstone, and shale across the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau.
- Soil
- Acidic mountain yellow earth (黄壤) and yellow-brown soils over non-carbonate sandstone/shale strata, pH 4.5–5.5.
- Slope and light
- Classic "high altitude, low latitude, heavy cloud and mist, low direct sunshine" (高海拔、低纬度、寡日照、多云雾) plateau microclimate.
Cultivation#
- Cultivars grown
- 黔湄601 (Qianmei 601)Fuding Dabai都匀苔茶群体种 (Duyun Taicha landrace)
- Landraces
- Duyun Niaowang/Taicha population (都匀鸟王种 / 苔茶群体种) and Meitan Moss-tea landraces.
- Practice
- High-elevation ecological terrace cultivation; curled fish-hook pan-firing for Duyun Maojian and flat-bud shaping for Meitan Cuiya.
Local words#
| Local words | Dialect | |
|---|---|---|
| 鱼钩茶 yúgōu chá | Southwestern Mandarin (Qiannan / Duyun) | fishhook-curled downy spring green tea Traditional local name in Duyun and Qiannan for Duyun Maojian, describing its tightly curled, white-furred spring shoots shaped like tiny fishhooks. |
People#
- Qiannan Buyi and Miao growers and Zunyi tea farmers 黔南布依族苗族茶农与遵义茶农
- Buyi, Miao, and Han highland smallholders in Duyun (Qiannan) and Meitan (Zunyi) who cultivate high-altitude, mist-shrouded plateau gardens for Duyun Maojian and Meitan Cuiya.
Market#
- Primary trade channel
- Processed in Meitan and Duyun cooperative factories and traded through the China Tea Sea wholesale hub in Meitan and Guiyang specialty markets, as well as supplying bulk green leaf to other provinces.
- Trading towns
- Meitan · Duyun · Guiyang
- Output
- Guizhou is one of China's largest tea-planting provinces by area, combining high-elevation smallholder gardens in Qiannan with expansive modern green-tea estates in Zunyi (Meitan and Fenggang).
- Prices of teas claiming this origin
- Early-spring pre-Qingming single-bud Meitan Cuiya and hand-rolled fishhook Duyun Maojian from core high-elevation ridges command the highest provincial prices.
History#
- 1500Duyun "Fish-Hook Tea" (鱼钩茶) recorded as Ming-dynasty tribute tea.
- 1940Central Experimental Tea Farm established in Meitan during the wartime relocation of agronomic institutes, founding modern Guizhou tea science.
- 1956Mao Zedong names the local fish-hook green tea "Duyun Maojian".
Notes#
Identity and history#
Set across the karst plateau of southwestern China where high elevation, low latitude, and minimal direct insolation converge, Guizhou functions as an extensive ecological sanctuary for mid- and high-mountain green teas. In the southern valleys of Qiannan around Duyun and the northern Zunyi hills of Meitan, mineral-rich acidic soils and perpetual mist support delicate, amino-acid-rich flush growth. Provincial processing standards regulate the wok-tossed fish-hook curls of Duyun Maojian and the flat, emerald-green bud leaves of Meitan Cuiya.
Prices of teas claiming this origin#
International retail
Show as table
| Product | Vendor | Channel | per 100 g |
|---|---|---|---|
| Du Yun Mao Jian Guizhou Fishhook | Dragon Tea House | International retail | $25.98 |
| Mei Tan Cui Ya Green Tea | Bestitea | International retail | $42.14 |
| Du Yun Mao Jian Green Tea | Bestitea | International retail | $70.71 |
| Du Yun Mao Jian Green Tea | Sazen Tea | International retail | $232.15 |
Listings claiming this origin 4#
Price ranks compare recorded retail offers for the same tea, including offers outside the current delivery filter. Shipping and import charges are excluded.
Prices compared in the selected currency; unknown values appear last.
| Product | Vendor | Price | Per 100 g |
|---|---|---|---|
| Du Yun Mao Jian Guizhou Fishhook | Dragon Tea HouseWorldwide |
$12.99 / 50 g | $25.98 |
Mei Tan Cui Ya Green Tea
Details and price notesCompare the details Recorded seller claims; a blank means unrecorded here, not necessarily absent from the seller’s page. Matching production does not establish identical storage or condition.
Base Sample 14g (0.5oz) option at USD 5.90; 50g, 100g, 200g, and 500g options available |
BestiteaSelected destinations |
$5.90 / 14 g | $42.14 |
Du Yun Mao Jian Green Tea
Details and price notesCompare the details Recorded seller claims; a blank means unrecorded here, not necessarily absent from the seller’s page. Matching production does not establish identical storage or condition.
Base Sample 14g (0.5oz) Zip Bag option at USD 9.90; 50g, 100g, 200g, and 500g options available |
BestiteaSelected destinations |
$9.90 / 14 g | $70.71 |
Du Yun Mao Jian Green Tea
DetailsCompare the details Recorded seller claims; a blank means unrecorded here, not necessarily absent from the seller’s page. Matching production does not establish identical storage or condition.
|
Sazen TeaWorldwide |
€20.70 / 10 g | $232.15 €207.00 / 100 g |
Prices recorded on the dates checked. Conversions use ECB rates dated 2026-10-20; original prices appear alongside. Origin, age and cultivar are stated by the vendor.
Teas associated with this place#
Sources#
- 中国茶树品种志 (2001)
- 陈宗懋、杨亚军主编. 中国茶经 (2011修订版) (The Classic of Chinese Tea, 2011 rev. ed.). 上海文化出版社, 2011. ISBN 978-7-80740-664-8.