Yellow tea is one of the world’s rarest teas, produced through a slow, highly skilled and labour‑intensive process that takes up to three days and yields only very small batches, found mainly in China.
Explore their production process and its influence on the final flavour.
The steps in producing Yellow tea
Yellow tea owes its name to a special stage in its processing. After the leaves are partially dried and still warm, they are wrapped in a damp cloth. This creates a gentle oxidation that turns the leaves a yellowish color.
Plucking and Whitering
The yellow tea prodduction process begins with plucking of young buds only. Since yellow teas sit between white and green teas, these buds play a key role: they contain higher levels of amino acids, which contribute greater sweetness and umami, and they naturally have lower bitterness while offering more delicate floral aromas than mature leaves.
After the plucking the withering stage is carried out in the same way as for green tea. The leaves are briefly withered right after picking to soften the leaves and preparing the leaves for the next stage of the produciton process.
Fixing
In this phase, the leaves are heated in a wok at relatively low temperatures (around 120°C) for a shorter period than green teas to stop oxidaiton, deactivating the enzimes responsible for it.
Producers typically carry out the fixing step by hand, gently moving the leaves to ensure the heat spreads evenly. This process is usually done in small batches.
Wrapping
While still warm and slightly moist, the leaves are wrapped in thick paper or cloth to undergo the “yellowing” phase. This enclosed environment allows the leaves to slowly release and take back moisture, keeping the humidity stable. This environment supports slight additional oxidation and leads to a semi-fermentation or non-enzymatic fermentation.
Over the next day or two, the leaves are unwrapped, then the process is repeated several times. The leaves are lightly roasted at a lower temperature and for a shorter period while being stirred, then wrapped again. This cycle continues until the desired stage of fermentation is reached.
Drying
After the previous stages, the leaves are dried, typically by gently baking them over charcoal at low temperatures. This method preserves the tea’s freshness and quality, halts oxidation, and helps maintain its natural flavor and aroma.
Conclusion
Yellow tea follows a process very similar to green tea. Its uniqueness comes from one extra stage—the slow yellowing (fermentation) process, where warm leaves are wrapped and gently oxidised. This added step tempers the grassy sharpness of green tea, giving yellow tea its distinctive gentle flavour, subtle sweetness, light floral nuances, and a naturally silky finish.
True examples of this rare style include Jun Shan Yin Zhen, Meng Ding Huang Ya, Huo Shan Huang Ya, and Mogan Huang Ya.
