Century-Old Ancient Tea Trees, Treasures Amid the Mountains and Forests of Sin Ho, Lai Chau

Precious ancient tea like a "treasure" on the mountaintop

In the early days of spring, when the sun has only just begun to set, the mountain mist here already comes "swirling" in, and in a moment the ground is covered with a thin layer of fog.

Before our eyes stretched endless moss-covered ancient tea trees, a hundred years old, appearing and disappearing in the mountain mist. They are regarded as the "treasure" of the people of Sa De Phin commune (Sin Ho district, Lai Chau), growing at an altitude of over 1,700m across an area of nearly 15 hectares.

According to the elders, in the early decades of the last century, the French came up here on a survey and found this precious plant. Since the trees grew entirely in the wild, they propagated them and planted many more tea trees.

The honest, simple farmers on the mountaintop of Sa De Phin today never imagined that one day the large, "rugged" tea leaves growing on the moss-covered ancient trunks, once tended by their own forefathers, would be judged by tea experts as a top-quality product, good enough to be exported to world markets.

In October 2022, the Agency for the Valorization of Agricultural Products in France - AVPA Paris held an online award ceremony for its fifth International Tea Contest at the AVPA Paris headquarters.

The surprise for Sin Ho district was that out of a total of 14 awards for tea varieties from across the country, it won 4 awards (including bronze awards and world impression awards). The tea products use raw material from the ancient tea trees on the mountaintop of Sa De Phin, Sin Ho district, an area with a special climate and soil, hidden in mountain mist all year round.

As one of dozens of households growing and tending ancient tea trees on the mountain, every stage from picking and roasting to brewing and enjoying the tea is done in the most natural way. Mr. Giang A Khua of Sa De Phin village (Sa De Phin commune) brewed a steaming pot of tea, its fragrance drifting through the air, and poured a cup for his guests, saying: "Good tea brewed the right way has many enticing flavors. With just a quick sniff you can already notice its distinctive sweet aroma; take a small sip and there is a slight bitterness followed by a clean sweetness, a flavor that lingers in the mouth for a long time."

Source: danviet.vn

Date: 03/02/2023