Hunan is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting (hence the name Hunan, meaning “south of the lake”). Hunan is sometimes called “Xiang” for short, after the Xiang River which runs through the province.  It borders Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to the east, Guangdong to the south, Guangxi to the southwest, and Guizhou to the west. The capital is Changsha.

Hunan has a long history of tea production in China and is one of its largest producers. Some of the famous teas from Hunan are: Junshan Yinzhen (silver needles), Maojian, Dark black brick tea and Huang Ya (Yellow tea).  Famous tea areas in Hunan include:  Dongting Lake, Heng Mountain and Shao Mountain.  In sourcing teas from Hunan, our aim has been to find leaf that has exceptional down (a leaf characteristic that gives the brew a buttery texture).