Pomelo Red Tea

The Northern Highlands of Vietnam's Hà Giang Province is a tea cultivation region famous for its Shan Tea, grown at high elevations of about 1500–1700 meters in the Tây Côn Lĩnh mountain range. This region is the cradle of Northern Vietnam's ancient tea cultivation history. The biodiverse tea forests of Hà Giang are living museums—vestiges of the country’s centuries-old tea heritage.

This year, we selected both green and red teas from this region, all hand-made by generational tea artisans. This red tea was harvested from forest-grown Indigenous Shan Tuyết tea trees unique to Vietnam. These trees are over 200 years old, established from ancient heirloom seeds.

The special red and green teas of this high mountain region offer a deep yet soft taste with an enlivening energy that pairs beautifully with flower scenting. Vietnam’s tea tradition celebrates the marriage of flowers and tea leaves in a refined expression of culinary artistry and natural, edible perfumery.

Some of the most unique and aromatic flower-scented teas in the world are crafted in Vietnam, using a wide variety of fragrant blossoms. The most popular flowers for tea scenting include pomelo, lotus, jasmine, aglaia and chloranthus. Artisans also work with orchids, magnolias and wildflowers to create distinctive scented teas for Rishi.

It all begins with careful tea selection and preparation ahead of the fresh flower harvest season. Aging the base green or red tea for several months helps soften the leaves, mellow sharp aromas and improve their ability to absorb floral fragrance.

For this tea, we selected a spring red tea to scent with pomelo flowers. Because pomelo blooms in January and February, the base tea was aged for several months prior to scenting—ensuring a smooth, balanced integration of lasting floral aroma with the bold, energetic character of Vietnam’s Shan Tea.