Jasmine Tea Scenting Workshop in the Old City

Page type
Experience

Fuzhou is the birthplace of jasmine tea (mòlihuā chá). The scenting technique — layering fresh blossoms with green tea over multiple nights so the tea absorbs the fragrance — was refined here in the Song dynasty. Several family tea shops inside Sanfang Qixiang now run a short workshop that replaces the boring tea-museum version with something you actually do.

What happens in 2 hours:

  • Brief history of Fuzhou jasmine cultivation on the Min River flood plain.
  • Sorting fresh blossoms (the shop buys them that morning from Yongtai County).
  • Hand-layering blossoms into a clay scenting jar with green tea base — traditional kūn method.
  • Tasting three grades of jasmine tea against a plain green base to learn what the scenting actually does.
  • Take home a 50 g tin of your own batch (cured after 8 hours).

Practical: about 180–240 CNY per person. Blossom season peaks June–August, so workshops run mostly May–October; winter sessions use stored blossoms and are cheaper but less fragrant. Book via Xiaohongshu — search "福州 茉莉花茶 窨制 体验". Bring a notebook; this is the kind of thing you'll want to remember.