Vine Tea

Place of Origin: Hubei, China

There are teas, and then there are vines that have been drunk like tea for over a thousand years.

This is not tea. Not really. It comes from a vine — Ampelopsis grossedentata — that grows in the selenium hills of Enshi. The leaves are small, and on their surface, a fine white powder forms naturally. This is not mould, not frost, not additive. It is flavonoid, crystallised. The thing that makes this vine remarkable.

People here have drunk it for generations. In 2013, it was formally acknowledged as a traditional food — official recognition of what these mountains have always known.

Pour it and the liquor is pale gold, almost clear. The first taste is bitter, gently so, then it turns — slowly, then all at once — into sweetness that lingers at the back of the throat, cool and clean.

There is no caffeine. There is no tea polyphenol. You can drink it at any hour, and it will not keep you awake.