Choui Fong grows on Thailand's Chiang Rai hills, at a plantation the source describes as the region's largest, cultivated for more than forty years at around 1,200 metres. That elevation and the humid northern climate shape a green tea with a floral, vegetal character underpinned by grassy notes and a thread of fruitiness — Teatico's tasting notes add a coffee-like depth and a drying finish that round out the cup. Leaves are picked between May and October, then withered, rolled, and dried using a process the source calls a blend of traditional craft and modern technique. The rolling is done coarsely by hand rather than machine-finished into tight pellets, which is part of why the liquor pours a pale golden yellow with a light body rather than something heavier.
On the palate, the floral top notes arrive first, echoing the landscape it's grown in, before a gentle sweetness and the grassy, vegetal backbone take over. The finish is clean and lingering rather than bitter, though Teatico's notes flag a drying quality on the back end worth expecting. The plantation has picked up recognition over the years, including an award from Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn in 2001, and multiple five-star ratings from tea organisations — more a marker of local reputation than a guarantee of taste, but it says something about how the region regards the tea.
Caffeine sits in the moderate range, roughly 30mg per 8-ounce cup, enough for a lift without the jitteriness of a stronger black tea. Some drinkers reach for green teas like this one for their antioxidant content, though that's a traditional association rather than a settled medical claim — treat it as a nice-to-have rather than the reason to buy it.
For brewing, use water cooled to around 90°C and steep for about two and a half minutes — closer to the low end if you prefer a lighter cup. One teaspoon of leaves per cup is a reasonable starting point. Skip milk or sweeteners here; the floral and grassy notes are the point, and they show best unadorned. Once opened, keep the leaves in an airtight container out of direct light and away from anything with a strong smell, since green tea picks up ambient odours easily.
