---
title: "Xiápǔ yuánxiāo chá"
url: https://thetea.app/article/xiapu-yuanxiao-cha
lang: en
updated: 2026-10-01
source: THE TEA — encyclopedia of Chinese tea (https://thetea.app)
---
# Xiápǔ yuánxiāo chá (霞浦元宵茶)

*Xiápǔ yuánxiāo chá* (霞浦元宵茶) is a tea of Xiapu County (霞浦县), Ningde prefecture-level city, on the northeastern coast of Fujian Province, made from the super-early variety of the same name. “*Yuánxiāo*” is the Lantern Festival, the 15th day of the first lunar month: in an ordinary year the harvest begins a day or two before or after the festival, and in an early year as early as the 2nd–3rd day of the new year. The name is protected by a geographical indication certification mark. The description of the mark — a green leaf and a yellow-bright liquor — corresponds to green tea, but I have not seen a document stating the product's class.

**1. Classification and Origin:**

* **Type:** Not established by the document of the mark. The description of the mark — a green dry leaf, a yellow-bright liquor, bright spent leaves with noticeable buds — corresponds to green tea, but the class is not named in the documents consulted, and the name “霞浦元宵茶” also serves as the name of the bush variety. Therefore the class is not asserted here.
* **Category:** A super-early variety and the tea made from it; geographical indication certification mark (2012).
* **Origin:** China, Fujian Province (福建, *Fújiàn*), Ningde prefecture-level city (宁德, *Níngdé*), Xiapu County (霞浦县, *Xiápǔ Xiàn*). The zone, according to the reference note on the mark, comprises thirteen townships, towns and subdistricts of the county, among them Changchun (长春), Yacheng (牙城) and Xinan (溪南). The provincial list of marks gives the county as the administrative affiliation of the holder.
* **Geographic coordinates:** Xiapu County — about 26.9° N and 120.0° E.

**2. History and Cultural Significance:**

* **History:**
    * **1981 — the variety.** The Xiapu County Tea Bureau (霞浦县茶业局) bred the variety by single-plant selection (单株选种) from the local “春分茶” population of Houxiling Village (后溪岭村), Chongru Township (崇儒乡).
    * **2012 — the mark.** The name was registered as a geographical indication certification mark — under two registrations, No. 10430782 and No. 10430783.
    * **2015 — the catalogue.** The tea entered the national catalogue of “名特优新” agricultural products.
    * **Today.** The provincial list of Fujian as of 30 June 2026 lists both registrations as valid.
    * The earlier history of the “春分茶” population and the path of the variety from selection to recognition are not described in the documents consulted.
* **Name:**
    * “*Xiápǔ*” (霞浦) — literally “shore of the dawn”. According to the county gazetteer, the county is named after the Xiapu River, whose water in the rays of the rising sun seemed tinted by the dawn.
    * “*Yuánxiāo*” (元宵) — the Lantern Festival, the 15th day of the first lunar month.
    * “春分茶” — the name of the original population, literally “spring equinox tea”.
* **Cultural significance:** The variety links tea with the calendar: its harvest begins by the Lantern Festival, 10–15 days earlier than that of the well-known Fujian variety 福云6号.

**3. Botanical Description and Raw Material:**

* **Variety / Cultivar:** **霞浦元宵茶** — shrub type, medium-leaf; the bush is of medium size, the crown semi-spreading, the branching fairly dense, the leaves set horizontally. The leaf is long-elliptic, green, glossy, with a slightly convex surface, a slightly wavy edge and a gradually tapering tip; fairly thick and soft. The young shoot is yellow-green, with fairly dense pubescence. One hundred shoots of “a bud and three leaves” weigh **41 g**.
* **Harvest:** In an ordinary year the harvest begins a day or two before or after the Lantern Festival; in an early year — as early as the 2nd–3rd day of the new year. This is **10–15 days earlier** than the 福云6号 variety.
* **Harvest standard:** Not given in the mark documents consulted.
* **Raw material requirements:** The 霞浦元宵茶 variety, origin from the thirteen units of the zone.

**4. Terroir and Cultivation Features:**

* **Region:** A coastal county in the northeast of Fujian, on the northwestern shore of the Taiwan Strait; according to reference data, the county's coastline is 480 km, the longest among the coastal counties and cities of the province.
* **Growing altitude and soils:** No data in the sources consulted.
* **Climate:** Measured data for the tea gardens are not found in the sources consulted.
* **Features:** The super-early harvest is a property of the variety, not only of the place (see section 3).

**5. Production Technology:**

Processing rules are not described in the mark documents consulted. The description of the mark speaks of a green leaf and a yellow-bright liquor, which corresponds to green tea. The general scheme of green tea, not a description of this product: spreading of the fresh leaf, fixation, rolling or shaping, drying.

**6. Organoleptic Characteristics:**

According to the description of the mark, which ends with the formula “color, aroma, taste and shape — all fine” (色香味形俱佳):

* **Dry leaf appearance:** Of beautiful shape, green (外形优美、色绿).
* **Dry leaf aroma:** No separate description.
* **Liquor aroma:** Rich and lasting (香气浓郁持久).
* **Taste:** Mild and full-bodied (滋味醇厚).
* **Liquor color:** Yellow-bright (汤色黄亮).
* **Spent leaves (wet leaves):** Bright, with noticeable buds (叶底明亮显芽).

**7. Chemical Composition:**

Analyses are not found in the sources consulted.

**8. Health Properties:**

There are no verified data on the effects of this particular tea.

**9. Brewing:**

Class practice for green tea, to which the description of the mark corresponds.

* **Water temperature:** 80–85 °C.
* **Tea amount:** 3 g per 150 ml.
* **Teaware:** A glass tumbler or a white gaiwan.
* **Process:**
    1. Warm the teaware.
    2. Add the tea.
    3. Pour in a little water and let the leaf open for 20–30 seconds.
    4. Top up with water; first infusion — 1–2 minutes.
    5. Drink, leaving part of the liquor.
    6. Two or three further infusions.

**10. Storage:**

Class practice for green tea. In airtight packaging, in a refrigerator at 0–5 °C, away from light, moisture and foreign odors; early tea is valued for its freshness, so it is best drunk within the season.

**11. Price and Counterfeits:**

Price data are not found in the sources consulted.

* **How to avoid counterfeits:**
    * Look for the geographical mark “霞浦元宵茶”.
    * Check that the producer is from Xiapu County.
    * Remember that “元宵” in the name is the name of the variety and of the mark, tied to the Xiapu zone, and not simply an indication of a spring harvest.

**12. Interesting Facts:**

* In early years the harvest begins on the 2nd–3rd day of the new year.
* The variety comes into bud 10–15 days earlier than 福云6号.
* The original population was called “春分茶” — “spring equinox tea”.
* The mark has two registrations — No. 10430782 and No. 10430783.

**13. Comparison with Other Early Teas:**

* **Wuniu Zao ([乌牛早](https://thetea.app/article/wuniu-zao)):** An early green tea of Zhejiang, also valued for the first spring harvest.
* **Tianshan Lü Cha ([天山绿茶](https://thetea.app/article/tianshan-lucha)):** A green tea of the same Ningde prefecture, from the Tianshan mountains.

**In Conclusion:**

*Xiápǔ yuánxiāo chá* is a tea named after a festival and famous for its timing: its buds are ready by the Lantern Festival, and in an early year — right after the New Year. The variety was selected in 1981 from the local “春分茶” population, and the mark was obtained in 2012. The description of the mark speaks of a green leaf, a yellow-bright liquor and a lasting aroma; the main thing in this tea is its early timing.