Our Terroir

We’re one of the few tea farms in the world that is planted in a marine-influenced Mediterranean climate with large diurnal swings causing warm days and cold nights. For those acquainted with wine, the finest wines in California come from terroirs with large diurnal swings aka hot days and cold nights. The sunshine and warmth during the day provide the energy needed for sugar, flavor, and color. Meanwhile, the cold nights allow the grape to ripen slowly, developing complexities and retaining acidity. The ratio of sugar to acidity makes the ideal wine and is the reason that Napa, Sonoma, and Lodi are so well known and appreciated. Growing wine without cool nights creates an unremarkably sweet and jammy flavor. On the flip side, growing wine without hot days makes it overly acidic and unbalanced.

Interestingly, tea is similar yet different. In other parts of the world, the finest teas are commonly associated with high altitudes because of their identical warm day and cold night dichotomies. The cold nights slow the growth of the plant allowing essential oils and other desirable attributes to accumulate in the leaves for better flavor. In contrast, lower elevation teas have consistently warm nights that create rapid leaf maturation and often result in a lack of complexity and volatile compounds that high-altitude teas possess.

Moreover, the large diurnal swings and high UV radiation induce intense stress upon the plant which is responsible for creating unique and interesting flavors. The stress triggers secondary metabolites in the leaves that protect the plant from damage and as a side effect creates complex tasting notes.

On average, our diurnal swing is 30-45 degrees Fahrenheit as our summer high is 95 degrees on average and our nightly low is 60 degrees. Moreover, we have the classic Mediterranean attributes of low humidity and intense UV exposure due to a lack of cloud cover/rainfall in the summer. With one of the largest diurnal swings and the highest UV indexes of any tea farm in the world, we have a truly remarkable product. The stress is so intense that 9 out of 10 commercial tea varieties will not survive. It took us years to find and develop cultivars that can harness the terroir and fully express the potential of California tea.

Two other attributes of high-quality tea that is typically found in high-elevation farms and our farm are low insect populations and mineral-rich soils.

The colder temperatures naturally limit the number of insects, and as a result, the tea plant doesn’t develop the bitter polyphenols utilized in pest avoidance. Moreover, due to California’s relatively dry weather, the pest problem is further reduced and we have no need for pesticides which are known to negatively influence flavor.

Lastly, the mineral-rich soil found in the mountains imbues a minerality to the tea that is highly sought after. Our world-class mineral-rich alluvial soil is the result of uniquely Californian weather patterns. During winter, storms blanket the Sierra Nevada mountains with snow. The snow melts once temperatures warm up and the water is funneled down the mountains into an intricate network of rivers and creeks that eventually reach the Bay Area and go into the Pacific Ocean. As the water moves to the ocean, it carries eroded mineral content from the mountains down into the San Joaquin Valley via silt. This rich glacial silt has been deposited year after year for eons and is the basis of our soil. The balanced and rich soil allows the plants to thrive and creates a full mouthfeel to our tea.