After a recent visit to the country, Jane discusses what teas are being grown and drunk in Vietnam’s remote regions as well as in the more developed districts. 

Tea has a long history in Vietnam and has been cultivated and drunk there for thousands of years. But there was no formalized tea industry until the late 19th century when the French arrived, discovered the existence of the crop and developed plantations in Phu Tho to the north west of Hanoi. 

They established 60 hectares of tea in 1880, set up research facilities to study the local varietals of the plant and by the 1940’s, were exporting some 2,450 tons of black tea to Europe and green tea to Africa. After 1954, the country was assisted by Russia and China to produce and process its tea and a number of farms were established in the north. Further plantings followed in the northern, central and southern lowlands and expansion has continued, with an obvious break in development during the war with America and today, Vietnam is the fifth largest tea producer in the world and the sixth largest exporter. The area of land under tea currently totals approximately 140,000 hectares and annual production is around 145,000 tons of orthodox and CTC black, green, oolong, white and aged, puerh-style teas, with black and green accounting for the bulk of total production.

As well as the large, intensive tea farming areas, the remote northernmost mountain regions also produce small quantities of tea. But whereas the industrialized estates are mainly planted with camellia sinensis sinensis (and in particular the Trung Du varietal), the northern highland tea is made from wild assamica bushes and trees similar to the ancient trees found in Yunnan province just across the border in China. The particular cultivars found in the area are of the Shan varietal, including the Shan Tuyet cultivar. 

After 1975, five designated tea growing areas were developed - in the midlands, the northwest, the northern central coastal areas, the northern highlands and Viet Bac, the area north of Hanoi that was once the stronghold of the Viet Minh during the First Indochina War of 1946-54). Lam Dong is the largest tea region in the country with more than 20,000 hectares under tea and an outturn of 100,000 tons of fresh leaf each year. Tea is manufactured in these areas both in large processing units equipped with the latest machinery and technology and in small-scale domestic units where families turn out small quantities of made tea. 

Smallholder farmers play a very significant role in these areas and sell either fresh leaf for processing or processed green tea. Of the 500,000 smallholders, some are former workers from state-owned farms who have been allocated land and contracted to sell a certain percentage of their leaf to the state farms; others have a contractual arrangement to supply medium or large processors; a third group is made up of smallholders who sell most of their leaf to buyers on the open market. Production is gradually being improved by the introduction of better-yielding varietals to replace the poorer cultivars left from earlier plantings. Researchers and farmers are working to match varietals and processing methods to suit the tastes for both black and green teas in the domestic and export markets.

The types of tea that are currently available and of interest to world buyers from these areas include various large leaf, small leaf and fannings grade black teas, large leaf greens, green fannings, gunpowder green, pouchong (very lightly oxidized tea), yellow tea (a category for which there is a growing demand in the west), balled oolongs, jasmine green, lotus flavored green, and cinnamon flavored green. 

However, Vietnamese tea producers are facing various problems and factors currently working against them include competition for good quality raw material, the small scale and scattered nature of production areas, the lack of differentiation between harvests from different seasons, an overuse of pesticides in some areas, the plucking of the new bud with three or four leaves instead of only two, and a focus on producing more rather than better tea. Added to these is the low price earned for exported tea and the Vietnamese government is currently working to encourage farmers and processors to aim for higher standards in order to compete more successfully in the international tea market.

It is not clear who planted the ancient tea trees that are found today on the steep slopes of the mountains in the remote north and north west of Vietnam, close to the border with China. The trees grow in reasonably regular rows, indicating that they were planted for cultivation, but because of lack of care over possibly hundreds of years, they are overgrown, straggly and uneven in both height and width. For as long as anyone can remember, the local villagers have been harvesting the leaf to make tea for their own consumption, but only very small amounts currently reach the world market. 

However, tea is only one of several different crops and farming activities from which the ethnic mountain people earn their living and there is potential to increase more sustainable tea farming as a way of improving their financial situation. Poverty in these areas is higher than among the lowland and midland tea farmers and is of real concern to government and NGOs working with them. And whereas in the more intensive tea farming areas yield per hectare is approximately one ton, in the mountain regions, it is only 300-400 kg per hectare.

The particular varietal of the tea tree that grows in the high mountain areas of Vietnam is Shan Tuyet. Naturally high in antioxidants and with only mild astringency, the harvested buds and leaves can be turned into black, green, yellow or white teas. The yellow and green teas tend to have a clean, fruity liquor that is reminiscent of some Assam greens, and the black Shan Tuyet teas are mellow, smooth and sweet. White Shan Tuyet teas are in the experimental stage and may become available in the future. These high mountain teas are beginning to find their way into local and international markets and the potential for increased sales into the specialty trade is significant.

Government-backed programs are today being run to train villagers how to prune and care for the trees and bushes in a more sustainable way, how to improve their plucking skills, and how to make and use composts, thus helping to increase yield, improve quality, and earn better prices for the finished teas. Those running such schemes also understand the importance of establishing close links with international and domestic buyers, sending samples for assessment and feedback and setting up better routes to market from the remote areas. 

One example of how this approach can work to everyone’s advantage is the Betterday company, the first Fairtrade international labeling licensed brand from a developing country. Based in Hanoi, the company was set up by NGO Minh Smith and her husband Dominic and they now work in partnership with farmers in the remote mountain villagers and it sells a range of items produced by them (wherever possible, organically certified), including teas, coffee, cashew nuts, spices and skin care creams. The tea range includes Organic Green, Organic Jasmine Green, Ancient Tree Green, Ancient Tree Jasmine, Snow Mountain Black, Earl Grey, Masala Chai, Christmas Tea, Lotus Tea and English Breakfast blend. The aims of the company are to “sell high quality, safe products that are good for the consumer but also deliver real social benefits to the farmers and their families and encourage environmental protection,” the Smiths told Tea & Coffee Asia. “Our products are produced in cooperation with farmer groups and rural small and medium enterprises, and by working with producers as trading partners we can improve their livelihoods, increase their incomes and link them with markets on terms that are beneficial for them.” 

The Smiths are currently planning a factory close to the growing areas in order to facilitate better manufacture and forge a closer relationship with the farming community.

Vietnam exports some 113,032 tons of tea every year and the teas can be found in more than 100 countries with sales to Russia, the US and Malaysia currently increasing. Until 1990, the only exporter was the Vietnam National Tea Corporation, which is now the 7th most important. By 2008, the Vinh Phuc Future Generation Company had become the leading exporter and other major players are Future Generation Company, One Member, Kien and Kien, Nghe An Tea Development Investment Company, Finlay Vietnam Company, Nam Anh Import and Export Company, a branch of the Swiss Company in Vietnam, Hong Tra Commercial and Tourism Joint Stock Company, and Tuan Minh Company.

The Vietnamese tea trademark CheViet has been in use since 2005 and is now recognized in more than 70 countries. Market leaders who use the mark are the Vietnam National Tea Corporation and the Moc Chau Tea Company, and some 24 companies and more than 50 products now use it. Other enterprises, such as Shan Tuyet, Hoang Su Phi, Lao Cai, and Ngoc Son Tea recognize the need for a strong, recognizable presence in the market and are developing logos and trademarks for their products.

For some of the rarer, high mountain teas to reach world specialty markets, further training for farmers to improve their cultivation methods, and easier access to the remote areas will be needed. This will take time, but with hundreds of Shan Tuyet trees providing leaf for the tea farming communities, the possibilities of establishing and increasing sustainable tea farming are strong.

Domestic consumption in Vietnam has been rising steadily over the past few years and the total amount of tea drunk in the country went up from some 27,500 tons of tea in 2004 to more than 35,000 tons today. Traditionally, the locally made green tea is brewed in a small china teapot, and a generous measure of leaf is allowed to steep for a long time to give a very strong and bitter brew. Most households (some 99%) have little tea sets that consist of these small pots and small handled teacups the size of an espresso cup. In private homes and offices, the tea and tea wares are never far away and as soon as visitors arrive, the kettle is set to boil and the pot is stuffed full of leaves and filled with hot water. 

The beverage is valued for its health-giving vitamins, polyphenols and tannins which people recognize as helping to reduce blood pressure and protect against certain cancers. But more than that, tea is seen an important part of everyday social life and plays a crucial role at all celebrations and festivals. There is no formal ‘tea ceremony’ as in China, Taiwan and Japan, but the tea is brewed in front of guests and handed around as people chat and exchange news and gossip, and in that way it is similar to other oriental tea brewing occasions.

In the cities, among young people, the current trend is for green tea served in a tall glass with a slice of lemon and drunk through a straw. With its outdoor culture, most socializing is carried on in the street, even in cold weather, and the sidewalks of Hanoi in the evening are full of large chattering groups of students and others perched on tiny plastic stools a mere 12 to 16 inches high. An extra stool sits in the middle to hold the glasses of tea and the little dishes of nuts, seeds, bean cakes and crystallized fruits that are nibbled with the tea. 

Just as in other countries around the world today, there is also a move towards modernizing tea rooms and tea stores and in the West Lake area of Hanoi a recently-opened tea room is representative of the new approach. 

Chic and stylish, Ochão Tea House combines oriental textures and materials with a more contemporary European look. The porcelain tea wares are colorful and sleek, the presentation of the food on white porcelain is eye-catching and artistic and the waitress also acts as tea-brewer and not only brings the tea equipage to the table but carefully prepares and pours the tea for customers. The tea list includes a range of black and green Vietnamese teas, flower-flavored blends, herbals and the unusual option of tea flowers. A non-caffeine alternative to the tea leaves, the neat little green flower buds apparently used to be very popular in Old Hanoi and are gathered in the autumn and dried in the sun for seven days. The tea room is becoming very popular with locals and tourists and is a good example of how Vietnam is adapting to the modern approach to the beverage that we are seeing all around the world at the moment.