The first 2026 teas are starting to become available!! This is your reminder to find a reputable tea importer in your country/region so you can get your hands on some super fresh teas this season! (Good importers should list the harvest year of their teas especially when it comes to the freshest ones)

I've posted about it before but basically we've entered the so called "first flush" which is the time when tea plants begin their first growth spurt of the year. Leaves from the first flush are regarded as being more flavorful and complex than leaves from later growth periods and as such they're very highly valued.

Tea is generally the best when it's fresh but some tea types benefit from freshness more than others. If you're a tea enjoyer I recommend you try some of the following tea types when they're still at their freshest:

- Green teas - green tea is very prone to going stale and its taste tends to be the richest right after harvest. All high quality green teas will taste great when they're fresh but some specific kinds to keep an eye for would be Japanese Shincha, Chinese Long Jing and Hunagshan Maofeng. Those are some of my favorites anyway but there are lots of delicious greens from the first flush!

- White teas - fresh white tea just tastes like spring, what can I say? Even just a basic Pai Mu Tan is gonna be amazing this time of year.

- Light oolongs - lightly oxidized, flowery oolongs from China and Taiwan are incredible in the spring. I've had one that smelled exactly like lilac but only for the first month or two after harvest! Pretty much look for anything described as "flowery" and you probably won't be disappointed.

- "Black" teas from Darjeeling and Nepal Guranse - black tea usually stays fresh longer than other types but first flush teas from these 2 Himalayan regions are actually closer to light oolongs. They have a very unique flowery and hay-like flavor profile and are simply incredible when they're fresh!