13 of the World's Most Expensive and Exclusive Teas

How much would you pay for an extraordinary and rare cup of tea? It turns out that people will pay top dollar for teas made from insect poop, teas that are harvested during the full moon, and tea bags that are encrusted with high-quality diamonds.

Take a dive into this fascinating list of 13 of the world’s most expensive and exclusive teas. You just might surprise yourself and discover that you’re willing to pay top dollar for some of these after all!

  1. Tienchi Flower Tea - $77.09 Per Pound

Tienchi Flower Tea is an herbal tisane tea that grows in China. These pseudo-ginseng flowers grow only once every three years which makes them very rare and cherished. Their tiny buds look like miniature broccoli florets and they are adored for their healing and pain-relieving properties. It’s also believed that this tea will cleanse your body of toxins, calm your mind, and help you sleep. 

Tienchi Tea has a cooling effect on the palette and a subtly bitter flavor with a sweet taste that lingers. This tea is about $77.09 a pound and will cost you about $0.43 for a single cup.

  1. Gao Shan Tea - $113.38 Per Pound

High-Mountain Tea — or Gao Shan Tea — is an oolong tea that is grown in the mountains of central Taiwan. The higher altitude and thin air make the limited number of plants — only 800 of them — grow slower which means the harvest yield is not as abundant as many other teas. This tea is harvested in both the spring and the winter.

Gao Shan Tea has a warm flowery flavor with a buttery undertone. It’s clean and crisp with a sweet and milky aftertaste. It costs about $113.38 per pound, which means a cup of Gao Shan Tea will cost you about $0.62.

  1. Gorreana Broken Leaf Black Tea - $183.67 Per Pound

Gorreana is a basic black tea that is decadent and has a distinct flavor due to its location on the Azores Islands of Portugal. These volcanic islands have rich mineral soil that creates a unique and bold black tea. At $183.67 a pound, you will be paying about $1.01 for a cup of Gorreana Broken Leaf Tea. 

Because of the rich soil, this is the only place in Europe where tea can be grown abundantly. When it’s harvested, only the third leaf is plucked from each stalk. Gorreana tea has a low bitterness level, and a light fruity flavor. 

  1. Gyokuro Tea - $294.78 Per Pound

Gyokoru means “jade dew” and it’s a special tea that’s grown in Japan — in the shade. The result is a tea that has less catechin — tea tannins — and a slightly sweet and refreshing flavor. It has a hearty umami profile and rich antioxidant and mineral content which can taste like the ocean. This ancient tea is about $294.78 per pound. A cup of tea costs about $1.63. 

  1. Poo Poo Pu-erh Tea - $453.51 Per Pound

Poo Poo Pu-erh Tea — also known as Insect Poop Tea — is harvested in a fascinating and unique way and people fiercely love it for its nutrients, tradition, and flavor. This ritualistic tea costs about $453.51 a pound and will cost you about $2.50 per cup.

In Taiwan, tea leaves are harvested and worms are poured on top of the leaves. After the worms have eaten and passed the leaves, their droppings are painstakingly collected with magnifying glasses and tweezers. These droppings are pressed into pu-erh tea cakes and the taste is described as pleasant.

  1. Silver Tips Imperial Tea - $839.00 Per Pound

This magical tea is harvested during the full moon from April through November in India. It’s a handmade and semi-fermented tea that is ideal to drink before bedtime and is said to have anti-aging and relaxing effects. At $839 per pound, your nighttime cup of tea will cost you about $4.64. Silver Tips Imperial Tea is an oolong tea that has notes of mango and frangipani — and maybe even a touch of mystical moonlight.  

  1. Guanyin Tea - $1360.54 Per Pound

Guanyin Tea also goes by the name Tieguanyin which means “The Iron Goddess of Mercy”. This oolong tea will cost you about $1360 a pound. A cup of tea is about $7.52. The great thing about this complex tea is that you can enjoy multiple cups which makes the hefty price tag a little more palatable. 

This tea is made with a wide range of complex practices which yield a wide variety of flavors. Tieguanyin can be nutty and creamy — it can taste roasted and even spicy. It can also taste sweet with notes of honey and flowers and even berries. Some varieties taste fresh and vegetal with a hint of minerals. 

  1. Shui Hsien Tea - $2947.85 Per Pound

Also known as Narcissus Tea, Shui Hsien Tea is harvested in the Wuyi Mountains of China from tea plants that are over 200 years old. This tea will cost you a pretty penny at $2947.85 per pound. You’ll pay about $16.28 for a single cup of Narcissus Tea. 

This intense oolong tea is oxidized 60% and it’s roasted many times over the course of months. The flavor is described as orchid-like with a beautiful character in each steep. Some say it has a peachy-honey taste with an essence of mineral from the rocks of the Wuyi Mountains.

  1. Pu-erh Tea - $4535.15 Per Pound

Anyone can get their hands on Pu-erh teas, but different varieties yield a wide range of flavor profiles and potential health benefits. A Pu-erh tea is fermented and pressed into dense pucks or shapes. Old and traditional Pu-erh teas can sell for $4535.15 a pound — which comes out to about $25.06 a cup. 

Tea connoisseurs say that the fragrance and flavors of these old teas can hit you in the way that perfume does. Pu-erh teas are meant to be enjoyed over the course of multiple steepings. A strong and smoky flavor tapers out into a smooth, regal, and sweet flavor — you do this by simply adding more water here and there until the leaves are spent. Pu-erh teas come in a variety of flavors but many people describe the taste as mushroom-like, fragrant, and vegetal.

  1. Yellow Gold Tea Buds - $5278.91 Per Pound

Yellow Gold Tea Buds are made exclusively by the TWG tea company in Singapore and sell for $5278.91 a pound — which means you will pay about $29.16 for a cup of tea that is literally made of gold. This tea is grown on a single mountain and harvested only one day of the year. The leaves are cut with golden shears.

After the leaves are sun-dried they are heated in a way that gives them a very soft floral taste. The leaves are painted with 24-karat edible gold. The tea has a wealthy appearance, but it’s also said to have a wealth of health properties — and you can eat the leaves when you are finished drinking your tea.

  1. PG Tips Diamond Tea Bag - $15,000

The most expensive tea bag in the world was purchased for $15,000 and was made in the United Kingdom. PG Tips celebrated its 75th anniversary by commissioning Boodles — a UK jewelry brand — to craft a tea bag encrusted with 280 high-quality diamonds. It took 3 months to make and the money raised went to a children’s charity in Manchester. 

The most expensive tea bag in the world was filled with Silver Tips Imperial Tea. There was only one tea bag made and sold so no one knows exactly how it tasted or if it was even used!

  1. Panda Dung Tea - $31,746.03 Per Pound 

At a whopping $31,746.03 a pound you will spend about $175.39 for a single cup of Panda Dung Tea. Some people believe it has a plethora of health benefits including very high antioxidants — for them the price is worth the trade-off for the nutrients. The soil for this tea is fertilized with the droppings of panda bears in China. It has a malty aroma and a nutty flavor.

  1. Da Hong Pao Tea - $544,217.69 Per Pound

The most expensive tea in the world is rich in flavor and history and comes from one rocky mountain in China. At $544,217.69 a pound, you can enjoy a historical cup of Da Hong Pao tea for $3,006.72. 

Da Hong Pao translates as “big red robe”. Legend says that the emperor’s wife was very sick and the help of doctors and healers didn’t work. But she became miraculously cured overnight thanks to a special tea brew. This healing tea came from ordinary tea plants that grew in rocky soil in the Wuyi Mountains. The emperor was so thankful that he sent his red imperial robes to cover the now-sacred tea bushes. 

Today, the six original mother bushes are heavily guarded. The original bushes haven’t been harvested since 2006. But, a limited number of clones and cultivars of these bushes have been made that are extremely valuable. 

The flavors of some of these cultivars closely resemble the flavors of the original tea from hundreds of years ago. This oolong tea blend has a fantastic flavor no matter how little or how long you steep it. 

When you make this tea you will want to add water periodically to enjoy all of the nuanced flavors and every phase until the leaves are used up. The first steep is rich and heavy. You will find the flavors round out and become more mellow with every new cup. It has a pronounced orchid floral flavor and a long-lasting smooth, sweet aftertaste. 

Discover Rare Quality Teas

Do you want to sip on tea that’s made from panda droppings or buy tea painted with 24-karat gold? Whether you do or don’t, you find a wealth of flavor and satisfaction from exquisite teas that are harvested every year. 

Teabloom has quality rare single-origin teas and classic tea favorites like White Silver Needle, Darjeeling Estate Reserve, and Jasmine Pearls. Their teas are USDA-Certified Organic, and they are kosher-certified. 

While you are here, explore quality tea and handcrafted borosilicate glass teaware. This incredible teaware will allow you to taste all of those pure and subtle flavors of perfectly steeped tea. Discover something new at Teabloom, today.

www.Teabloom.com