# Lü Mu Dan (Green Peony) (綠牡丹)

*Lǜ Mǔ Dān · Green · Wood*

**archetype:** Dancer opening a fan

A bundle of leaves that opens into a flower in the water: light green, orchid freshness, a slow dance in the glass.

## History

Lü Mu Dan — the 'green peony' — is a hand-tied flowering tea from She County in Huangshan. Young shoots and buds of a single spring picking are bound with silk thread into a flat disc that slowly unfurls into a 'peony' in hot water. Its modern form was given to the tea by master Wang Guoxiang in 1986, joining the old craft of tied teas with the green leaf of Anhui's high-mountain gardens. This is a tea of spectacle: you drink it not only with the mouth but with the eyes.

> They say that in the She mountains there lived a girl who danced with a fan better than anyone in the county. When her time came to leave, she asked to be buried by a tea bush. The next spring the leaf gathered from that bush, brewed in glass, opened slowly — the way a fan opens in a dancer's hand. Since then the 'green peony' is tied so that it blooms, in memory of the one who knew how to open without haste.

## Terroir

300–700 m. weathered granite with light bamboo organics. humid mists, mild spring, cool nights. The best 'peony' is tied only from the first spring picking of a single garden — otherwise the disc opens unevenly.

## Leaf

- **dry leaf:** a flat tied disc of thin green shoots and silvery buds bound with thread; it smells of fresh grass and faint blossom
- **warmed:** warmed — orchid, young grass, light flower pollen
- **after pour:** after the infusion — white flower, fresh greens, faint chestnut
- **taste:** light, floral, with orchid freshness and the soft sweetness of young leaf
- **finish:** clean, brief, leaving a floral coolness on the palate

## Properties

- **TCM:** cool, yin; clears heat, brightens the head, calms the heart
- **Modern:** rich in theanine and catechins; a gentle lift that refreshes without sharpness
- **Cha qi:** light, ascending, opening the chest; felt like an 'inhalation of a flower'
- **Caffeine:** low (25–40 mg)

## Brewing ritual

a tall 250 ml glass — to watch the 'peony' open; 80 °C, soft; 4 g / 250 ml. 60s — the bundle begins to open: young grass, orchid; 90s — the peak of floral notes: white flower, fresh greens; 120s — a fine echo, light chestnut.

## When to drink

morning and day. spring. when you want quiet beauty, for contemplation, for a slow meeting. white flowers in desserts, light pastry, fresh goat cheese, white fruits. a quiet conversation for two; solitary admiration

## Tea meditation

1. Pour the water down the side of the glass — and do not rush it.
2. A flower opens only in its own time.
3. Watch the bundle let go of itself — leaf by leaf.
4. Do the same with your breath.

## Questions and answers

### How do you brew Lü Mu Dan (Green Peony)?

a tall 250 ml glass — to watch the 'peony' open; 80 °C, soft; 4 g / 250 ml. 60s — the bundle begins to open: young grass, orchid; 90s — the peak of floral notes: white flower, fresh greens; 120s — a fine echo, light chestnut.

### What does Lü Mu Dan (Green Peony) taste like?

light, floral, with orchid freshness and the soft sweetness of young leaf

### How much caffeine is in Lü Mu Dan (Green Peony)?

low (25–40 mg)

### What are the effects of Lü Mu Dan (Green Peony)?

rich in theanine and catechins; a gentle lift that refreshes without sharpness

## Related teas

- [Long Jing](https://www.dao-cha.info/en/tea/long-jing)
- [Bi Luo Chun](https://www.dao-cha.info/en/tea/bi-luo-chun)
- [Tai Ping Hou Kui](https://www.dao-cha.info/en/tea/tai-ping-hou-kui)
- [Green](https://www.dao-cha.info/en/class/green)