The Chinese Tea Culture Foundation

The first steps or our journey

"For years, together with a circle of passionate Chinese tea scholars and professionals, I dreamed of a platform: a true home for the profound and intricate world of Chinese tea culture. A place where its deep history, economic significance, and unparalleled social legacy could be studied, shared, and celebrated on a global stage.

Today, it is with immense pride and joy that I introduce the first public event of the Chinese Tea Culture Foundation, a long-awaited project that is finally coming to life. This foundation is born from a passion to preserve and promote our heritage, and it is fundamentally open to international cooperation and dialogue. We believe that the story of Chinese tea is a story of global connection, and it deserves a global conversation.

The legal structure of the foundation is ready and will be published soon; in the meantime, if you wish to be part of the foundation and actively contribute to its activity, you can write us an email" with your reference and we will be glad to start a conversation with you.

Vivian Zhang, founder of Eastern Leaves

Our Inaugural Symposium: A Journey Along the Tea Horse Road

In September and October 2025, we launched the foundation's first public initiative with a cycle of four seminars in Milan and The Netherlands. Under the theme of the Ancient Tea Horse Road, we explored tea's extraordinary role in shaping economies, cultures, and human connections across continents.

Our journey featured:

  • "The Tea Expedition" with historian Zhou Chonglin, who presented his captivating theory on why tea demanded long-distance travel, connecting empires through the Tea Horse Road. Participants tasted living history — from a fresh Horse Driver's Tea to a rare Tibetan tea from the 1970s.
  • "The Incense & Tea Arc" — an immersive workshop tracing the Maritime Silk Road, where participants touched and smelled precious Agarwood samples from across Asia before tasting the fusion of tea and incense, exploring the moment luxury exchange met bulk commodity trade.
  • "The Modern Explorer" — the story of Hu Mingfang's legendary trek retracing the ancient path, and how his act of preservation now inspires a new generation of tea innovators. This evolution was tasted in a cup, from a traditional caravan tea to a stunning Yunnan Oriental Beauty.
  • "The Human Path" with Ms. Song Angi, who gently guided participants through intimate stories of the horse drivers, families, and Tibetan communities whose courage and endurance formed the true fabric of the Tea Horse Road. Each story was paired with a tea that whispered their past, culminating in a tasting of a profound living artifact: a Tibetan tea from the 1950s.

This series was more than seminars about tea. It was an invitation to understand the forces of history, economics, and human connection through the leaf that built roads and sustained faith — the perfect embodiment of our foundation's mission.

Tea Dialogues, Issue 1: The Tea Horse Road

We are proud to announce the forthcoming publication of the first issue of Tea Dialogues, the foundation's academic and educational magazine. This inaugural volume is a tangible gathering of years of travel, study, and conversation — a dialogue that brings together the voices and contributions of leading researchers, scholars, and professionals dedicated to the study of tea culture.

Within these pages, you will find:

  • "Echoes from the Ancient Times" — Professor Li Xu traces the formation of the Tea Horse Road by merging ethnic-cultural history with geographical evidence.
  • Expedition Stories from Western Exploration — A vivid, real-life recount of adventures in Yunnan, Sichuan, and Tibet.
  • "Ancient Town · Shaxi, Past and Present of the Caravan Merchants" — Zhou Chonglin's romantic and personal retelling of his journey to one of the last standing ancient towns along the Tea Horse Road, a unique fusion of the modern and the ancient.
  • Interview with Caravan Leader Xiong Zhengzong — Researcher Ma Cunzhao documents a precious first-person account of daily life on the caravan trail.
  • "Language Contact and the Formation of Lingua Franca on the Tea Horse Road" — Scholar Chen Baoya provides detailed research on the distribution of lingua franca among different ethnic groups, consolidating the existence of a long-lasting cultural interaction in the region.
  • "20 Years of Tea Horse Road: From Narrative Concepts to Cultural Symbols" — Zhou Chonglin and Ling Wenfeng offer a comprehensive record of written and visual documents about the Tea Horse Road, tracing its evolution in public recognition and as a cultural heritage.

Tea Dialogues is a publication written for those who look beyond the simple pleasure of an infusion and seek the hidden meanings that enrich the true value of things. This first issue is dedicated to the epic journey of the Tea Horse Road — its history told, explained, and narrated by Chinese scholars and by its last living witnesses.

2026 European Events

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Encouraged by the warmth and curiosity of all those who joined us in 2025, and grateful for the dialogue we began together, we felt a deep sense of responsibility — and inspiration — to continue sharing deeper knowledge and stories told with rigour and passion, straight from the sources.

This is why we have decided to carry this journey forward, bringing new voices, new research, and new perspectives from Chinese scholars, historians, and artisans — so that the scientific and academic heritage of our tea culture can be shared more widely, and more intimately, with all of you.

We are proud to present a new cycle of four seminars exploring the intimate relationship between tea and ceramics — a story of craftsmanship, culture, and evolution across China's dynasties.

Join us in Milan (September 19th–20th), and The Hague (October 3rd-4th) for a cycle of four speeches:

1. Perfecting Craftsmanship: The Art of Jianshui
Milan, September 19, 10:00–12:00
Venture into the world of Yunnan's Jianshui ceramics — a tradition dating back to primitive times, refined through the Han, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Discover how Jianshui teapots became celebrated for their uniqueness and exceptional refinement, as rare teas accompany the narration of this centuries-old craft.

2. Diancha: The Chinese Art of Powdered Tea
Milan, September 19, 14:00–16:00
Immerse yourself in the refined dimension of the Song Dynasty, when tea was elevated to an art form. Through Jianzhan ceramics and the precise simplicity of gestures, discover Diancha — the preparation of whisked powdered tea. Participants will practice the art and engage in a lively "tea fighting" (Dòuchá) competition.

3. Yixing Teapots: A Craftsmanship of Popular Identity
Milan, September 20, 10:00–12:00
Journey to the Ming Dynasty, when Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang's decree ended the era of powdered tea and ushered in the age of loose-leaf tea. Explore how this radical change revolutionised the art of infusion and ceramics, giving rise to the myths of pioneering figures and the timeless art of Yixing teapots.

4. Gaiwan: The Becoming of a National Icon
Milan, September 20, 14:00–16:00
Conclude our journey with the most recognised protagonist of Chinese tea preparation: the gaiwan. From Tang dynasty chawan bowls to the addition of the saucer in the Song, the lid in the Ming, and its final form in the Qing — discover how this simple object became a symbol of national culture, reflecting traditions, arts, and philosophical thought.

Follow this link to reserve your seat for the Milan events.
The The Hague details and dates for all locations will be announced soon.

I look forward to meeting you along the way, to continue this journey together.

Information and tickets