Chen Hui Yi

Chen Hui Yi grew up in Guǎngdōng (广东), where morning gōngfū chá (工夫茶) is woven into the rhythm of daily life. Her earliest tea memories — squatting next to her grandfather as he rinsed tiny zǐshā (紫砂) pots with boiling water — now inform every session she leads for the tea.energy community. After graduating from South China Agricultural University in 2008, she spent four years (2008–2012) apprenticing in Fuding, the birthplace of white tea, under master Lin Changqing. There she learned the feather-light withering that produces Yínzhēn (银针) Silver Needles and the layered fragrance of Bái Mǔdān (白牡丹). She later extended her training to Hangzhou and Huzhou, refining her approach to green teas such as Lóngjǐng (龙井) and Ānji Báichá (安吉白茶), and to Huoshan for the rare yellow teas like Jūnshān Yínzhēn (君山银针) and Huòshān Huángyá (霍山黄芽).

Today she anchors tea.energy’s 30-day cohort — a structured path for students who want to recalibrate their caffeine relationship — and hosts the in-person “Morning tea routine — Berlin sit-in” in a Mitte studio, plus the online “3pm slump online flight” tasting and an evening sit-in in Amsterdam — three ways she brings the same gongfu discipline to students across Europe. Her approach to energy is rooted in the nuances of oxidation and processing: where coffee delivers a sharp, isolated hit of caffeine, a gongfu session with a high-quality Yínzhēn offers a long, even wave of alertness coupled with the theanine that keeps focus steady. In her thread “Quitting coffee, one gongfu session at a time,” she unpacks the practical ritual adjustments — from teaware selection to water temperature — that help newcomers replace their morning mug without feeling deprived.

Much of her teaching now appears on tea.school, where her course on white tea processing dissects the six-hour withering window that defines Shòu Méi (寿眉) and Bái Mǔdān. She also contributes aging insights to puerh.app, drawing parallels between the controlled fermentation of Wò Duī (渥堆) Shú Pǔ'ěr (熟普洱) and the careful storage of Lǎo Bái Chá (老白茶). Away from the camera, she is currently documenting the 2025 spring pluck in Fuding and preparing a small-batch Yuèguāng Bái (月光白) from Yunnan for a winter tasting series.