From August 19 to 21, the 7th China FMCG Conference, the 5th China FMCG Retail Innovation Conference, and the 5th China FMCG Distributor Conference, themed 'New Demand, New Supply', were grandly held in Shanghai. Du Guoying, founder and chairman of Xiaoguan Tea, delivered a wonderful keynote speech titled 'Chinese Tea: Get Faster'. The following is an excerpt of Mr. Du Guoying's on-site speech (with some deletions), compiled for readers.

Chinese Tea: The Complexity and Simplicity of a Leaf China is the homeland of tea, yet among 1.4 billion Chinese, few dare to claim they 'understand tea'. Even I, if I said I know tea very well, my social circle might explode. Why do we all drink tea, but no one dares to say 'I understand tea'? Because tea, in the Chinese cultural context, is both a daily necessity like 'firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea' and a spiritual sustenance like 'qin, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, and wine'. Compared to FMCG products, it has more cultural and social attributes. This multi-faceted identity makes tea a very special consumer product. So, how complex is Chinese tea? China has ten famous teas, and most people may have drunk or heard of them. These famous teas not only come from different tea plant varieties, but also produce different colors of tea liquor after brewing. In fact, in the vast regions of China, every county has tea, and many tea products are only known to locals. Almost every province in China has tea, with over 900 tea-producing counties. The classification of tea is also extremely complex: You might think Dahongpao is black tea? Actually, it's oolong tea, also known as green tea (qing cha). According to professional tea science classification, Chinese tea is divided into six major categories: green tea, white tea, yellow tea, oolong tea (qing cha), black tea, and dark tea. So tea is a magical leaf, not only containing rich varieties and flavors, but also carrying a long and complex culture and history. But conversely, tea can also be very simple. Essentially, all tea is the process of 'from a fresh leaf to a dried leaf'. The difference lies in the different 'intervention methods' during dehydration, resulting in six major tea categories. Understanding the 'process of applying water and dehydrating' is understanding the core of tea making. All tea-making techniques aim to: remove bitterness and astringency, and pursue fragrance and sweetness. But why do many people get confused as soon as they enter the tea circle? Ultimately, it revolves around a few core points: the differences in first flush, bud tips, and mountain origins can lead to cost differences of several times. Who can taste the difference? Only a very few experts can, while most people cannot. Hand-fried vs. machine-processed, and teas aged for 5, 10, or 20 years—how do you know how to judge them? Chinese tea, simply put, goes from fresh leaves to dried leaves. However, when various information such as tea culture, regional characteristics, and processing technique differences are injected to varying degrees, the originally simple problem becomes complicated, and science turns into metaphysics. This is Chinese tea. Standing at the entrance of a tea market is like standing at the entrance of an antique market—dazzling and deep as the sea. So Chinese tea is both simple and complex, depending on the perspective from which we understand and appreciate it.

Three Cups of Tea in Life: Milk Tea, Tea Drinks, and Whole-Leaf Tea In the past, the traditional tea industry believed that only drinking whole-leaf tea was the real Chinese tea. Today, we must acknowledge the broad definition of Chinese tea. For many people, their first cup of tea is milk tea. Especially for the post-2000 generation, except in traditional tea-drinking areas like Chaoshan in Guangdong and Fujian, the first 'tea' that young people in other regions drink from childhood is mostly milk tea. China's 300 billion yuan milk tea industry has grown over the past decade or so. The essence of milk tea is 'tea + X', from the earliest adding sugar, milk, and fruit to adding various toppings, with the aim of making the milk tea taste more 'sexy' and attractive to young people. We drink water to quench thirst, but we drink milk tea to satisfy cravings. The second cup of tea is tea drinks. Many people ask why Lipton has declined in China. Because tea drink technology has matured—aseptic cold filling and PET bottling have turned pure tea into something that can be enjoyed anytime, anywhere, without needing to brew or being particular about the setting. The third cup of tea is whole-leaf tea. After the age of 30, or in specific scenarios, people may start drinking whole-leaf tea. In the past, it was Gongfu tea; today, it can be cold-brewed, hot-brewed, pot-brewed, or simmered, and in the future, it can be machine-brewed. The way of drinking tea is no longer bound by cumbersome rituals and becomes more flexible and diverse. So, in the past thirteen years, how has Xiaoguan Tea understood China's three cups of tea? And how has it formed its strategic plan? Xiaoguan Tea proposes three types of brewed tea:

  1. Tea you brew yourself—whole-leaf tea, requiring hands-on effort and sitting down to drink;
  2. Tea brewed for you—hot tea brewed by a machine, freeing your hands while retaining the ritual;
  3. Tea that doesn't need brewing—tea drinks, open and drink, on the go. So, Xiaoguan Tea is always committed to full-scenario solutions for Chinese tea. Why does the traditional tea industry think milk tea and tea drinks are not Chinese tea? Because in their eyes, tea culture is not well expressed, and they believe Gongfu tea is the authentic Chinese tea. From whole-leaf tea to tea drinks, cultural attributes and ritual sense are continuously weakened. In fact, milk tea and tea drinks simplify complex Chinese tea, solving the efficiency problem of obtaining a cup of tea. Gongfu tea complicates simple problems, but we enjoy the process and ritual; the logic is different. Behind the three cups of tea, it's not just different product forms, but a process of a person going from 'liking tea' to 'understanding tea' to 'feeling tea culture'.

Xiaoguan Tea: Getting Faster in the 'Slow' In 2025, Xiaoguan Tea internally clearly proposed one thing: fast digestion. For a long time, traditional Chinese tea has been perceived as 'slow'. For example, a cake of Pu'er might take three months to finish. How can Chinese tea become faster? This is a topic we have been thinking about and practicing. Therefore, Xiaoguan Tea launched a new category of self-brewed tea—'simmered tea'. The characteristics of simmered tea are a fixed tea-to-water ratio, clear time control, stable tea liquor, and small taste differences. No need to repeatedly add water or brew multiple times; a pot of tea can be simmered all day. At the same time, Xiaoguan Tea launched simmering cups and pots in different capacities, such as 400ml and 600ml, truly achieving—hot, whole-leaf, freshly brewed, but convenient enough. This is the 'fast-digestion expression' of Chinese tea. On May 21 this year, Xiaoguan Tea released a new sugar-free tea drink product. As the first professional tea company to enter the sugar-free tea market, Xiaoguan Tea's understanding of 'sugar-free tea' is completely different from the traditional beverage industry. Not only does it not add sugar or use sugar substitutes, but it also does not use tea powder or concentrates. It is entirely the logic of Gongfu tea brewing, restored to the production line. What we want to do is make Chinese tea suitable for both cold and hot consumption. Whether it's a cold drink taken from the freezer or drunk hot, this bottle is still authentic Chinese tea. Its essence is to 'restore' complex Gongfu tea into a tea drink that can be consumed anytime. This is not just product innovation, but also cultural innovation. Cola, the representative Western beverage, is a typical product of industrial civilization. Chinese tea, as a representative of Eastern civilization, should also have its own 'fast-moving consumer form'—simmered tea is one, sugar-free tea is another, and even the capsules in our upcoming smart tea brewer are one. These three forms all have one core purpose: to make Chinese tea younger and let young people fall in love with Chinese tea again. So in the future, tea has huge imagination space. How to go from local to global will be a brand new topic, as well as new opportunities and challenges.

Final Thoughts China is the homeland of tea, and the world knows the value of Chinese tea, but the question is how Chinese tea can go global. Think about it: How did Chinese people start drinking coffee? The first cup was Nescafé instant, the second was Starbucks, and the third was specialty coffee, pour-over, and enthusiasts. Similarly, the path for Chinese tea to go global must also start from 'simple'. It's not that people around the world don't love Chinese tea; it's that Chinese tea hasn't kept up with the changes in the world. We cannot stick to traditional concepts; we must innovate Chinese tea by stepping out of tradition. With new forms, we can go global again. I believe that in the next five years, you will see Xiaoguan Tea continuously exploring the contemporary expression of Chinese tea, from tea drinks to simmered tea to smart tea brewers. Truly make Chinese tea faster and younger!