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loose leaf white teas

Shop online for whole-leaf white teas sourced directly from the artisan farmers who tender them. White tea varieties include Silver Needle, White Peony and other gourmet teas. White tea is the most subtle of all tea types, using only the finest leaves from each tea bush with minimal amount of processing. It contains the highest amount of antioxidants and shares many chemical compounds with green tea. Our direct-trade sourcing ensures superior taste, freshness and value.

6 products

silver needle
silver needle
52p / cup
white peach
white peach
18p / cup
jasmine silver needle
jasmine silver needle
42p / cup
white blueberry
white blueberry
18p / cup
white peony
white peony
22p / cup
white strawberry
white strawberry
18p / cup
Loose Leaf White Tea

What Is White Tea?

White tea is the most minimally processed of all true teas — made from the same Camellia sinensis plant as black, green, oolong, and pu-erh tea, but processed so gently that the fresh character of the leaf is preserved more fully than any other category achieves. Where green tea is fired or steamed to stop oxidation and black tea is fully oxidised, white tea is simply withered and dried — the two gentlest things that can be done to a freshly picked tea leaf without destroying it.

The name "white tea" refers to the fine white down (bai hao, 白毫) that covers the young buds of the tea plant before they open. That silvery, downy bud covering is most visible in Silver Needle — the purest white tea — where the entire tea consists of nothing but these unopened buds. The result is a tea of extraordinary delicacy: a pale golden liquor with natural notes of melon, honey, and fresh flowers that has no parallel in any other category.



The Loose Leaf White Tea Collection

Silver Needle

The most celebrated white tea in the world — Bai Hao Yin Zhen (白毫銀針), or Silver Needle — is produced exclusively from unopened tea buds, still covered in the fine silver-white down that gives the category its name. Only the bud, harvested in a narrow spring window, goes into Silver Needle production — no leaf, no stem, nothing but the bud. The result is a tea of genuine rarity and refinement: a pale golden cup with notes of honeydew melon, sweet cucumber, and fresh flowers. The most distinctive tea in the Adagio white tea collection and one of the most distinctive teas in the entire range.

Jasmine Silver Needle

Premium Silver Needle buds naturally scented with jasmine flowers using the traditional multi-cycle method — the same technique applied to Adagio's premium jasmine green teas, here applied to the finest white tea base. The long silver buds with visible jasmine blossoms are visually striking before steeping; the natural jasmine fragrance fills the room when hot water is added. For anyone who wants the rarity of Silver Needle combined with the accessibility of jasmine's familiar floral character, Jasmine Silver Needle is the white tea that bridges both.

White Peony

The more accessible Silver Needle alternative — White Peony (白牡丹, Bai Mu Dan) uses the bud and the first two young leaves rather than the bud alone, producing a fuller-bodied white tea with more pronounced flavour than Silver Needle whilst retaining the low caffeine and delicate character of the category. White Peony is the everyday white tea — the one that suits a morning or afternoon cup without the special-occasion feeling of Silver Needle. More substance, more flavour, still unmistakably white tea.

White Peach

The most popular flavoured white tea in the collection. White Peach layers the soft, ripe character of summer peach over the white tea base in a way that feels completely natural — white tea's innate sweetness and the sweetness of peach are complementary rather than competing. The result is a naturally sweet cup that needs nothing added and works beautifully as both a hot afternoon tea and a cold brew iced white tea.

White Blueberry

Vivid blueberry character over the white tea base — a naturally sweet, lightly tart flavoured white tea that is the most visually distinctive of the flavoured white teas in the collection. White Blueberry is the right white tea for anyone who wants the low-caffeine properties of white tea in a flavour profile with immediate, familiar appeal. Cold brews exceptionally well.



White Tea vs. Green Tea: Understanding the Difference

The most common question about white tea is how it differs from green tea — both are minimally processed, both are delicate, and both produce pale-coloured cups. The differences are meaningful:

  • Processing — green tea is fired (pan-fired) or steamed to stop oxidation immediately after picking. White tea is simply withered and dried with no heat application to stop oxidation — the oxidation that occurs is natural, gradual, and minimal rather than deliberately arrested.
  • Flavour — green tea's characteristic quality is freshness: vegetal, grassy, and sometimes umami. White tea's characteristic quality is natural sweetness: melon, honey, and floral notes with no vegetal character at all. The two categories taste fundamentally different despite their similar minimal processing.
  • Caffeine — white tea has less caffeine than green tea: approximately 15–30mg per 250ml cup versus green tea's 25–45mg. White tea is suitable at any time of day for almost everyone.
  • Harvest — the finest white teas (Silver Needle) use only the bud; the finest green teas use the bud and first leaf. White tea's bud-only harvest is more labour-intensive and more expensive to produce.


White Tea Health Benefits

White tea retains the highest concentrations of certain antioxidants of any tea category — the minimal processing that defines white tea preserves the fresh leaf's natural compound profile more fully than any other method.

  • Antioxidants and catechins — white tea retains higher concentrations of catechins than more processed teas. The EGCG and other polyphenols present in the fresh bud are largely preserved through the gentle withering and drying process, making white tea one of the most antioxidant-rich beverages available.
  • Naturally low caffeine — approximately 15–30mg of caffeine per 250ml cup. Lower than any other true tea category. Suitable for most of the day without sleep concerns for the majority of people who are sensitive to caffeine from coffee or black tea.
  • Skin health associations — white tea's polyphenols have been the subject of research interest regarding associations with collagen and elastin preservation — the proteins that maintain skin elasticity. Evidence is at an early stage.
  • Oral health associations — white tea's polyphenol profile is the subject of ongoing research interest regarding oral health, including dental health associations.
  • No additives required — white tea's natural sweetness means it genuinely needs no milk, sugar, or sweetener. Zero calories in a cup that tastes inherently pleasant without modification.


White Tea Caffeine Content

White tea caffeine content

White tea contains approximately 15–30mg of caffeine per 250ml cup — less than any other true tea category and significantly less than coffee (95–200mg) or black tea (40–70mg). The counterintuitive fact: despite being made from buds that are high in caffeine-producing compounds, white tea's very short steeping at low temperatures extracts relatively little of that caffeine into the cup.

Afternoon and evening drinking

This makes white tea the most suitable true tea for afternoon and evening drinking — the one category that delivers the antioxidants, the ritual, and the flavour of a proper loose leaf tea without meaningful caffeine disruption to sleep at normal consumption levels. For anyone who wants to drink tea in the evening without consequence, white tea is the answer that doesn't require switching to herbal infusions.



How to Brew Loose Leaf White Tea

White tea is the most temperature-sensitive loose leaf tea category — and the one where incorrect water temperature most dramatically affects the result. The single most important thing to know about brewing white tea:

Never use boiling water. Boiling water (100°C) over white tea produces a flat, papery cup that tastes nothing like what the tea actually is. The delicate aromatic compounds that give Silver Needle its melon and honey character are damaged by boiling water. A properly brewed cup of Silver Needle at the right temperature is transformative — an improperly brewed one gives no indication of why anyone pays a premium for the category.

  • Water temperature — 71–79°C. A variable-temperature electric kettle is the right equipment investment for anyone brewing white tea regularly. Set it to 77°C and the brewing is as consistent as any other tea.
  • Leaf quantity — white tea leaves are voluminous; measure by weight rather than volume. 2–3g per 250ml is the right starting point. Silver Needle in particular is deceptive — a tablespoon of Silver Needle weighs very little because the buds are fluffy and light.
  • Steep time — 2–3 minutes. White tea is the least forgiving of over-steeping among the delicate tea categories. Remove the infuser promptly.
  • Multiple steepings — quality white tea yields 2–3 good steepings from a single measure of leaves. The second steeping of Silver Needle often develops a slightly deeper sweetness than the first.
  • Nothing added — white tea does not take milk. It rarely benefits from sweetener. Serve it as it is.


Cold Brew White Tea

Cold brewing white tea eliminates the temperature precision requirement entirely — and produces some of the most naturally elegant iced teas available. Cold-brewed Silver Needle is genuinely extraordinary: the cold extraction draws out the sweetness and floral aromatics whilst leaving behind the flat notes that over-hot brewing can produce even at the right temperature. The method:

  1. Add 5–6 teaspoons of loose leaf white tea per litre of cold water. Our range of suitable pitchers can be found here.
  2. Refrigerate for 8–12 hours
  3. Strain and serve over ice

Cold-brewed White Peach and White Blueberry are amongst the most naturally sweet, vibrant iced teas in the entire Adagio range — both work beautifully without any sweetener added. Don't hesitate to experiment with leaf quantities to find the ideal infusion.



White Tea as a Gift

Loose leaf white tea is one of the most thoughtful tea gift categories — specific, genuinely unusual, and immediately impressive to any recipient who hasn't encountered Silver Needle or Jasmine Silver Needle before. A selection covering Silver Needle, Jasmine Silver Needle, White Peach, and White Blueberry gives the recipient the full range of what the category can be. Pair with a glass teapot for the most elegant possible gift combination — watching Silver Needle steep in a clear glass teapot is one of the most visually beautiful experiences the tea world offers.



Buy Loose Leaf White Tea Online

Browse the full loose leaf white tea collection above — Silver Needle, Jasmine Silver Needle, White Peony, White Peach, White Blueberry, and more. Order loose leaf white tea online and have it delivered from our UK warehouse with free UK delivery on qualifying orders. Also available in pyramid teabags.

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