Young people of Thai Nguyen and the sophisticated tea drinking culture

In the midst of modern life, many young people are choosing to live slowly with tea: Some people carry small tea bags in their backpacks on long trips, some choose to enjoy tea at teahouses, and others prefer the taste of modern milk tea. From a rustic bowl of tea in the fields of the past to a creative cup of tea in the city today, it is not only a change of taste but also a continuation of memories, identity and culture. And today's young people are telling stories about tea, about their homeland, in a language that is both familiar and strange.

The tea shop proudly carries the slogan: "Layback - From the specialty tea region of Thai Nguyen " attracting many young people to enjoy.

Cherish the hometown specialties

In the afternoon, the rain covered the mountain town, in a small corner of the second floor balcony, Luu Thi Phuong, Linh Son ward (Thai Nguyen) took out a pack of tea from her backpack. The dried tea buds, small curled petals, were wrapped in a piece of rustic kraft paper, still retaining the pure fragrance of the garden behind the house. "I bring it with me wherever I go. Tea is... my breath." Phuong looked at the tea pack, smiled gently and said to me as if she was talking to herself.

Phuong took the kettle and boiled water to brew tea. While waiting for the water to boil, we chatted about tea. Phuong said that on every long trip, when her friends were eager to explore Italian coffee, French wine, or trendy milk teas, her luggage always had a small, elegant corner reserved for a few bags of Thai Nguyen tea. When she arrived, the first thing she did was find a quiet corner and brew a pot of good tea. Then she poured it for everyone she met, from the cleaning lady to the hotel receptionist, with a sincere invitation: “Please try some tea from my hometown. The first sip is a bit bitter, but the aftertaste is very sweet.”

I am curious:

- Does your family grow or sell tea?

Phuong shook her head, her eyes clear:

- I don't grow or sell tea. I love tea, like people love an inseparable memory.

For Phuong, tea is not a commodity, it is an object with a human soul. In the trunk of her car, she always has a few tea packages: from premium tea buds, fragrant young tea buds, and even convenient tea bags. These are the products of the kind tea makers she knows, people who make tea with all the sincerity, as quiet as the tea they create.

As soon as the water boiled, Phuong skillfully brewed the tea. The scent of the tea rose with the hot steam, mixed with the cool air after the rain, creating a scent that was both familiar and luxurious. The first cup of tea was clear and green, shimmering. I took a sip, the gentle astringency glided over the tip of my tongue, then gradually dissipated, giving way to a deep sweetness that lingered in my throat, and I unconsciously let out a refreshing "kha".

Seeing my satisfaction, Phuong was very happy, as if she was being complimented. She boasted that a sister in Dong Hy had just given her a pot of organic tea, experimentally made using Japanese technology. "Just one sip," she said, "I was amazed by the clear green and then light yellow water, it was very mildly astringent, then sweet to the core."

Listening to her, I understood that Phuong was not just drinking a drink. She was drinking a whole world of memories. Every time she made tea, she was back at the old porch, where her grandfather, with his old, worn-out teapot, leisurely poured cups of tea for his old friends. In that hazy smoke were the shadows of the past, the stories of the war years, of those who had gone far away and those who remained. "Every time I made a pot of tea, I felt myself living in those old days, happily sitting next to my grandfather, watching him happily drinking tea..."

Amidst the fast pace of life, the cycle of work and invisible stress, Phuong and many other young people have found a "brake" for themselves. Each cup of tea is a moment of pause, a necessary silence for them to stop, reflect, and listen to their hearts. It is a proactive and subtle way of "slow living".

From green tea in the fields to tea houses

From Phuong's story, I remember my grandparents' and parents' past with a bowl of green tea in the fields of my hometown. In the old days in the villages of Thai Nguyen, every morning, the first thing every farmer did after lighting the stove was to boil a pot of very strong green tea. The strong, aromatic liquid was poured into a teapot, placed solemnly in the middle of a bamboo tray. The whole family gathered, each person had a bowl, drank a sip to stay awake and cool before going to the fields. That bowl of tea followed them on their shoulders, through the harvest seasons, the planting seasons, soaked in sweat and humanity, becoming an indispensable part of the rhythm of working life. Each bowl of tea contained sincerity, the attachment of people to the land, people to people. Tea at that time was the taste of hard work, of solidarity, of homeland.

Each cup of tea is a moment of pause, a necessary silence for young people to stop, reflect and listen to their hearts.

At that time, no one called it "tea ceremony", nor did they think of it as "tea enjoyment". But in that simple, sincere way of drinking, there was a whole philosophy of life: Connecting with nature, being true to oneself, and connecting with the people around. A bowl of tea is the taste of hard work, of village love, of the soul of the homeland.

From that rustic bowl of tea, tea culture has taken big steps, entering more sophisticated spaces. I remember once sitting with a friend at Hai Dang Tra, a quiet space near Phu Lien Pagoda. That day, I met a group of tourists from Hanoi, and surprisingly, there were many young people. Nguyen Thi Minh Anh, 26 years old, shared: When traveling to Thai Nguyen tea region, I really like to sit and drink tea in quiet spaces like this. In Hanoi, we often go to tea houses to relax, or find a quiet corner to work.

Minh Anh's words made me think even more. Today's young generation, although they no longer sit by the wood stove and not everyone has ever worked in the fields, are quietly preserving the cultural source of their ancestors. Carrying a bag of tea in their backpack like Phuong, and going to a tea shop like Minh Anh, is how they "acclimate" culture. In a world that always pressures people to be faster and stronger, the act of making and drinking a cup of tea is a choice to "live deeply", to live with roots. Each cup of tea they drink not only soothes their hearts, but is also a way to preserve the soul of their homeland, a silent voice of a generation that knows how to love, remember, and preserve.

“Tea Story” in Modern Language

If Phuong and Minh Anh represent the young generation seeking to return to original values, another group is "telling tea stories" in a more creative and modern language. It is no longer a matter of drinking a bowl of green tea around a farmer's teapot, nor needing a set of lim wood tables and chairs, today's young people in Thai Nguyen have found their own ways to "tell tea stories".

Pham Duy Anh, a 21-year-old student at the University of Information Technology and Communications, has been "in love" with matcha since his high school years. For Duy Anh, matcha is not a "foreign" product. He learned that, in essence, matcha is a finely ground powder from high-quality young tea buds, similar to the ingredients used to make the best teas in Thai Nguyen.

Ms. Luu Thi Phuong, Linh Son ward (Thai Nguyen) has a habit of bringing tea and making it to drink when traveling.

"I like the feeling of drinking matcha in the middle of a bustling city, but still feel like I'm standing in the middle of a tea hill in my hometown. The initial bitterness, then the sweetness later, is like our lives, with ups and downs, joys and sorrows," Duy Anh contemplated. In addition to enjoying it at the shop, he also buys matcha powder from reputable sources at home, mixes it with nut milk and honey, and creates "homemade" milk teas with a personal touch and hometown flavor.

Duy Anh’s story is not unique. Cold brew tea from young tea leaves, black tea combined with tropical fruits, chrysanthemum tea with honey... and countless creative recipes have been born from Thai Nguyen tea leaves. Each person has their own taste, their own perception, but the connecting thread is still the mild astringency, pure aroma and characteristic sweet aftertaste.

To meet the tastes of young people, modern tea shops are springing up more and more in the heart of Thai cities. Walking around busy streets such as Bac Son, Viet Bac, Phan Boi Chau in Phan Dinh Phung ward, young people can easily find a suitable tea "taste".

Among them, I was particularly impressed with Layback, a tea shop with the proud slogan: "Layback - From the specialty tea region of Thai Nguyen". This is the passion of Ms. Nguyen Thi Van and her husband, born in 1998, in Pho Yen ward. Instead of following the beaten path, Ms. Van chose a separate direction: Focusing on black tea processed from Thai Nguyen tea ingredients. After two years of searching for raw material areas, researching processing technology and testing recipes, the first store was born in Pho Yen city in 2022. Nearly a year later, the second Layback opened on Bac Son street, Thai Nguyen city (now Phan Dinh Phung ward), quickly becoming a favorite destination.

Nguyen Thi Huong, 23 years old, Kha Son commune, a spa employee and a "regular customer" of Layback tea shop shared: At first, I tried it out of curiosity, not knowing what milk tea made from Thai Nguyen tea would be like. But then the unique flavor, both modern and traditional, conquered me.

The journey to find answers about young people and tea culture has given me a colorful picture. Some people bring tea everywhere like Phuong, considering it a "pocket piece of homeland". Some people seek out the tea ceremony space to calm their mind like Minh Anh. Some people are constantly creative like Duy Anh and the Layback team.

Every cup of tea that young people drink today, whether brewed in the traditional way or in a modern variation, is like a branch of green tea, very simple, persistently spreading its fragrance in the middle of the city. Young people drink to never forget where they come from, and to be more confident on the path to the future. Not noisy, not boastful, but enough to touch the depths of the souls of tea lovers...

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/van-nghe-thai-nguyen/202507/nguoi-tre-thai-nguyen-va-van-hoa-uong-tra-tinh-te-23d214e/