Zhou Xiang

Zhou Xiang grew up among the mist-shrouded peaks of Hunan, where the delicate art of yellow tea — notably Jūn Shān Yín Zhēn (君山银针) — first captured his curiosity. Today, as senior tea expert for green, black, and yellow varieties, he brings that same nuanced attention to the tea.yoga community, helping yogis select infusions that align with their morning ritual, breathwork, and post-practice recovery.

His approach is rooted in careful observation rather than enthusiasm. You might notice that Zhou rarely reaches for a big claim — instead, he quietly unpacks traditions, leaf chemistry, and personal experience. His thread, “Tea and hydration — myth, marketing, or measurable” on tea.community, became a quiet cornerstone for those seeking honest answers: how tea’s diuretic myth persists, which teas genuinely support a hydrated practice, and why a well-brewed green tea can be your morning companion before Sūrya Namaskār. The thread drew practitioners from tea.school, tea.doctor, and beyond, forming a thoughtful reference for anyone balancing prāṇa and a teacup.

Zhou’s personal practice begins at dawn with a glass gaiwan of Lóng Jǐng (龙井), its chestnut warmth grounding him before the first āsana. For midday flow, he leans toward room-temperature bái chá from Fujian — pale, crisp, and never heavy. When season turns toward damp, he might pull out an aged hēi chá from Anhua, a reminder that even a tea labelled “black” in Chinese taxonomy carries a quiet, fermented depth well suited to yin and restorative practices.

At tea.yoga, Zhou occasionally hosts long-form evenings that pair a sequence of prānāyāma with a progression of infusions — starting with a light, clarifying Zhèng Shān Xiǎo Zhǒng and ending with a small cup of gently sweet huang cha. These events, published on tea.events, invite practitioners to experience tea not as a beverage apart from practice, but as a steady thread running through it.

He also leads a short course on “Tea for the mat” at tea.school, where he delves into the six tastes of Ayurveda (rasa) and their correspondence to specific tea families. His teachings help students build a personal tea protocol: which teas lift in the morning, which soothe after a strenuous class, and which never to reach for when the room is already warm.

Above all, Zhou Xiang remains a seeker of clarity. He believes that a calm, hydrated body serves the mind’s stillness, and that the right cup of tea — chosen with awareness, not hype — can be a small, dependable ally on that path.