“喝咖啡是为了工作，茶是拿来生活的。”说这话的，是美国人彭丹青（Derek Poskin）。他的一天，通常从一杯茶开始。
According to American Derek Poskin, "Coffee is for work, but tea is for life". His typical day always begins with a cup of tea.
在江苏扬州老城区一条小巷里，有一间由旧民居改造而成的茶室，名叫“Empty Cup”（空杯）。主人彭丹青坐定，烧水、温杯、投茶、注水，动作不疾不徐，整套流程比许多中国人还地道。常有来自世界各地的客人推门进来，他便沏上一壶茶，讲起自己和一片叶子的故事。
Poskin now runs Empty Cup, a tea house renovated from an old house nestled in Yangzhou's old quarter in Jiangsu province, where he introduces visitors from around the world to China's tea traditions.
但若把时间倒回十年前，这个场景谁也想不到。
从茶友到茶商
2016年，彭丹青第一次踏上江苏扬州。让他来到这座历史悠久的运河古城的，是李白的那句“烟花三月下扬州”。来了之后，他不仅爱上了这座城，更一头扎进了中国茶的世界，乐在其中。
快十年过去，他已经从一个茶叶爱好者，变成了一个向全球卖中国茶的老板。
He first arrived in Yangzhou in 2016, tracing a poem by Tang Dynasty (618–907) poet Li Bai and developing a growing appreciation for Chinese tea culture.
Nearly a decade later, he has become a tea entrepreneur, sourcing premium leaves across China and selling them to customers worldwide.
彭丹青的茶叶生意始于2018年，最初只是副业。茶喝得越多，茶具买得越多，最后家里变成了仓库。“总得想办法分享这一切。”于是生意就这么开始了。头几年并不很顺利，但后来，他开始收到来自全球各地的订单。
"I started drinking and buying more, and eventually turned my house into a warehouse," he said. "I had to share it somehow, and that's how the business began."
Poskin launched his tea venture in 2018 as a side project, aiming to connect Western tea enthusiasts with the traditions behind it. The early years were challenging, but orders eventually arrived from around the world.
他的经营方式相当“复古”：亲自跑到中国各大茶叶产区，亲眼看过、亲手摸过才肯下单。每到春茶季，他就往茶山里钻。如今，他几乎走遍了中国大多数主要产茶区，跟茶农一起采茶、学做茶。
Rather than working through middlemen, Poskin travels directly to tea-growing regions across China, from the ancient forests of Yunnan province in the southwest to the oolong gardens of Fujian province along the eastern coast.
说走就走的寻茶之旅
刮风寨是云南的一个瑶族村寨，距离老挝边境仅两公里，以出产高品质普洱茶而闻名。要到这里，得先从西双版纳州府景洪市坐三小时大巴到易武镇，再颠簸三四个小时的崎岖山路。彭丹青一直想去看看。
One of Poskin's most memorable expeditions took him to Guafengzhai, a remote village of the Yao ethnic group in Yunnan's Yiwu town, about two kilometers from the border with Laos.
Renowned for its high-quality Pu'er tea, the village had long been a bucket list destination for the entrepreneur.
怎么去？靠社交软件。他联系上了一位名叫赵晓云的当地年轻茶农。
The journey began with a leap of faith — connecting through social media with a young, local farmer named Zhao Xiaoyun.
“我跟一个从没见过面的人，约在一个从没去过的地方，让她带我去中国边境，”彭丹青说，“但我一见到她就知道我们聊得来。我们都‘讲茶的语言’。”
"I had this prearranged date with a person I'd never met, in a town I'd never been to, to venture to the borders of China," Poskin recalled. "But as soon as I met her, I knew we were on the same page. We both spoke the language of tea."
接下来的几天，他全身心投入到茶叶生产的每一个环节，采茶、揉捻、杀青，上手很快。
The four-day expedition immersed him in every aspect of tea production. Joining Zhao, her mother, sister, and friends deep in the tea forests, he picked leaves, laid them out to sundry, and helped with the roasting.
赵晓云说，他们之前也接待过外国茶商，但彭丹青对茶的了解确实不一样。“教他杀青，他很快就掌握了要领。”
“泡”进中国文化
为了弄懂潮州的功夫茶，彭丹青干脆在潮州待了一年，专门学做手拉壶。光跟着茶农跑山、学做壶还不够。有一年清明节前后，他甚至跟着当地人家去扫墓，一起杀鸡、烧香烧纸、给先人摆供品。
Poskin's dedication to understanding tea goes beyond sourcing trips. He spent a year in Chaozhou, Guangdong province, studying the art of making clay teapots used for gongfu cha (tea with skill). He has participated in some local customs and festivals during his trips.
“能参与到这种活生生的文化里，太震撼了。”他说，“当我透过山里人的眼睛去体验这个世界时，我才意识到茶文化有多么深厚。茶叶本身，只是其中的一小部分。”
"It was incredible to be part of that living tea culture," he said. "When I experience the world through the eyes of the people in the mountains, I realize how deep tea culture really is. The leaves themselves are just a piece of the puzzle."
穿行于各个省份，彭丹青对茶的理解也从追求“正确”的喝法，转变为欣赏其多样性。他发现中国的茶文化特别灵活，每个地方都不一样：扬州人直接用玻璃杯泡绿茶；潮州人则摆出一套功夫茶具，小壶小杯，讲究得很。
Through his travels across different provinces, Poskin's understanding of the drink itself has shifted from a search for correctness to an appreciation for diversity.
“中国的茶文化是流动的，更道法自然。怎么喝都对。这让我觉得很包容、很自由。”
"Chinese tea culture is fluid, more Taoist," he said. "Every place has its own style, and any way you drink tea is the right way. I find that very welcoming and liberating."
让外国人喝到地道中国味
如今，彭丹青的生意越做越大。主要客户在美国，德国和欧洲其他国家也有不少订单。
他把自己跑茶山、寻茶的过程拍成视频和照片，分享在社交媒体上，让大家看到茶叶是从哪里来的、怎么做的。
Poskin documents his sourcing journeys through videos and photographs, sharing them with customers to create transparency and connection between consumers and producers.
除了短视频，他还做了一个叫“Tea Soup”的播客，经营YouTube频道，积累了一大批对中国茶文化感兴趣的全球粉丝。
His content creation extends to a podcast called Tea Soup, a YouTube channel, and an active social media presence, through which he has built a following of enthusiasts eager to learn about authentic Chinese tea culture.
彭丹青只用自家网站卖茶，从茶名到包装全部自己操刀。他给在刮风寨购入的普洱茶起名“非人间”——取自李白的诗句“别有天地非人间”，灵感就来自他行走在刮风寨原始树林、古茶树之间的感受。
Poskin operates exclusively through his own website, maintaining full control over the customer experience — from freshly coined tea names to packaging designs.
“钱够用就行，多的拿去做好事”
谈及未来，彭丹青有着更远大的愿景：赚到一定钱之后，把钱花回茶农身上。他说自己不需要赚没完没了的钱。够用就行，多的钱要拿去做好事。
Looking ahead, Poskin envisions his business evolving into a social enterprise that gives back to farming communities.
一开始，他就是出于热爱而开始这项事业。现在，他想要更深入地理解中国茶，采购更好的茶叶，唤起更多人对中国茶文化的认知和喜爱。
"From the start, this has been a passion project," he emphasizes. "I want a deeper understanding of Chinese tea, to source better tea, and to awaken more people to Chinese tea culture."
扬州那间茶室，就是这种理念的缩影。他希望将其打造成一个让人们亲身体验中国茶文化的实体空间。
被问及对想在中国创业的年轻人有何建议，彭丹青说：中国处处有机会，也有很多愿意帮你的人。但别心急。伟大的事要慢慢做，然后某一天，所有的事情就一下子都来了。
Poskin offers fellow entrepreneurs a perspective of patience. "China is a world of opportunities. There are so many people who can help you. But don't rush it," he noted. "Great things take years, and then they happen all at once."
记者：郑正 吴婉珍
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