"Stove-boiled tea" becomes a hit among young Chinese consumers

(Photo/Chinanews.com)

People sit around the stove, have snacks and desserts with hot tea, and chat with their friends. This is "stove-boiled tea", which is quickly becoming the latest lifestyle trend among young Chinese consumers.

According to Chinese third-party consumer review website Dianping, since November 2022, searches for "stove-boiled tea" in China have increased by 1,173 percent compared with the same period in 2021. The topic "stove-boiled tea" has drawn the public's attention among major platforms. On Xiaohongshu, a famous Chinese social platform, there are more than 60,000 posts on "stove-boiled tea".

"Stove-boiled tea" fulfills the young generation's desire for a slow-paced lifestyle, and many businesses are seizing the opportunity to make related business plans for the coming Spring Festival.

During the Spring Festival, some tea houses will launch different "stove-boiled tea" combos, and many of them have already been fully booked.

Qin Xin, a member of Generation Y, has transformed an old house into a place for taking "stove-boiled tea”, and it has become an "instagrammable" site for young people.

Many young people prefer enjoying "stove-boiled tea" at home, going online to buy the equipment, such as ceramic teapots, charcoal stoves, electric ceramic stoves, baking nets and bamboo chairs. "I bought an electric ceramic stove, and food for baking such as ciba (glutinous rice cake), chestnuts, corns and marshmallows. I'm going to watch the Spring Festival Gala with my family while enjoying 'stove-boiled tea', and then post the photos on my social media," said Liu Lu, a Generation Z member.

"Stove-boiled tea" combines traditional culture, tea culture and consumer demand to create a new consumption model, which has brought new momentum to the Spring Festival economy.

"With the rise of Chinese fashion trends and the driving of the internet celebrity economy, tea culture is being embedded into young people's social contacts through the collision between traditional culture and modern life," according to Gu Junqi, who studies tea culture. Making tea around the stove for the purpose of social interaction may become a new tea culture custom during the Spring Festival, and will be received by more young people, giving it lasting vitality.