From a small Anhui bamboo workshop
Michael Zhan first stopped at this workshop in the hills west of Huangshan in early spring 2025, drawn by the smell of freshly split bamboo drifting from an open doorway. The master carver, a quiet man in his sixties, was making birdcages out of seasoned moso bamboo — the same species used for the tea scoops we stock today. After several visits and a long lunch of bamboo-shoot soup, Michael asked whether the workshop could turn a batch of long-handled tea scoops, something clean enough for serious leaf handling but without any chemical finish. The result is this pair: one wider scoop for oolongs and twisted leaf, one narrower for delicate greens and baimudan whites. Each piece is cut, shaped by hand, and burnished lightly with food-grade tung oil. No two pairs are identical, but all carry the same calm, precise feel. Michael’s sourcing note: ‘These aren’t just scoops — they’re a way to slow down and handle the leaf the way the workshop handles a piece of bamboo: with patience.’