Chalu Debuts Premium Sparkling Teas in Yunnan Amid China’s Sober-Curious Shift

Founders Fraser and Mia raise a glass at LUX* Tea Horse Road’s Lashi Lake resort

YUNNAN, July 6, 2025 – Chalu, a new premium non-alcoholic sparkling tea brand born in Yunnan, officially launched at LUX* Tea Horse Road’s Lashi Lake resort in Lijiang, Yunnan on Friday. Founded by tea expert Mia Sun and former Goose Island brew master Fraser Kennedy, Chalu combines Yunnan’s storied tea heritage of the Tea Horse Road with innovative craft techniques from the world of wine. The debut event on July 4 unveiled three artisanal sparkling teas – Snow Jasmine, Volcano Oolong, and Hibiscus Noir – all cold-brewed and lightly aged on Yunnan oak for complex flavor. The launch is positioned at the crest of a broad cultural shift: as Chinese consumers seek elegant, health-conscious alternatives to booze, Chalu’s Yunnan-sourced sparkling teas offer a sophisticated new way to toast.

Mia pouring a glass of Hibiscus Noir

Chalu’s roots run deep in Yunnan’s tea legacy. After tasting over a hundred teas across the province, Mia and Fraser selected three expressions that best captured the region’s diversity of terroir and tradition. Snow Jasmine, crafted from single-origin jasmine tea grown in Yuanjiang Valley, is crisp and floral, with notes of white grape and a soft acidity. Volcano Oolong, Chalu’s flagship expression, is grown on the mineral-rich volcanic slopes of Tengchong and pan-roasted post-harvest. It pours golden with aromas of toasted oak, alpine grass, and roasted nuts, offering a structured, Champagne-like finish. Hibiscus Noir, a bold, caffeine-free cuvée, blends tart hibiscus with wild purple camellia and berries. Deep garnet in color, it opens with a nose of red fruit and rose, finishing with Gamay-like tannins and vibrant acidity.

“We wanted to bring out the heritage of Chinese tea in a format that feels celebratory and modern, without alcohol.” 

- Mia Sun, Founder

What sets Chalu apart is its artisanal production. The teas are cold-infused for many hours at low temperature to gently extract flavor, then are rested on Yunnan Oak to bring a full flavor to the beverage. 

“We wanted something with finesse, something that respects the deep tea history & culture of Yunnan whilst imbuing a modern elegance.” explains Fraser “Something that brings tea closer to the wine world than ever before. Structure, balance, mousse & a seductive finish - all wrapped up in the terroir of Yunnan’s tea growing regions.”

“We crafted each blend to be a discovery – you can smell the tea and the oak with each sip, and enjoy them on their own or paired with food, just as you would a glass of sparkling wine” says Mia “We wanted to bring out the heritage of Chinese tea in a format that feels celebratory and modern, without alcohol.”

Chalu Hibiscus Noir and Volcano Oolong

Chalu’s launch resonates with a clear market shift. In China and globally, younger drinkers are increasingly “sober-curious.” Industry analysis shows that a significant proportion of younger LDA (legal drinking age) consumers are now avoiding alcohol altogether (IWSR) with countries like Japan, Canada, and the United States seeing almost half of young adults claiming that they abstain from alcohol altogether. At the same time, health and wellness trends – especially in Asia – are driving demand for elevated non-alcoholic options greenqueen.com.hk. In China, for example, sales of low-sugar ready-to-drink tea shot up 41% in 2024 asianews.network, outpacing fizzy sodas as consumers seek functional, natural beverages. Luxury media have taken note: Vogue proclaimed that “luxury sparkling teas are comfortably the most exciting emerging trend in the low and no-alcohol sphere” vogue.com, positioning these drinks as the new way to toast. Chalu meets this moment by offering a premium alternative – a drink that feels both festive and mindful.

Mia adds, “We see Chalu as part of China’s new drinking culture. It’s no longer just about baijiu or beer – people want choices that reflect an upscale, wellness-focused lifestyle. Our sparkling teas let you raise a glass to health, sophistication and tradition all at once.” 

Chalu’s sparkling teas will roll out to select venues in China later this summer and are preparing for export to Europe and the Middle East, inviting a broader audience to experience the elegance of non-alcoholic sipping.

Lashi Lake, Lijiang, Yunnan

Media Contact: Fraser Kennedy, Co Founder, Chalu Sparkling Tea, Fraser@ChaluDrinks.com

Our Story

Chalu was not born in a boardroom. It began in the mountains, over tea, poured and re-poured through long Yunnan afternoons.

In 2019, Mia and Fraser left Shanghai and moved west, drawn by a shared curiosity and a sense that something profound was waiting. She brought a lifelong love of tea. He brought a brewer’s instinct — honed through years in the brewhouse, including his time as Brewmaster at Goose Island, where the two had met. 

In Yunnan, they found something deeper. The teas were wild, earthy, and unapologetic — rich with the scent of forest rain and volcanic soil. And unlike the individualistic experience of tea in Shanghai, here, tea was shared: brewed slowly, poured communally, and steeped in rhythm and ritual.

Mia immersed herself in the tea traditions of the region. Fraser focused on structure and balance. Mia’s passion for tea and Fraser’s technical expertise became the perfect complement of intuition and precision - together, they tasted over 100 teas, cold brewing each batch, and aging them on native Yunnan oak — a technique borrowed from winemaking, adapted for tea.

The result was something entirely new. They called it Chalu — a sparkling tea shaped by the land, culture, and people of Yunnan - designed to toast to the ideal that celebration should be for everyone. 

A drink without compromise. A ritual without rules.