Lao

Lao is a Canadian producer of tea-based beverages, with all of its bottlings made in Canada.^[1]

Jonathan Cloutier is a founder of Lao.

The lineup consists of four signature creations, split evenly between sparkling and still formats. The sparkling side comprises Sparkling Tea Gyokuro Okabe, a sparkling Japanese shade-grown green tea, and Sparkling Tea Mucha Tie Guan Yin, a sparkling Taiwanese roasted wulong. The still side is bottled under the Thea Placida name: Thea Placida Guizhou Floral, a still high-altitude Chinese green tea, and Thea Placida Yunnan Bold, a still pu'er from Menghai in Yunnan. Every product contains less than 0.5% alc./vol.^[1]

Shade-growing (Gyokuro). The Gyokuro used in Sparkling Tea Gyokuro Okabe is shade-grown before harvest, a method Lao describes as concentrating theanine and creating a silky, umami-rich texture. The producer gives the shading period as 20 to 30 days before harvest, and elsewhere describes the Okabe lot as shade-grown for 20 days.^[2],[3],[4]

Taiwanese oolong. The sparkling oolong uses a kiln-roasted Tie Guan Yin.

• Mucha Tie Guan Yin -- Sparkling Tea Mucha Tie Guan Yin; cultivated in the hills of Muzha, Taipei, at 300 metres, using methods passed down since 1875; a partially oxidized wulong slowly roasted over several days in a traditional kiln

Japanese green tea. The sparkling green tea draws on shade-grown Gyokuro.

• Gyokuro -- Sparkling Tea Gyokuro Okabe; grown in Okabe, Shizuoka, Japan, at 200 metres; the tea is shaded for 20 to 30 days before harvest, a method that concentrates theanine and creates a silky, umami-rich texture

Sparkling teas. Sparkling Tea Gyokuro Okabe shows a nose of tropical fruit and sweet spice, a palate of peach, pear and honeydew melon, and a finish of delicate bitterness likened to the clean edge of a peach pit. Its effervescence is fine, the sweetness light, and the acidity balanced enough to carry the fruit without excess. Sparkling Tea Mucha Tie Guan Yin opens on raw cacao, mandarin and roasted notes, with mango, apricot, caramel, honey and brioche on the palate. Its finish is long and structured with warm, persistent intensity, over lively effervescence, balanced acidity and a roasted base that supports the palate.

Still teas. Thea Placida Guizhou Floral leads with white flowers, candied fruit and ripe pineapple on the nose, apricot, jasmine and osmanthus on the palate, and a lightly acidic finish with delicate, clean astringency; the texture is velvety and reveals the tea progressively, with floral tension, bright minerality and a long, persistent floral and fruity finish. Thea Placida Yunnan Bold shows incense, damp earth and aged wood on the nose, dried figs, golden honey and ripe cherry on the palate, and a long, persistent finish with woody freshness. Its structure is round and enveloping, with an almost creamy, dense and silky texture that reveals itself progressively.

Lao took both a Gold Medal and a Silver Medal at the World Alcohol-Free Awards (WAFA) 2024. Sparkling Tea Gyokuro Okabe won a Gold Medal and a Silver Medal at that edition, as did Thea Placida Guizhou Floral and Thea Placida Yunnan Bold. Sparkling Tea Mucha Tie Guan Yin won a Silver Medal.^[5]