对话“付闲云”品牌主理人：在一杯茶里，重拾生活的呼吸节奏

In Conversation with the Brand Manager of Cloud’s Gift: Rediscovering the Rhythm of Life in a Cup of Tea

"茶，从来不是高高在上的存在，它不过是一杯有味道的水。”品牌创始人这样说道，语气中透着温和与坚定。"商科出身的她，从青少年时期起就热爱中国茶文化。如今，写字楼里捧着咖啡的疲惫面孔，正是她想要对话的对象，“我想用一杯茶，为他们按下暂停键。”她的故事，始于文化冲突，成于回归本真的探索。

“Tea has never been something distant or unapproachable—it’s simply water with flavor.” The brand manager of Cloud’s Gift speaks with a gentle firmness. Trained in business, she has been passionate about Chinese tea culture since her youth. Today, it’s the weary faces in office buildings clutching cups of coffee that she longs to engage with. “Though a cup of tea, I hope to give them a moment to pause and breathe.” Her journey began with cultural dissonance and matured through a return to authenticity.

十七岁的茶香初遇

A First Encounter with Tea at Seventeen

主理人和茶的缘分开始于高中赴美求学时，同学们对日韩文化津津乐道，却对中国文化知之甚少。“有人问我，中国茶和日本茶道是一回事吗？”这种认知偏差，如同一颗种子在她心底破土生根...第一年回国后的那个暑假，她走进国学馆，在古琴声与墨香中，第一次感受到茶和茶具的温润。“当时只想找一个能快速理解中国文化的媒介，没想到茶成了一生的羁绊。”两个月的时间，基础地了解了六大茶类的冲泡技法。离开时，她的行李箱里多了一套茶具和几包茶叶，那是她向世界讲述中国故事的“开场白”。

The brand manager’s connection with tea began during her high school, when she went to study in the United States. While her classmates were fascinated by Japanese and Korean cultures, they knew little about China. “Someone once asked me if Chinese tea and the Japanese tea ceremony were the same thing.” That misconception planted a seed in her heart...During her first summer break back home, she stepped into a traditional Chinese culture center. Amid the sound of the guqin (a seven-stringed zither) and the scent of calligraphy ink, she experienced for the first time the warmth of tea and tea ware. “Back then, I just wanted a quick way to understand Chinese culture. I didn’t expect tea would become a lifelong bond.” Over two months, she gained a foundational understanding of how to brew the six major types of Chinese tea. As she headed back to the school, she added a set of tea ware and several packs of tea to her suitcase. They became her “opening lines” to tell the story of China to the world.

时差里的文化深耕

Cultivating Culture Across Time Zones

在海外的时间里，主理人的书桌始终摆着一套茶具。平日里，她都会研习专业茶书和观看纪录片；逢年过节时，她便在租住的公寓里举办“茶会”，邀请各国友人品茶；假期则飞回国内，继续跟随茶艺老师深度学习。偶然间，杭州茶叶博物馆的一组对比数据刺痛了她：中国茶叶出口量仅为肯尼亚的三分之一，国际标准体系缺失是核心原因。让主理人心中萌生出一个念头：“为什么不用现代人能听懂的语言，重新讲述茶的故事？”为了破解这个困局，她系统学习具有标准考量体系的咖啡与红酒品鉴，发现西方的“风味轮”等体系虽不能直接套用，却启发了她对茶汤鲜、香、甘、活的量化表达探索。于是，她决定将这种科学的品鉴方法与茶文化相结合，深入研究茶的各个方面。从茶叶的生长环境到制作工艺，从审评术语到茶器美学——这一学，就是十五年。

Throughout her years abroad, a tea set remained a constant fixture on her desk. She immersed herself in specialized books and documentaries on tea, hosted “tea gatherings” in her apartment and invited friends from different countries to taste and learn about tea during holidays, and flew back to China during breaks to deepen her studies under the guidance of tea masters. One day, she came across a set of comparative data at the China National Tea Museum in Hangzhou that struck a nerve: China’s tea exports were only one-third of Kenya’s. The lack of an international standard system was the main reason. This sparked a thought in her mind: “Why not retell the story of tea in a way modern audiences can understand?” To tackle this, she systematically studied coffee and wine tasting, disciplines with established standard evaluation systems. She discovered that while tools like the Western “flavor wheel” couldn’t be directly applied, they inspired her to explore how to quantify the freshness, aroma, sweetness, and liveliness of tea. That was the start of her deep dive into all aspects of tea—from growing environments and processing techniques to evaluation vocabulary and the aesthetics of tea ware, integrating scientific tasting methods with traditional tea culture. She dedicated fifteen years to this field.

回国后的行业觉醒

Industry Insights After Returning to China

2020 年带着海外求学的积淀，主理人回到上海准备创业。她开始深入茶产区，从福建桐木关到云南勐海，跟着制茶师傅学习萎凋、揉捻、发酵，在繁杂的工序中感受“看天做茶，看茶做茶”的智慧。这段经历让她意识到，茶的本质是“自然与人文的共生”，而她要做的，是让这份美好触手可及。这份对完美的追求也深深烙印在她的性格中。“曾经我总觉得等准备好了再做，每一个细节都想要尽善尽美，做到极致。”但这也让她付出了沉重的代价，她先后经历了三次手术。“人生没有完美的时机，”她苦笑道。这次健康危机让她深刻意识到，追求完美固然重要，但健康和生活的平衡同样不可或缺。主理人将茶道精神融入商业实践，希望她的茶不止是快消品，而是“精神充电站”。

In 2020, bringing with her the fruits of her overseas experience, she returned to Shanghai to start her own business. She ventured deep into China’s tea-producing regions—from Tongmuguan in Fujian province to Menghai in Yunnan province—learning firsthand from tea artisans the intricate steps of withering, rolling and fermenting. Throughout this experience, she came to understand the wisdom of “making tea based on the weather and the tea itself”. This experience made her realize that the essence of tea lies in “the symbiosis of nature and humanity”. Her mission, then, was to make this beauty accessible. This pursuit of perfection also shaped her character. “I used to think I had to wait until everything was ready—that every detail had to be flawless.” But this mindset came at a heavy cost: she underwent three surgeries. “There’s no such thing as the perfect moment,” she said with a wry smile. The health crisis brought a sobering realization—perfection matters, but not at the expense of health and life balance. She began weaving the spirit of tea into her business practice, hoping her tea could be more than a fast-moving consumer good, but a “station for spiritual recharge”.

让茶回归生活本真

Returning Tea to the Heart of Life

历时三年的沉淀，在 2023 年，主理人终于决定创立自己的茶品牌。"付闲云" 取自陆游"闲云不成雨"的诗句，云虽闲，却不能成雨，正如人生中许多事无法如愿，也反映了人在世事中的无奈与超脱。这与茶文化中追求宁静的精神不谋而合。品牌将陆游诗中的哲思，转化为一杯茶的温度交付给每一位饮茶者，希望他们都能在忙碌的生活中，找到一片属于自己的闲适时光。“当你愿意为一杯茶停下5分钟，看茶叶在水中舒展，听沸水与盖碗的轻响，那些被焦虑填满的缝隙里，自会长出一片宁静的绿洲。”

After three years of preparation, she officially launched her tea brand in 2023. The brand name Cloud’s Gift is drawn from a verse by the Chinese poet Lu You: “Idle clouds do not become rain.” Idle clouds drift freely but cannot turn to rain—symbolizing the many unfulfilled wishes in life, as well as a quiet acceptance, and a certain detachment, in the face of life’s uncertainties. This resonates deeply with the tea culture’s pursuit of serenity. The brand transforms the philosophical depth of Lu You’s poetry into the warmth of a cup of tea. It offers drinkers a moment of tranquility in their busy lives. “If you’re willing to pause for five minutes—to watch tea leaves unfurl in water, to hear the quiet sound of boiling water meeting a gaiwan (teacup with lid and saucer)—then within the gaps once crowded by anxiety, a tranquil oasis will gently take root.”

茶路漫漫的坚守

Steadfast Commitment to The Long Journey of Tea

谈及未来，她希望有一天提到中国茶，人们想起的不再是古老的符号，而是融入日常的生活方式” 。从青涩的文化传播者到现在的茶品牌创始人，主理人用十年时间完成了从 “知茶” 到 “事茶” 的蜕变。 对她而言，让每一个平凡的日子都能体味到茶带来的“回甘”，正是茶的本质价值所在。

Looking ahead, she hopes that one day, when people think of Chinese tea, they won’t just picture ancient symbols, but rather, a living lifestyle. From a young cultural ambassador to the founder of a tea brand, she has taken ten years to journey from “knowing tea” to “working with tea”. For her, the true value of tea lies in the lingering sweetness it brings to every ordinary day.

文中图片及文字内容，均由付闲云品牌提供。