gǒuqǐ

Goji berries (枸杞, gǒuqǐ) are the dried fruits of shrubs belonging to the genus Lycium in the nightshade family, which in China have long been steeped in hot water and drunk “in the manner of tea.” In everyday usage, this beverage is often called tea, but botanically it is not tea: it contains no leaves of the tea plant Camellia sinensis, and in the Chinese classification of beverages it falls under tea substitutes (代用茶, dàiyòng chá) — herbal infusions brewed following the tea model. The market distinguishes two main types of raw material: the large red berry (大枸杞 / 红枸杞) and the black berry (黑枸杞). The red variety is grown primarily in Ningxia, with the benchmark provenance area in Zhongning County; the black variety comes from the highlands of Qinghai and Xinjiang. In daily life, goji berries are brewed alone and in blends, added to “eight-treasure tea,” placed into thermoses for the entire workday, and used in soups, congees, and compotes. Both varieties are described below as an independent genre of infusion — with their own tradition, terroir, and preparation method.

1. Classification and Origin:

• Type: tea substitute, herbal infusion (代用茶, dàiyòng chá); not tea in the botanical sense.
• Red berry: Lycium barbarum; in the Chinese tradition — 宁夏枸杞 (Níngxià gǒuqǐ).
• Black berry: Lycium ruthenicum; in the Chinese tradition — 黑果枸杞 (hēiguǒ gǒuqǐ).
• Family and genus: nightshade family (茄科, qiékē), genus Lycium (枸杞属, gǒuqǐ shǔ).
• Origin of the red berry: Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, benchmark provenance area — Zhongning County (中宁, Zhōngníng); “Zhongning lycium” holds geographical indication status (地理标志, dìlǐ biāozhì).
• Origin of the black berry: Qinghai Province (青海, Qīnghǎi), primarily the Qaidam Basin (柴达木, Cháidámù) and the Nomhon area (诺木洪, Nuòmùhóng); also Xinjiang (新疆, Xīnjiāng).

It is important to draw a clear distinction from the outset. A goji infusion contains no Camellia sinensis leaf and therefore none of the “tea” components — caffeine of tea origin, theanine, catechins. The product is brewed using techniques borrowed from tea, which is why it is conveniently placed in the genre of 代用茶 — “substitute tea,” or herbal beverage. The internal hierarchy of raw materials is also worth noting: the Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China (中国药典, Zhōngguó Yàodiǎn) includes precisely the red lycium Lycium barbarum as the fruit 枸杞子 (gǒuqǐzǐ); the closely related species Lycium chinense (中华枸杞, Zhōnghuá gǒuqǐ) is used domestically but is not considered official pharmacopoeial raw material, while the black lycium Lycium ruthenicum is a separate regional product not included in the pharmacopoeial listing of 枸杞子.

2. History and Cultural Significance:

• Antiquity: lycium is mentioned in early Chinese herbals, including the Shennong Bencao Jing (神农本草经, Shénnóng Běncǎo Jīng) and later in Li Shizhen’s (李时珍, Lǐ Shízhēn) Bencao Gangmu (本草纲目, Běncǎo Gāngmù).
• Food-medicine tradition: goji is a classic example of the concept of “food and medicine sharing a single root” (药食同源, yàoshí tóngyuán).
• Northwestern custom: the berries are part of “eight-treasure tea” (八宝茶, bābǎo chá) — a sweet infusion of the Hui people in Ningxia and Gansu.
• Modern symbol: goji has become an unofficial marker of everyday health consciousness.

Over several centuries, lycium has firmly entered the cuisine and household infusions of northwestern China. “Eight-treasure tea” is prepared in a lidded glass: in addition to goji berries, it includes chrysanthemum, red dates, dried longan, raisins, hawthorn, lumps of rock sugar, and sometimes a small amount of green tea — the composition varies from family to family. The modern internet image deserves a separate mention: the expression “brewing goji in a thermos” (保温杯里泡枸杞, bǎowēnbēi lǐ pào gǒuqǐ) has become an ironic symbol in China of approaching maturity and attention to one’s own health.

3. Botanical Description and Raw Material:

• Plant (red): a deciduous thorny shrub about 1–3 m tall, with arching branches and lanceolate leaves; flowers lilac-purple.
• Fruit (red): an elongated-ellipsoid berry approximately 1–2 cm long, orange-red, sweet, with numerous small seeds.
• Plant (black): a shorter, heavily thorny shrub, adapted to deserts and saline soils.
• Fruit (black): a small, nearly spherical berry about 5–9 mm in diameter, dark purple to black, often of a flattened shape and with a short pedicel.
• Other raw materials: the young shoots and leaves of lycium (枸杞叶, gǒuqǐ yè; 枸杞头, gǒuqǐ tóu) are also eaten, from which infusions and vegetable dishes are prepared.

4. Terroir and Cultivation Characteristics:

• Ningxia and Zhongning: alluvial and lightly saline soils of the river valley, irrigation from the Yellow River (黄河, Huáng Hé), abundant sunshine, and large diurnal temperature differences.
• Qinghai and Qaidam: altitudes on the order of 2600–3000 m, a dry, sharply continental climate, saline soils, and strong ultraviolet radiation.
• Xinjiang: arid areas with similar conditions, where black lycium is also collected, partly from wild stands.

For lycium, terroir has a direct and observable significance. Strong insolation and a large diurnal temperature difference promote sugar accumulation in the red berry and give it its characteristically sweet taste. In the black berry, the extreme conditions of high-altitude salt flats are linked to high anthocyanin content — the pigments that give its infusion a saturated colour. This is precisely why the “terroir” areas — the Yellow River valley in Ningxia and the Qaidam Basin in Qinghai — are valued above generic raw material.

5. Production Technology:

• Harvesting: by hand; red lycium is picked in several passes from early summer to autumn as it ripens.
• Preparation: traditionally, fresh berries are briefly dipped in a weak food-grade alkali solution (食用碱, shíyòng jiǎn) to disrupt the waxy coating of the skin and accelerate drying.
• Drying: sun drying on racks or warm-air drying; it is important not to overdry or “burn” the raw material.
• Black berry: dried especially gently, at moderate temperature and often in the shade, to preserve unstable anthocyanins.
• Sorting: by size, colour, and integrity; large, uniform berries go into the top grades.

The quality of the finished raw material is largely determined by the drying process. Excessive temperatures destroy pigments and aromatic substances, while under-dried berries quickly mould and clump together. Infractions deserve a separate mention: sulphur fumigation for “bright” colour and artificial dyeing are not technological practices but falsifications, discussed below.

6. Organoleptic Characteristics:

• Red berry (dry): soft, slightly springy, distinctly sweet with a light sour note.
• Red berry (infusion): clear, pale orange-yellow; taste mild, sweetish, without bitterness.
• Black berry (dry): almost unsweet, neutral-herbaceous, with perceptible seeds.
• Black berry (infusion): mild in taste, but visually striking in colour due to anthocyanins.

The colour of black lycium infusion deserves a separate explanation. Its anthocyanins (pigments based on petunidin) behave as a natural acidity indicator: in slightly acidic water, the infusion takes on a violet-purple hue, while in neutral and alkaline water it becomes blue and blue-sky. Thus, the same berry yields either a purple or a blue infusion in different tap waters — this depends on the pH and hardness of the water, not on the “quality” of the raw material. Temperature also affects the colour: anthocyanins degrade faster in boiling water and the colour fades, which is why black lycium is brewed with warm rather than boiling water.

7. Chemical Composition:

• Red berry: Lycium polysaccharides (枸杞多糖, gǒuqǐ duōtáng; LBP in the literature), carotenoids with a predominance of zeaxanthin (mainly in the form of zeaxanthin dipalmitate), betaine, free amino acids, vitamins, and trace elements.
• Black berry: anthocyanins (petunidin derivatives predominate), proanthocyanidins, polysaccharides.

Carotenoids give the red berry its orange-red hue, and zeaxanthin is one of the few food sources of this pigment in such high concentration. The anthocyanins of the black berry are responsible both for its dark colour and for the aforementioned colour change of the infusion depending on pH.

8. Health Properties:

• In the Chinese domestic tradition: the red lycium is credited with the properties of “nourishing the liver and kidneys” (补肝肾, bǔ gān shèn) and “brightening the eyes” (明目, míngmù); this is the language of traditional concepts, not clinical diagnoses.
• What science studies: Lycium polysaccharides, zeaxanthin in relation to eye health, and the antioxidant activity of extracts are under investigation; the black berry is studied primarily for its anthocyanins.
• Product status: it is a food product, not a medicine.

It must be clearly stated: goji is a food and a beverage, not a therapeutic agent. The wellness promises that often accompany retail sales go beyond the scope of an encyclopaedic article and are not proven medical facts. Of the generally known precautions, it is appropriate to mention neutrally: reasonable moderation in quantity; caution during pregnancy; vigilance for those taking medications that affect blood clotting — reports of possible interaction with anticoagulants have been described for lycium. Specific dosages and recommendations are beyond the competence of this text; in the presence of medical conditions, the decision remains with a physician.

9. Brewing:

• Vessels: for the red variety — a glass tumbler, gaiwan, or thermos; for the black variety — transparent glass, to observe the colour.
• Dose (red): approximately 5–10 g (about 20–30 berries) per 300–500 ml of water.
• Temperature (red): about 85–95 °C.
• Time (red): 5–10 minutes; the swollen berries may be eaten.
• Infusions (red): withstands 2–3 infusions, after which the flavour weakens.
• Dose (black): approximately 2–3 g (20–30 small berries) per glass.
• Temperature (black): about 40–60 °C — not boiling, to preserve anthocyanins and colour.
• Serving (black): warm or cold; a cold infusion is especially striking in colour.

In practice, red lycium is often brewed in blends — with chrysanthemum, red dates, longan — as “eight-treasure tea.” Black lycium is conveniently prepared in a glass teapot or bottle: pour warm water over it, let it stand for a few minutes, and observe as the infusion gains colour. If a purple hue is desired, add a little lemon juice (acidification); in alkaline water, the infusion will remain blue. For cold serving, the berries are covered with cool water and steeped for longer.

10. Storage:

• Conditions: a dry, cool, dark place in an airtight container.
• Moisture: the berries are hygroscopic; at elevated humidity they stick together, darken, and mould.
• Long-term storage: in a refrigerator or freezer in tightly sealed packaging.
• Pests: periodically inspect the raw material for food moths and small beetles.

Lycium is a raw material sensitive to damp and light. When improperly stored, the red berry quickly clumps together and loses its free-flowing quality, while the black berry loses the brightness of its anthocyanins. A small sachet of food-grade desiccant in the jar helps keep the berries loose and separate.

11. Price and Counterfeits:

• Wholesale benchmark: approximately 70–160 ¥/kg as an order of magnitude; the specific price depends on the variety, grade, calibre, and harvest year.
• Genuine red berry: the colour is uneven, dark red rather than “fire-engine bright”; there is often a pale spot near the pedicel; the taste is sweet; when steeped, the water colours gradually.
• Red berry falsifications: dyeing with food-grade and even industrial colorants, sulphur fumigation (硫熏, liú xūn) for brightness, sweetening and weighting, selling old raw material as fresh.
• Genuine black berry: small, often with the pedicel still attached; the infusion in warm water changes colour depending on pH.
• Black berry falsifications: admixture of similar-looking dark berries, dyeing, passing off ordinary raw material as “wild high-altitude.”

The simplest test for black lycium is precisely that colour test: pour warm water over a small portion; a genuine berry yields a blue or purple infusion, and upon the addition of acid it distinctly shifts colour to purple. A sharp-red aqueous solution that “bleeds” instantly and uniformly is grounds to suspect an artificial dye, including such hazardous industrial colorants as rhodamine (罗丹明, luódānmíng). With the red berry, an unnaturally uniform bright colour, a sour-chemical smell, and water that instantly colours an intense red are cause for alarm.

12. Interesting Facts:

• Natural indicator: the infusion of black lycium can be used as a visual pH indicator — from blue in an alkaline medium to purple in an acidic one.
• Etymology: the international word “goji” is a Latinised rendering of the Chinese reading of 枸杞 (gǒuqǐ).
• Thermos as symbol: the meme “goji in a thermos” (保温杯里泡枸杞) has taken hold in Chinese pop culture.
• Not just berries: young lycium shoots are eaten as a vegetable, and the root bark (地骨皮, dìgǔpí) is a separate raw material of traditional medicine.
• Price swings: black lycium was once promoted as “soft gold” (软黄金, ruǎn huángjīn), after which its price dropped considerably as plantations expanded.

In Conclusion:

Goji berries are not tea, but an independent herbal infusion that in China has been brewed and drunk “in the tea manner” for centuries, integrated into the daily cuisine of the northwest. Behind the outward simplicity lies a readily discernible world: the large, sweet red berry of Ningxia origin, with its benchmark in Zhongning, and the small black berry of the Qinghai and Xinjiang highlands, whose infusion visibly changes colour from blue to purple depending on the acidity of the water.

Goji should be regarded precisely as a tea substitute and a food product, not as a medicine. Then its merits — taste, colour, convenience of brewing, and its recognisable role in everyday culture — reveal themselves honestly, without inflated promises, and an understanding of terroir, drying technology, and the signs of genuine raw material helps distinguish a quality product from counterfeits.

the teas described here are available from teamotea