Nestled in the lush foothills of Ba Vì, just outside Hà Nội, Fermented Tea & Moonshire Farm is more than a place—it’s a living story of tradition, nature, and community. We invite you to join us in the heart of the Red River Delta, where rice paddies meet misty mountains
Our farm is dedicated to preserving and sharing the art of fermentation, especially traditional rice yeast and fermented teas. Pảticipants become part of our daily rhythm—helping with general maintenance, assisting in fermentation processes, and supporting the upkeep of our communal spaces. But this is also a place of cultural exchange. Volunteers are encouraged to help our team and local children improve their practical English through conversation, games, and storytelling. In return, you’ll learn about Vietnamese customs, food, and farming practices passed down through generations.
Life here is simple, communal, and deeply connected to the land. You’ll share meals, stories, and laughter with our team. Ba Vì offers stunning nature trails, hot springs, and local markets—perfect for weekend exploration.
Whether you're a curious traveler, a fermentation enthusiast, or someone seeking meaningful connection, Fermented Tea & Moonshire Farm welcomes you. Come share with us, and leave with memories steeped in culture and kindness.
OUR SEASONAL CROPS BY LUNAR CALENDAR
Life here is simple, communal, and deeply connected to the land. You’ll share meals, stories, and laughter with our team. Ba Vì offers stunning nature trails, hot springs, and local markets—perfect for weekend exploration.
Whether you're a curious traveler, a fermentation enthusiast, or someone seeking meaningful connection, Fermented Tea & Moonshire Farm welcomes you. Come share with us, and leave with memories steeped in culture and kindness.
OUR SEASONAL CROPS BY LUNAR CALENDAR
(Since most Vietnamese festivals are based on the lunar calendar, their corresponding dates on the solar (Gregorian) calendar change each year. To find the exact date for a specific festival in a given year, you'll need to convert between the Vietnamese lunar calendar and the Western (Gregorian) calendar, use a dedicated mobile app or website)
Around year: pineapple, papaya, banana, dragon food, coconuts, bamboo shut
Jan: Lotus leaves appear on Dragon Lake, rice planting on field, Pomelo/Grapefruit,
Feb: Lotus leaves growing on Dragon Lake of village, rice field works, milk fruit, spring tea season (making green tea, red tea, and white peony tea), Tet holiday (lunar new year celebration)
Mar: Feb: Lotus blossom on Dragon Lake of village, milk fruit, spring tea season (making green tea, red tea, and white peony tea), Pomelo/Grapefruit flower blossom to make blended pomelo/grapefruit flower tea
April: Lotus blossom on Dragon Lake of village (Nelumbo nucifera, making lotus tea), milk fruit, mango, watermelon, jake fruit cuisine
May: Lotus blossom on Dragon Lake of village (Nelumbo nucifer), making lotus tea and making lotus silk), mango, watermelon, green jackefruit cuisine, yellow rice fields and harvest, silkworm raising
Jan: Lotus blossom on Dragon Lake of village (Nelumbo nucifera), making lotus tea and making lotus silk), mango, watermelon, ripe jackefruit, lychee fruit, longan fruit, rice planting, silkworm raising
July: Harvest lotus seed Dragon Lake of village, making white peony tea and making lotus silk, ripe jackefruit, lychee fruit, longan fruit, sugar apple, silkworm raising
August: Making lotus silk, making white peony tea, pomelo/grapefruit, guava, persimmon fruit, silkworm raising, fermented traditional rice yeast
Sept: Making white peony tea, pomelo/grapefruit, guava, persimmon fruit, silkworm raising, fermented traditional rice yeast
Oct: Making white peony tea, pomelo/grapefruit, guava, Gấc fruit, fermented traditional rice yeast, rice harvest
Nov: Making white peony tea, pomelo/grapefruit, guava, Gấc fruit, fermented traditional rice yeast
Dec: Making bancha tea, pomelo/grapefruit, guava, Gấc fruit, fermented traditional rice yeast
EVENTS & RITUAL CEREMONIES BY LUNAR CALENDAR
1. Spring festivals
More details at https://vietnamnet.vn/en/12-major-spring-festivals-in-northern-vietnam-813953.html
2. Ritual worships:
Jan: Ancestor worship, a longstanding belief and fine tradition of the Vietnamese people, is a ritual practice paying tribute to deceased family members that reminds people of their roots.
During the Lunar New Year festival, Vietnamese at home and abroad carefully cook traditional dishes to put on the home altar to worship their ancestors.
Mar:
More details at https://vietnamnet.vn/en/12-major-spring-festivals-in-northern-vietnam-813953.html
2. Ritual worships:
Jan: Ancestor worship, a longstanding belief and fine tradition of the Vietnamese people, is a ritual practice paying tribute to deceased family members that reminds people of their roots.
During the Lunar New Year festival, Vietnamese at home and abroad carefully cook traditional dishes to put on the home altar to worship their ancestors.
Mar:
- Thanh Minh (Tomb-sweeping festival) is not really a big festival in Vietnam, but it is of great spiritual importance as it is a time for family members to visit their deceased relatives' resting places.
- Cold Food Festival is known as a regular holiday in Vietnam. Every time Cold Food Festival comes, people make banh troi and banh chay to offer to their ancestors on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month every year.
Apirl: Buddha’s Birthday
Apirl: Buddha’s Birthday
Temples throughout Vietnam celebrate Buddha’s birthday with colourful street processions on the 15th day of the 4th lunar month each year. Cities are transformed into a feast for the senses, as pagodas are beautifully decorated and flower garlands and illuminated lanterns are floated on waterways.
May: Doan Ngo festival out is that it is not just an occasion for festivities, but is also considered a propitious occasion to cure diseases. The festival is held at the beginning of the summer time, which is also the season for the prolification of many diseases caused by insects and worms, especially mosquitoes and flies.
By tradition, several days before the festival, all families prepared a large pot of fermented rice together with a dozen fresh eggs and a variety of fruit. Early on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, the adults woke the children very early and fed them immediately with the fermented rice, boiled eggs, sorghum rice cakes and fruits allegedly to kill the insects.
The worshipping ceremony for the ancestors was held at the "ngo" hour (the hour of the Horse) which in oriental time-keeping lasts from 11 o'clock till 13 o'clock. As the worshipping ceremony took place, some members in the family went out to pick various kinds of innocuous leaves in the garden or nearly forests, which would be left to dry in the sun and used later as medicine for the whole year. Usually, these leaves are known medicinal herbs, such as absinth, balm mint, sweet marjoram, dandelion, citronella or the leaves of orange, tangerine, bamboo, guava trees, etc. The best collection would comprise exactly one hundred kinds of leaf. The leaf picking is also an occasion for all members in the family to make an outing and vie with one another in the sense of discernment when deciding to pick this and not that leaf. Another custom consisted in using the leaves of absinth and other medicinal leaves to make figures of the animals in the oriental zodiac such as the Cat, the Monkey, the Tiger, the Dragon, etc. according to the years bearing their names. These scare-crows were hung outside the main entrance door of the house, and later preserved as medicine for the whole year.
Tree-poking, this custom is performed at exactly 12 noon, when two participants will play the role of the owner of the tree and the tree, with the person at the base holding a knife and knocking on the tree and asking "Why doesn't the tree bear fruit this year?" or "When will the tree bear fruit?". The purpose of the tree-poking custom is to "threaten" the tree, stimulate the tree to flower and bear fruit, bringing a bountiful harvest and prosperity to the family.
One person climbs the tree (usually a child) and plays the role of the tree trunk.
The other person holds a knife, wooden mallet, or pestle and stands at the base of the tree.
Action:The person at the base knocks on the tree trunk and asks the tree questions related to fruit bearing.
The person on the tree will answer in a frantic, pleading voice and promise to produce fruit next season.
The content of the question: "Why doesn't the tree flower or bear fruit this year?", "Will the tree bear a lot of fruit next season?",...
The meaning of the tree-poking custom
Stimulate the tree to flower and bear fruit:
According to folk beliefs, this "threatening" action will make the tree "fearful" and produce more fruit.
July: The full moon of July is one of the most interesting months of the year. The full moon day of July is Ghost Month, which reflects many sharp cultures in Vietnamese folklore and carries important spiritual and worship meanings
The month of ghosts comes from spiritual beliefs because people have two categories: soul and body. When a person dies, only the body becomes dust while the soul continues to exist. The fate of the soul will be judged by the King of Hell: good people will be reincarnated into another life, while evil people will be sent to hell or spend a miserable life in the human world, in addition to the ritual of worshiping gods and ancestors, families often perform an additional ritual of worshiping sentient beings, also known as worshiping ghosts, to avoid being disturbed by ghosts. Before the ghost worshiping ceremony ends, the family we will carry an offering tray containing change, popcorn, boiled potatoes, cakes, candy… out on the street for everyone to compete for. The ancient concept of capturing ghosts is to offer them to those who have died. wandering, starving and thirsting will help them escape and be prosperous in the afterlife. Another interesting thing about this custom is that it has a spiritual meaning that the offering tray is cleaned by children fighting over it. It is considered good luck for the homeowner because this will make the spirits happy.
August: Mid Autumn Festival in Vietnam (or Vietnamese Full moon Festival) takes place on the full moon night (15th of the Lunar August), the most charming and picturesque night of the year. The festival involves the customs of moon contemplating, procession of star & moon – shaped lanterns, lion dance, as well as holding parties with moon cakes and fruits.
Celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, when the moon shines brightest, this festival symbolizes family reunions, gratitude for the harvest, and the innocence of childhood. As the moon reaches its fullest, people across Vietnam gather to honor traditions that have been passed down for generations.
The festival dates back centuries, with roots tied to ancient agricultural traditions and the appreciation of the harvest season. It is said that the bright full moon during this time represents abundance and prosperity, making it the perfect occasion to give thanks to the Earth and ancestors for their blessings.
Dec: 23rd day of the 12th lunar month for the Kitchen God ritual
Note: Soc and Vong - Our special time of the monthThe 1st and 15th days of the lunar month hold much spiritual significance for the Vietnamese
TASKS FOR PARTICIPANTS
Experiencing with seasonal tasks alongside flower farm participants
- Help with building upkeep: painting, patching, and basic carpentry. Assist with minor repairs around the farm (fences, tools, structures). Assisting with soil assessments and growing trials. Maintain walking paths, gardens, and green spaces
- Learn and help prepare traditional rice yeast. Assist in cleaning and sterilizing fermentation vessels
- Support the fermentation process for tea, making lotus tea, picking tea and other farm products
- Help document recipes and techniques for cultural preservation
- Clean and tidy communal areas (kitchen, dining, restrooms)
- Practice conversational English with local children and staff. Lead simple English-based games or storytelling sessions
- Assist with cultural exchange workshops or creative activities. Share your own cultural traditions through food, music, or art
- Help prepare shared meals or assist in the kitchen
- Welcome new volunteers and help them settle in
- Document farm life through photography or video
WHY PARTICIPATE AT FERMENTED TEA & MOONSHIRE FARM
Participants choose our farm for an authentic dive into Vietnamese rural life, set against the rolling green hills of Ba Vì. Here, you’ll wake to misty mornings above rice paddies, share laughter in a friendly atmosphere, and watch fireflies dance at dusk. Every day brings hands-on learning—from crafting traditional rice yeast and lotus tea to mastering composting and fermented teas—so you leave with skills you can’t find in a guidebook. Beyond workshops, you’ll live like a local: harvest morning greens with our team, practice conversational English with village children, and savor home-cooked, farm-fresh meals. If you crave genuine connection, breathtaking scenery, and the chance to build something meaningful, this is where your journey begins.
CORE TEAM
We’re a tight-knit group of local men, aged 28–45, who spent our early careers chasing city lights. Eventually, we realized our true passion lay here—back in our ancestral village—reviving centuries-old practices in sustainable agriculture. Today, we’re united by composting trials, tea fermentations, and crafting sticky-rice wine with artisanal rice yeast. Our mission is to create jobs, bolster food security, and revitalize the rural economy.
