Recent Tea Travels: Intro To Chinese Tea

The 8th International Tea Culture Seminar and the First Mengding Mountain International Tea Culture Festival took place in Ya'an in September 2004. My attendance was hosted by Dr. Lee Chaogui, general manager of the Sichuan Ya'an Tea factory, who owns beautiful tea gardens, a lovely four-star hotel in Ya'an, and is currently building a tea research plant within his company. The other guests were tea buyers from Russia and Tchetchenia. 

The teas introduced in Ya'an were: 

Mengding Sweet Dew: A special green tea with beautiful, straight, and dark green leaves that give an intensely colored green infusion with a very aromatic flowery flavor. The total output of this tea in this area was reported to be 60.000-tons. The original seven tea bushes were planted by farmer Wu Lizhen in 53 BC, and for more than 1,000 years these teas were reserved as a tribute to the reigning families. 

Dark Teas: Ever since the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), this tea has been grown and processed for export to Tibet. In former times, it was carried to Tibet by tea horse caravans, with each horse carrying a load of approximately 200-kg of compressed tea bricks. The "Tea Horse Road" leads out of Ya'an, via Kangding, Batang, Markam and into Lhasa, covering a distance of about 1,000-km and crossing high mountain passes. 

In Dr. Lee's "Rainvalley Tea Garden" this type of Tibetan tea is picked twice a year--in Spring and Autumn--with a stated yield of 860-tons per year.

They tell me that they use mature leaves, since there are no buds in their way of growing. They steam the green tea and leave it to ferment naturally, which allows certain moulds to grow, namely aspergillus and penicillium. This very special (and secretive) enzymatic development makes this tea a precious and necessary element for the Tibetan people's diet. Because of this very special fermentation, this annual tea crop supply is considered a medical treatment. Tibetans will not go without it for more than a day. They believe it helps to digest the protein in their rich diet to lower blood pressure. Also, it makes your skin smooth and healthy, and can even replace fruits and vegetables, supplying necessary vitamins.

The Two Main Products: Kangzhuan and Jinjian 

Kangzhuan is the premium quality, also considered the Good Health Bricks. Jinjian is made from a material that is more mature known as the Golden Tips due to the coarser texture and varied amount of twigs. Each of them has two quality grades, while the better ones are mainly for the temples and the important festivals. 

In order to remain in good health, Tibetans understand that one has to consume at least 3.5-kg of tea per year, which is why most households always have a kettle on the stove, with some salt in a cup. On special occasions, people add some yak butter and grilled barley flour to make Tsampa. I was given a taste and was expecting to find it awful, but found it to be a surprisingly refreshing and tasty beverage. 

In order to represent the current knowledge about these famous dark teas, director Luo Shaojun and her daughter, Dr. Lu Yi. have recently published a book entitled All about Dark Tea (Saiwaishobo, Tokyo, 2004). where they investigate the history, the processing and its reported effects on health. 

Sichuan is credited to be the mare production area of trade with the people of Tibet. Mongolia and the Uyghur of Northwestern China. In order to make this product available to non-Tibetans, the company markets boxes with compressed dark tea "pills," which are properly sized (approximately 4-g) to take with one big teaglass. These can also infuse several times While some are just tea. others include shaddock flowers. Eucommia bark, chrysanthemum flowers and mulberry leaves, which are all traditional Chinese. healthy herbs The packaging is very attractive and makes for a lovely gift. 

Another item worth mentioning is their innovative and original method of using tea bricks as a wall material. In Dr. Let's hotel there is a special, secluded place where the walls are fully lined with tea bricks, which have been in place for over 20 years. This provides a soothing smell, keeps out the noise and generates very beneficial vibrations for the people in the room. I was told that Dr. Lee' s patent for tea bricks received the first class award of National Award of Science and Technology Advancement in Spring 2005. 

Another local feature is the very special way of serving the tea: in copper kettles with very long spouts (80-100-cm). While taking the most stunning postures, the tea is poured over their shoulder, after a pirouette, kneeling down, or holding the kettle above your head. It requires a lot of training to carry out such a "tea serving taichi--danse", and the performers are received well in demonstrations outside Sichuan. 

Visiting Wuyi Shan (Fujian) 

Upon our arrival, during the coldest winter in over twenty years, we were picked up by Mr. Zu Gengrong, the manager of the Fujian Wuyi Shan Tea Leaves Company. He took us to see the famous "RockTeas", where Oolong teas grow in a beautiful, scenic environment. 

The four most famous varieties of these are "Da Hong Pao" (big red cape), "Bai Ji Guan" (white hen claw), "Suei Qing Gui" (water turtle), and "Tie Luohan" (iron Arhat). The history of these teas goes back several centuries, from when the wild tea bushes were spreading into the deep, humid rock gorges, along the Nine-Twist River. There, they pick only once a year and output approximately 2,000-kg per year. An important protected origin denomination applies distinguishing between "Ming Yan", the pure rock tea growing in this limited scenic area (approximately 500-kg per year) and the "Dan Fan", a more common, lower grade, located outside the scenic area. 

The factory was inaugurated in 1938, covering an area of more than 330-ha, including the tea gardens. The company, which is state owned, employs about 1,700 people. The workers are all properly allocated nearby. 

While visiting the factory, we were shown the former equipment, from the 1950's, that was ingeniously made of wood--since after the "revolution" no metal was available. 

We also saw the tea garden of the Wuyishan Tea Research Institute (TRI), with more than 20 varieties of rock teas growing in rows. We were then asked to attend a performance at the Imperial Tea House. This area is the most beautiful environment that I have visited within my past five tea-related trips! 

Lapsang Country 

En route to the Lapsang Country, we bounced along and jumped in the car, as the road was partly under construction. At one point, the road became very muddy because of the snow. We entered the protected zone of Wuyi Shan Mountain Park (56,000-ha), where there had been some movement from a giant volcanic earth crust millions of years ago. 

The tea bushes growing all over the slopes are mostly wild and picked only once a year. The output is reported to be about 250-kg/ha. It is organic and pesticide free. A big share of the tea is exported to Japan and U.K., just to name a few. The area has a German Bio Certification (BCS). They also have ISO 9001, CIQ--HACCP and of course other protected origin denomination certificates. 

After the withering, rolling and fermentation process, the tea leaves are dried on the first floor of their 30 factory sheds, on huge bamboo mats while they are heated by firing stoves over pine fires, which gives them their tarry, smoky taste. 

Besides experiencing the overall development, we also had several tasting sessions in the factory that warmed us up. My personal preference goes very much towards the fragrant green and oolong teas. Tasting these teas, fresh from the last crop, with the lovely clear water from the factory office was an enhancing experience--despite the fact that we were wearing coats, shawls and bonnets. 

Tea Houses 

There is an important revival of such establishments, which can usually accommodate several hundred people. You meet there with family and friends, and can spend the whole day for the price of a cup or pot of tea. These teas on the "card" are mostly of premium quality and can be really expensive, while the snacks and savouries are free, i.e. included in the price. Former chairman, Mao Zedong, had decided to eradicate these locations, which were considered places of idleness and luxury. However, some have remained untouched and others have been restored to their original purpose and function.