Hunan

The Qing Dynasty saw the emergence of black tea, oolong tea, white tea, dark tea, and yellow tea in addition to green tea, forming the six major categories of tea. Regardless of the type of tea, the brewing method from the Ming Dynasty of directly infusing tea leaves was still used. Under these circumstances, the types and forms of tea wares in the Qing Dynasty did not significantly deviate from the standards set during the Ming Dynasty. During the Qing Dynasty, teacups and teapots were typically made of clay or porcelain, with the Kangxi and Qianlong periods being particularly prosperous times for their production, especially those known as “Jingdezhen porcelain and Yixing clay.” Premium porcelain tea wares of the Qing Dynasty were mostly produced in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, while production in Dehua, Fujian; Liling, Hunan; Tangshan, Hebei; Zibo, Shandong; and Yaozhou, Shaanxi also thrived but did not match Jingdezhen in terms of quality and quantity. During this period, in addition to continuing the production of blue-and-white porcelain and polychrome porcelain tea wares, new types such as pink-ground enamel and cloisonné enamel tea wares were created. Yixing purple clay tea wares of the Qing Dynasty developed further while preserving traditional techniques. During…

1. Do we feel joy when drinking tea? Dopamine, a term we are all familiar with, is a central neurotransmitter that activates brain nerve cells and its physiological activity is closely related to one's emotional state. Scientific experiments have proven that L-theanine in tea can significantly promote the release of dopamine in the brain’s central nervous system, enhancing the physiological activity of dopamine within the brain. (Reference: China National Knowledge Infrastructure - "Research on the Performance and Synthesis of L-Theanine" by Chen Yinxia) It must be admitted that tea is a very charming beverage. 2. Flower + Tea = Happiness > 2 Jasmine + Green Tea: Jasmine has a fresh and vivid aroma while green tea is refreshing. Through the skilled craftsmanship of tea artisans, the scent of jasmine is infused into the tea. The result is a jasmine green tea that is subtle yet fragrant, not too light nor too heavy. Sipping it releases the full fragrance of summer between your lips and teeth. Osmanthus + Black Tea: Osmanthus has a rich and intense fragrance, while black tea is sweet and mellow. The osmanthus black tea produced through this process has a soft and sweet liquor, with the scent…

Liubao tea, Anhua dark tea, raw Pu'er tea, ripe Pu'er tea, and Fuding white tea can be stored for a long time. These teas are post-fermented or aged over time. They contain abundant pectin, sugars, amino acids, etc., and require time for enzymatic reactions. As they age, their aroma becomes richer, making them suitable for long-term storage. Which Teas Are Suitable for Long-Term Storage? 1. White Tea White tea is often referred to as "a one-year tea, three-year medicine, seven-year treasure." Storing white tea helps transform its fresh, sweet flavor, increasing its sweetness and developing aromas like jujube and medicinal herbs, with a clear, sweet taste. White tea aged for more than three years has a gentler nature, making it very suitable for people with weaker spleen and stomachs to drink. 2. Pu'er Tea Both raw and ripe Pu'er tea can be stored for a long time, but raw tea has greater storage value. Stored in different environments, Pu'er tea undergoes changes in different directions, which is extremely intriguing. The longer the storage time, the richer the layers of taste and the stronger the flavor. 3. Dark Tea Storing dark tea benefits the further transformation by beneficial bacteria, making the…

Guidelines for High-Temperature Drought Early Warning and Disaster Mitigation Measures in Tea Gardens Hunan Provincial Tea Industry Technology System Li Saijun & Li Wei July 25, 2024 Since early July, our province has been experiencing persistent high temperatures and droughts, with the drought rapidly worsening in most areas, severely impacting normal tea garden production. On July 25, the Hunan Meteorological Observatory issued the first red alert for extreme heat of the summer. In response to this extreme high-temperature and drought climate disaster, the Hunan Provincial Tea Industry Technology System has timely provided technical guidance, proposing specific measures for pre-disaster prevention and protection, as well as post-disaster recovery work in tea gardens. I. Pre-Disaster Prevention and Protection Measures (1) Interspace Covering ① Lay an appropriate amount of straw, fallen leaves, etc., in the gaps between tea plants to cover the soil surface at a thickness of 5-10 cm. This layer helps protect the soil, reducing water evaporation and aiding in the retention of nutrients in the soil. ② Intercropping green manure can effectively provide shade, reduce temperatures, and improve the microclimate within the tea garden, thus effectively preventing damage to tea plants from high temperatures and intense sunlight. (2) Scientific Shading…

Pu'er ripened tea has no expiration date and can be stored long-term. However, this does not mean that ripened Pu'er can be stored indefinitely; it is generally suitable for drinking after being stored for three to five years. In comparison, raw Pu'er tea requires around ten years of storage to reach its optimal drinking period. Ripened Pu'er has no expiration date—Pu'er ripened tea can be stored long-term without an expiration date, as long as it is kept under standard storage conditions, Pu'er tea can continue to be stored. How Long is the Expiration Date for Pu'er Ripened Tea? Yunnan Pu'er tea tends to improve with age, and its shelf life can extend from 10 to 20 years. Similarly, aged Wuyi rock tea often has a richer aroma and more robust flavor. Hunan's dark tea, Hubei's Fu brick tea, Guangxi's Liubao tea, and others will not spoil but rather improve in quality if stored properly. Generally, however, most teas are best when fresh. For example, green tea typically has a shelf life of about one year at room temperature. However, factors such as temperature, light, and humidity significantly impact the quality of tea. If stored correctly by mitigating or eliminating these…

Hunan is known as the "Land of Fish and Rice." It ranks among the top in the nation for its output of rice, pork, oilseeds, vegetables, tea, freshwater products, citrus fruits, and traditional Chinese medicines. For years, as a major agricultural province, Hunan has been characterized by high agricultural output but weak processing capabilities and low product added value. How can we ensure that high output translates into high efficiency, accelerating the transition from an agricultural powerhouse to a strong agricultural province? Recently, Party Secretary Shen Xiaoming conducted research on the development of green agricultural products and food processing industries in Changsha and Yueyang. During his visit to Jinjing Town, he inspected the tea plantation of Hunan Xiangfeng Tea Group. The town’s advanced experiences in tea production and processing, innovation, and cultural tourism integration have been reported by platforms such as Hunan Development and Reform, and Hunan Daily. Extending the Industrial Chain: Integrating Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Sectors What can a single tea leaf bring? In Jinjing Town, Changsha County, a single tea leaf contributes to a comprehensive annual output value of 1.6 billion yuan. In Xiangfeng Village, Jinjing Town, Changsha County, emerald-green tea plants stretch across the hillsides. Tea…

In recent years, Sinan County has firmly embarked on a path of eco-priority and green development, leveraging its unique natural ecological treasures to cultivate and promote its eco-friendly tea brand. By strengthening close cooperation and synergistic development mechanisms among tea companies, it has successfully attracted many high-quality clients. Tea loading. At Guizhou BaiFuyuan Eco-Agricultural Development Co., Ltd. in Xujia Dam Town, Sinan County, the workshop is bustling with activity as workers are diligently packing boxes of red oolong tea. This batch of tea was purchased by Guizhou Dingjia Tea Co., Ltd., a supplier of tea drink ingredients for Wahaha Group, and is about to embark on its journey to Wahaha’s tea-based beverage production line. Ready-to-ship tea. Speaking about the 800-ton order of red oolong tea, Liu Housi, head of the Sinan County Tea Industry Association, said with joy, “The first delivery of this order is 60 tons, divided into three batches, and the first truckload has already been dispatched, loaded with 20 tons of high-quality tea.” Transporting tea. To further promote the tea industry, Sinan County established a tea industry association in July this year, pooling the wisdom and strength of various tea cultivation, processing, and related enterprises in the…

After the mid-Qing dynasty, Wuzhou became an important commercial port along the Xijiang waterway. Part of the Liubao tea was transported upstream from Jiangkou and Doucheng docks in Guangdong, converging in Wuzhou before being sent to major ports in the Pearl River Delta region, forming a new form of transportation and trade for Liubao tea. In the Liubao tea culture exhibition hall of the Wuzhou Tea Factory, there is a cultural wall reflecting the development journey of the Liubao tea industry, displaying many old photos of the factory in its early days. Recently, Mr. Liu Fusheng revisited the Wuzhou Tea Factory and specifically came to this cultural wall, gently touching one of the photos displayed on it. In this photo, workers at the tea factory are pushing Liubao tea packed in large bamboo baskets to the triangular mouth dock next to the factory using wooden carts. He gazed for a long time before speaking: “After the Liubao tea produced by the Wuzhou Tea Factory was transported to the dock, it would be loaded onto cargo ships waiting there, which then carried it batch by batch down the Xijiang to Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Macau, and even further abroad…” Selling Tea at…

In recent years, Sinan County has leveraged its ecological resource advantages to carefully cultivate and enhance its ecological tea brand. Through strengthening close cooperation and a coordinated development mechanism among tea enterprises, it has successfully attracted the attention of numerous high-quality clients. At Guizhou BaiFuyuan Ecological Agriculture Development Co., Ltd. in Xujia Basin Town, Sinan County, the workshop is bustling with activity as workers are busily packing boxes of red oolong tea for shipment. This batch of tea was ordered by Guizhou Dingjia Tea Industry Co., Ltd., a tea ingredient supplier for Wahaha Group, and is destined for Wahaha's tea product beverage production line. Speaking about the 800-ton order of red oolong tea, Liu Housi, head of the Sinan County Tea Industry Association, said: “The first delivery consists of 60 tons, divided into three batches to be delivered to the customer’s designated location. The first truckload, carrying 20 tons of premium tea, has already departed smoothly.” Thanks to the matchmaking efforts of the Sinan County Tea and Mulberry Technology Promotion Center, Guizhou Dingjia Tea Industry conducted in-depth inspections of several local tea enterprises in Sinan, eventually leading to this collaboration. Lin Songrong, head of Guizhou Dingjia Tea Industry, remarked: “The…

The integrated approach to green precision prevention and control of major tea pests involves using core technologies such as narrow-band LED insect traps, yellow-red dual-color insect-attracting boards, and efficient sex pheromone lures to maintain target pest populations at a low level through long-term and efficient trapping. This is complemented by biological preventive measures, such as spraying inchworm virus preparations and releasing predatory mites, along with good agricultural practices to control pest populations. Finally, highly efficient, low water-soluble chemical pesticides are used as emergency measures in the event of large-scale pest outbreaks. In recent years, tea plant protection scientists have conducted extensive research on pest control techniques, developing effective green precision prevention and control technologies for tea pests. Below, we will use three of the most important pests in Chinese tea gardens—the gray inchworm, the tea inchworm, and the tea tiny green leafhopper—as examples. Integrated Approach to Green Precision Prevention and Control of Major Tea Pests I. Green Precision Prevention and Control Technology Model for Gray Inchworm and Tea Inchworm Note: “√” indicates the selected control technique at the corresponding time. The same applies below. 1. Core Key Technologies (1) Sex Pheromone Lures. Based on the severity of the previous year,…

Drinking tea is a common practice for adults. However, in daily life, we rarely see children drinking tea. Many parents allow their children to drink regular soft drinks and carbonated beverages but seldom permit them to drink tea. Zhu Haiyan, Director of the Horticultural Culture Research and Dissemination Center at the College of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture at Hunan Agricultural University, explains that there are two main reasons why we seldom see children drinking tea in everyday life. Firstly, children do not like the bitter taste of tea. More importantly, people believe that tea has a certain stimulating effect which may be detrimental to children's growth and development, potentially harming their spleen and stomach. In fact, these views are one-sided. "Scientifically speaking, drinking safe and hygienic tea, without consuming it too strong, can bring many benefits to children," Zhu Haiyan says. Firstly, moderate tea consumption helps to reduce fat and promote weight loss. According to relevant surveys, more than one-fifth of school-aged children in major cities in China suffer from varying degrees of nutritional excess, leading to numerous cases of obese children and those with high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels, severely affecting their physical and mental development. The…

The reputation of "Golden Tea" and its unique qualities have long been a subject of interest. Recently, the "Digital Intelligence Tea Exploration Team" from Hunan Business University traveled to Jinhuang Village in Xiangxi, Baoding County, to study the historical and cultural background of Golden Tea as well as its production techniques. Group photo of the Digital Intelligence Tea Exploration Team. On the morning of July 16th, the "Digital Intelligence Tea Exploration Team" arrived at Jinhuang Village. Through conversations with Shi Yingchao, the Party branch secretary of the village, the historical narrative behind Golden Tea gradually unfolded. During the Ming Dynasty's Jiajing period, when Inspector-General Lu Jie passed through Baoding, he was fortunate enough to be offered tea made from leaves of a century-old tea tree by a local Miao grandmother. The tea cured the officials of the miasma they had contracted. In gratitude, Lu Jie gifted the grandmother a bar of gold and presented the tea to the imperial court. Since then, the tea has been known for its reputation of being "worth an ounce of gold for an ounce of tea." In addition to preserving tea culture, the village also emphasizes innovative development. In recent years, the village has…

Tea, as a treasure of Chinese traditional culture, carries thousands of years of history and culture. Among the many types of tea, Fu tea, brick tea, and dark tea attract countless tea enthusiasts with their unique charm. However, many people are often confused about the relationship between these three. Today, let’s explore the world of Fu tea, brick tea, and dark tea and appreciate their unique flavors. Tea can be divided into six major categories based on its processing method and degree of oxidation: green tea, yellow tea, black tea (in the Western sense), white tea, oolong tea, and dark tea. Dark tea, as one of these, is like a profound and reserved elder, exuding the flavor of time. Dark tea is widely distributed and has a rich variety of types. The “three bricks, three tips, and one flower roll” of Hunan dark tea, the old green brick from Hubei, Tibetan tea from Sichuan, ripe Pu'er from Yunnan, and Liu Bao tea from Guangxi all display unique regional characteristics and production techniques. These varieties of dark tea differ in taste, aroma, and health benefits, satisfying the needs of various tea enthusiasts. Brick tea is a common shape for compressed tea.…

Dark tea is one of the six major types of Chinese tea that involves microbial fermentation in the formation of its quality and flavor. In 2021, China's total production of dark tea reached 396,900 tons, ranking third among the six major types of tea. In 2022, China's dark tea industry entered a new phase of high-quality development. Since the late 1980s, the team of tea experts from Hunan Agricultural University has successively conducted basic research, technological innovation, and product innovation on dark tea, scientifically interpreting the drinking attributes and health benefits of Anhua dark tea. As the health benefits of dark tea have been continuously confirmed by research, it has gradually become an ideal beverage for people to prevent sub-health. I. Tea-Horse Trade and the Origin of Dark Tea The exact time of origin of dark tea remains uncertain. The term "dark tea" was already in use during the mid-Ming Dynasty. The emergence of dark tea is inseparable from the long-lasting tea-horse trade between central China and the border regions. It may have been the long-distance transportation between inland and border areas, between producing and consuming areas, that gave rise to the durable and transportable dark tea category. Therefore, it…