[Narration] Located to the west of Nanchang City, Jiangxi Province, Mount Meiling is also known as “Xishan.” The area boasts fresh air, rolling hills, clear water, and a beautiful ecological environment. Its unique Soil and climate have nurtured the Xishan Bailu Tea, which was once a tribute tea and enjoyed nationwide fame over a thousand years ago. Recently, Hu Weihua, the fourth-generation inheritor of the Nanchang municipal intangible cultural heritage “Xishan Bailu” tea processing technique, introduced and demonstrated the process of stir-frying this tea to reporters.
Screenshot from China News Video
Stepping into Hu Weihua's intangible cultural heritage workshop, the fragrant aroma of tea wafts from the cast-iron woks used for stir-frying. By applying different techniques in the woks, the shape of the tea leaves continuously changes. Hu Weihua told reporters that the process of stir-frying Green Tea involves picking, withering, rolling, and Drying, but they make adjustments based on local conditions, taking into account the characteristics of the tea produced there and traditional craft requirements.
[Synchronous Interview] Fourth-generation inheritor of the Xishan Bailu tea processing technique, Hu Weihua
We emphasize high-temperature fixation, quickly reaching temperatures above 300 degrees Celsius to fix the tea in a short time, locking in its activity. Then we cool it down and complete three rounds of rolling and shaping within the Wok. Our technique involves never letting our hands leave the tea and never letting the tea leave the wok. Because the temperature is above 300 degrees, at the beginning, if our hands were to leave the tea and touch the wok, they would easily get burned. Additionally, through the tactile sensation between our skin, the tea leaves, and the temperature inside the wok, we can judge the degree of fixation and thus control the quality of the tea-making process.
[Narration] Li Xitao, the third-generation inheritor of the Xishan Bailu tea processing technique, told reporters that the production method of Xishan Bailu tea is unique and requires considerable patience. Every step, including the timing of tea leaf picking, the heat during stir-frying, the force applied when kneading, and the method of sun-drying, must be precisely controlled. Although making tea is laborious, more than one hundred apprentices have come to learn the craft.
[Synchronous Interview] Third-generation inheritor of the Xishan Bailu tea processing technique, Li Xitao
A wok of fresh leaves typically yields two and a half to three pounds when hand-stir-fried. However, each wok takes forty minutes to stir-fry, and it takes more than eleven hours a day to produce between three and a half to four pounds of finished product. This is the hardship involved in making tea. We have more than one hundred apprentices, 127 to be exact, and we continue to attract more during the process.
[Narration] With nearly six decades of experience in making tea, the hard work has paid off in the form of a fragrant life. In addition to setting up an intangible cultural heritage training center, Hu Weihua has established a tea supply chain that integrates cooperatives, companies, farmers, bases, and the internet. He arranges employment for local villagers, guides neighboring farmers and tea growers in planting tea, scientifically manages tea gardens, and purchases fresh leaves according to standards, actively promoting rural revitalization.
In the future, he hopes to elevate “Xishan Bailu” from an intangible cultural heritage project to a public domain brand, enabling more tea farmers to prosper.
[Synchronous Interview] Fourth-generation inheritor of the Xishan Bailu tea processing technique, Hu Weihua
We want to establish “Xishan Bailu” as a public domain brand that all the locals in our region can share. We want to share this brand and open up channels together. We want to bring the excellent tea produced by our beautiful mountains and waters of Mount Meiling to more people. Now that we are prosperous, we want to lead the tea farmers, households, and enterprises in our mountains toward a path of prosperity together.
Reported by Huashan, Nanchang, Jiangxi Province