Today, Bingdao Tea has become a calling card for the Mengku tea region and even the entire Lincang tea area. Under the influence of Bingdao's famous teas, villages like Dongguo, Xiaohusai, Dijie, Molie, and Zhengqitang, among others, are increasingly recognized. The value of tea, ecology, and geography in the Mengku tea region continues to be discovered and showcased.
This feature article will delve into the people and teas that have prospered due to Bingdao.
Mengku's Eighteen Villages
To understand the Mengku tea region, start with “two mountains flanking a river.” The two mountains are Ma'anshan and Bangma Mountain, both running north to south. Between them lies the river known locally as the Mengku River or the Nanmeng River. On this river stands the Nanding Reservoir, now also called “Bingdao Lake.” The entire Mengku tea region is divided by the Nanmeng River, leading us to focus on the East Half Mountain and West Half Mountain of Mengku.
Geographically, the people of Mengku traditionally use the Nanmeng River as a boundary, referring to the eastern Ma'anshan as the East Half Mountain and the western Bangma Mountain as the West Half Mountain. Many visitors initially struggle with orientation, leading to practical sayings like “when driving from Mengku towards Bingdao, with Bingdao village on your right, you are on the East Half Mountain; if the Nanmeng River is on your left, you are on the East Half Mountain, and if it's on your right, you're on the West Half Mountain.”
In the East Half Mountain and West Half Mountain regions, there is a concentrated distribution of over 80% of the ancient tea trees and cultivated ancient tea gardens in the Shuangjiang tea area. The East Half Mountain is a typical representation of Mengku tea, much like Mahai represents Yiwu. Here, there is ample sunlight, and the tea trees grow towards the sun, producing robust teas with rich aroma and full flavor. The teas from the West Half Mountain are more delicate, with lingering aftertaste and endless finish.
In the past, teas from the East Half Mountain were more well-known, such as Bamu, Nuwu, and Nasai, which were representative of Mengku tea. In reality, the quality of teas from both mountains is not significantly different; the main reason for the East Half Mountain's fame is its more convenient location. Boshang, located nearby, has been a center for sun-dried raw tea since the 1990s, giving the East Half Mountain an advantage similar to that of Nan'nuo, which is close to the national highway.
As transportation improved and Bingdao tea gained prominence, the West Half Mountain became the star of the Mengku tea scene in recent years. Famous villages like Bingdao, Nanpo, Dijie, Dongguo, Molie, and Xiaohusai are mostly located on the West Half Mountain.
Years ago, the tea industry coined the term “Mengku's Eighteen Villages” based on the fame and production volume of tea villages. Eight villages are on the East Half Mountain: Mangbang, Bamu, Naqiao, Bangdu, Nasai, Donglai, Mangna, and Chengzi. Ten villages are on the West Half Mountain: Bingdao, Bakar, Dongguo, Dahusai, Gongnong, Banggai, Bingshan, Hudong, Dashanxue, and Xiaohusai.
However, this list has some issues. For example, “Dashanxue” is not a village but a large tea-producing area. Also, popular villages like Molie, Dijie, and Zhengqitang did not make the list due to timing differences. Moreover, the Mengku tea region comprises 16 administrative villages and over 102 tea villages. Today, Mengku no longer needs this list for promotion because it boasts top-ranked villages like Bingdao, comparable to Laobanzhang.
The Name-Brand Effect of Bingdao Tea
In the minds of many seasoned tea enthusiasts, the teas from the East Half Mountain of Mengku have high fragrance but slightly weaker Qi, while those from the West Half Mountain are the opposite. Bingdao tea, located along the Nanmeng River, combines the characteristics of both mountains, making it a supreme tea that embodies the best qualities of the Mengku tea region.
The name Bingdao is well-known throughout the industry, but the definition of Bingdao tea can vary widely. It could refer to fewer than 200 ancient tea trees, the Bingdao old village, the five Bingdao villages, or the entire Mengku tea region. Today, it encompasses concepts like Greater Bingdao, True Bingdao, General Bingdao, and the Five Rings of Bingdao. This is due to the astonishing name-brand effect and raw tea prices of Bingdao.
Bingdao was originally called “Biantao” or “Bingdao” and was an administrative village of the Gao Shan Dai ethnic group in Boshan County, Lincang City. It oversees five natural villages (locally known as “villages”): Bingdao, Dijie, Nuwu, Bawai, and Nanpo. When Bingdao was less well-known, there was a practice of mixing leaves from these villages (known as “serial blending”). As Bingdao tea rose to prominence, distinctions were made and commercial promotions led to the following concepts:
The natural village of Bingdao is often referred to as “Bingdao Old Village,” and some merchants call it “True Bingdao,” etc. The administrative village of Bingdao is referred to as the “Five Villages of Bingdao” or “Greater Bingdao.” General Bingdao includes all the villages in the East and West Half Mountains with good ecology, many ancient tea trees, and high-quality tea.
Amidst the various villages claiming affinity, the concept of the “Five Rings of Bingdao” emerged, inspired by Beijing's five rings. The first ring is Bingdao Old Village, the second ring consists of Dijie, Nanpo, Bawai, and Nuwu, the other four Bingdao villages. The third ring includes Xiaohusai and Molie, two villages with higher tea prices. The fourth ring comprises Daizhongshan, Zhengqitang, Baomaidi, Xiaohuangtian, and other lesser-known villages. All other tea villages fall within the fifth ring.
Among the many concepts, Lu Li believes that the “Five Rings of Bingdao” is the most vivid and easy to understand. Within the five rings, there are villages like Dijie with rich flavors, Nanpo with strong qi, Bawai with full-bodied taste, and Nuwu with pleasant sweetness. There is Xiaohusai, often referred to as “competing with Bingdao,” and Zhengqitang, known as “Little Bingdao.” These villages share similarities with Bingdao Old Village tea to varying degrees.
The differences in quality and taste between the villages are reflected in tea prices. For example, the price of spring ancient tree raw tea from Bingdao Old Village is 4 to 10 times higher than that of the other four villages. The price disparity is even greater for villages outside the “third ring.” Of course, scarcity and market speculation play a role, but these concepts still give tea enthusiasts a basic understanding of each village.
Although these concepts are primarily for packaging and promotional purposes and may cause confusion, the expansion of the Bingdao tea area is a normal phenomenon in the industry's development. Similar phenomena exist in tea regions like Laobanzhang and Bohetu. Other industries, such as Feitian Maotai and Apple iPhones, also experience this. The “celebrity effect” is ubiquitous and unavoidable. One reference point for the Pu'er tea industry is “Longjing.”
When my elderly relatives went on a tour to Hangzhou, the tour guide mentioned that Longjing tea from West Lake isn't authentic, and only the tea sold in certain villages is genuine Longjing. In reality, Longjing tea is divided into primary and secondary production areas. The primary area includes Shifeng, Longjing, Yunqi, Hubao, and Meijiawu. All Longjing tea produced in the West Lake District falls under the secondary area.