In the embrace of lush tropical rainforests, Xishuangbanna, this ancient and mysterious land, has nurtured countless treasures of Tea with its unique natural conditions. At the foot of Nannuoshan Mountain in Menghai County, known globally as the village of ancient tea trees, the air is filled with the fragrance of tea, weaving a splendid tapestry of history and modernity. On the morning of August 5th, the Xishuangbanna Tea Association's Nannuoshan Tasting Center for the Twelve Famous Mountain Teas was inaugurated at Nannuoshan. The establishment of the tasting center not only preserves and promotes the rich tea culture of Xishuangbanna but also serves as a vital window to showcase the beauty of Chinese Tea to the world.
(Address by Researcher Wang Yungang, President of the Xishuangbanna Tea Association)
Yunnan Province is the core region where the world's tea trees originated, and Xishuangbanna is the birthplace of Pu'er tea. It is reported that by the end of 2023, Xishuangbanna had a tea plantation area of 1.4322 million mu, with a total production of 66,400 tons of dried tea leaves, generating a comprehensive output value of 32.635 billion yuan. There are 437,700 tea farmers in the prefecture, with an average annual per capita net income of 19,900 yuan. This demonstrates that the high-quality development of the tea industry plays a positive role and makes significant contributions to consolidating the achievements of poverty alleviation in tea-growing areas, boosting rural revitalization, and promoting Chinese-style modernization.
Menghai is the top county for Pu'er tea in China, while Nannuoshan is home to the world's cultivated tea king tree and the origin of modern tea research and mechanical tea processing in Yunnan. Researcher Wang Yungang, president of the Xishuangbanna Tea Association, explained that the association strongly advocates cultivating good tea during the planting stage, adhering to ecological, organic, and scientifically reasonable requirements. Upholding the concept that “green waters and green mountains are gold and silver mountains,” the association ensures the provision of high-quality, safe, and organic raw materials for the entire industry, safeguarding the first line of defense for tea food safety. During the processing stage, efforts are made to produce excellent tea. Many tea enterprises are continuously upgrading their factory facilities, achieving garden-like processing environments. Processing equipment is becoming increasingly intelligent, automated, standardized, scaled, and clean, ensuring better quality products. In the business stage, tea operators are encouraged to sell good tea, strictly controlling product quality through procurement channels, operating with integrity, enhancing knowledge about tea theories, and sharing stories about Pu'er tea to deepen consumers' understanding of its historical and cultural background and consumption knowledge. Additionally, due to the characteristic of Pu'er tea becoming more fragrant over time, the storage stage is crucial. Proper storage involves cleanliness, hygiene, ventilation, breathability, light avoidance, pollution prevention, and moisture control. Finally, it is about drinking good tea. Through the concerted efforts of every link in the industrial chain, consumers can enjoy every cup of “five-good tea.” Promoting the concept of “drink a cup of Pu'er tea, make a good friend,” the association actively publicizes the tea industry of Xishuangbanna. To create a model demonstration point for the integrated development of primary, secondary, and tertiary industries in the ancient tea mountains of Xishuangbanna, the council member “Shenzhen Lizhi Ze Tea Culture Communication Co., Ltd.” has established the Xishuangbanna Twelve Famous Mountain Tea Tasting Center at Nannuoshan, expressing their support for the integrated development of these industries in the ancient tea mountains of Xishuangbanna. The establishment of this center will enhance the promotional window effect for the tea industry of Xishuangbanna and establish a positive image for “five-good tea” in Xishuangbanna. It is essential to carefully summarize the experience gained from the construction of the Xishuangbanna Twelve Famous Mountain Tea Tasting Center at Nannuoshan and promote it throughout the prefecture. In the near future, the beautiful and alluring Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture will witness the establishment of more famous mountain tea tasting centers, and the integrated development of primary, secondary, and tertiary industries in the ancient tea mountains of Xishuangbanna will surely blossom into dazzling flowers and bear abundant fruits.
(Appointment letter issued to Zhang Jianhua, Director of the Tasting Center, by the President of the Xishuangbanna Tea Association)
Zhang Jianhua, director of the Xishuangbanna Tea Association's Nannuoshan Tasting Center for the Twelve Famous Mountain Teas, stated that Xishuangbanna, with its unique natural environment and long history of tea culture, has produced countless outstanding teas. The twelve famous mountains, including Nannuoshan, Bulang Mountain, Yiwu Mountain, Youle Mountain, and Yibang, stand out among them, each carrying a profound history and story, with each leaf embodying the essence of nature and the sweat of tea growers. The establishment of the Xishuangbanna Twelve Famous Mountain Tea Tasting Center at Nannuoshan aims to create a platform integrating tasting, exchange, promotion, and dissemination, allowing more people to understand, recognize, and fall in love with the teas of Xishuangbanna. We hope that through this platform, we can delve deeper into and inherit the tea culture of Xishuangbanna, promote the transformation and upgrading of the tea industry, and spread the fragrance of Xishuangbanna's tea further and wider. Relying on the tasting center, we will actively organize various tasting activities, inviting renowned domestic and international tea experts and scholars to come for exchanges and guidance, continuously improving our tasting skills and reputation. Meanwhile, we will increase publicity efforts through both online and offline methods, bringing the famous teas of Xishuangbanna into households across the country and onto the world stage. The tasting center will undoubtedly become a vital force driving the development of the tea industry in Xishuangbanna, making contributions to rural revitalization in the prefecture and promoting the inheritance and dissemination of Chinese tea culture!
(Signing ceremony between the Tasting Center and tea farmers)
Professor Wang Rusun from Zhejiang University's West Lake Longjing Base, speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the Xishuangbanna Tea Association's Nannuoshan Tasting Center for the Twelve Famous Mountain Teas, said that the establishment of the tasting center provides a platform for tea farmers to exchange and learn from each other, enabling them to discover their differences and complement each other's strengths, thereby improving tea-making techniques and enhancing quality (through exchanges and learning in aspects such as tea garden management, tea-making techniques, and costs). They can gain an understanding of the distinctive qualities and differences of tea from different producing regions. Primarily, they need to understand the growth environment, climatic characteristics, raw materials, and quality characteristics (color, aroma, taste, and appearance) of tea from different producing regions. The tasting center will serve as a communication bridge between tea suppliers and buyers, promptly understanding each other's advantages and needs. The tasting center can help brands establish closer relationships, making them more valuable in the hearts of consumers and partners.
(Address by Researcher He Qingyuan, Director of the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences' Tea Research Institute)
Researcher He Qingyuan, director of the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences' Tea Research Institute, introduced that the Pu'er tea of Xishuangbanna is a benchmark and ace in the Pu'er tea industry, featuring a distinct flavor from each mountain and a hundred flavors from a hundred mountains. Xishuangbanna is striving to become the strongest tea-producing prefecture in China. First, being a strong prefecture means utilizing unique resources, especially the twelve famous tea mountains in Xishuangbanna, including the six ancient tea mountains east of the Lancang River