茶之趣

茶之趣

The Chinese tea farmers have a saying: “The first harvest is mellow, the second is tart. The third is so good we save it for last.” This line perfectly describes the differences between tea harvested in the seasons of Spring, Summer, and Autumn. Tea, like people, assumes unique characteristics as a result of the climate, geography, and other factors.

茶農有句諺語，『頭茶醇，二茶澀，三茶好喝采不得』，說的是春茶、夏茶與秋茶的分別。茶跟人一樣，或天時、或地利，不同的因緣際會造就出自己的獨特個性。

It's the end of March. Gentle spring breezes waft across the boundless fi eld at Jiqingli Black Tea Valley, Yingde. People are preparing themselves for the hard work of harvesting the tea leaves that have sprouted during Spring.

Lu Yu, a connoisseur of fi ne teas who lived at the height of the Tang Dynasty, described the“excellent fl avour” of tea from Shaozhou (modern day Guangdong Province) in his Chajing (Classic of Tea). His work is now upheld as the def i nitive encyclopaedia on everything related to tea. Modern day Yingde is also part of ancient Shaozhou.

Yingde Hongcha (black tea of Yingde), Qimen Hongcha (black tea of Qimen, or Keemun), and Yunnan Dianhong (black tea of Yunnan) are 3 of the most famous and highly regarded black teas of China. Yingde's black tea was grown using the large-leaf tea bushes bred from parent lineages selected from Yunnan in the 1950s. Like the famous Sri Lankan black teas, Yingde's fi ne black tea quickly became a popular hit amongst many tea lovers. In the 1960s, Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain once used black tea from Yingde to serve her guests, and listed it as a tea for use by the royal family.

Yingde's black tea carries a rich aroma, bright red coloration of the resulting liquor. The most famous blend would be Yinghong 9, uniquely fl avored with orchids and lychee branches that epitomises the thickness, strength, freshness, and clearing properties of Yingde black teas.

The region of Yingde has a southern subtropical monsoon climate with no harsh winters or summers. Frost periods rarely exceed 10 days every year. The soil is slightly acidic with a pH of 4.5 to 5. These geographical features make it perfect for growing tea shrubs. The soil and water determine the tea. The same Yingde bush would produce vastly different teas when grown in other regions.

Yingde's black tea is harvested in 3 seasons, leading to the differences between Spring, Summer, and Autumn teas. Spring teas are harvested during the months of March to April and is known for its rich aroma. Summer teas, harvested from May to September, are known for their strong fl avour but slight bitterness when compared to Spring and Autumn teas. Finally, Autumn teas harvested from October to November offer a sweet and refreshing taste.

采茶Harvesting

萎凋Withering

揉捻Maceration

發酵Fermentation

烘干Drying

晾干Airing

Dr. Wang Yifeng is an expert on tea. Despite being over 70 years old, his tea-drinking habits make him look 20 years younger. Having researched tea over the last 50 years, Dr. Wang explained how these seasonal differences give rise to different tea characteristics. Spring tea experiences gradual warming after a cold winter, and thus provides better fragrance. Summer teas grow in higher temperatures and thus contain more tea polyphenols which lead to a slight bitterness. Autumn teas experience gradual cooling and less rain which lead to a buildup of sugars within the plant to provide a sweet fl avour.

What are the processes needed to convert a freshly plucked tea shoot into black tea?

Dr. Wang told us that a freshly harvested tea leaf contains about 75% water. The fi rst step in tea processing would be withering. Ventilation and heating are used to remove the water content from the leaves. This is followed by maceration where external forces are applied to bruise or cut the tea leaves and disrupt their cellular structures. Maceration is then followed by the key step of fermentation. Fermentation often takes 4 to 8 hours to complete and requires stringent controls on temperature, oxygen and humidity. Yingde black tea requires 2 rounds of drying to reduce water content to 4-6%.

The complete Yingde black tea is ready for brewing after drying. For brewing, pour boiling water on a pinch of tea leaves. Let it stand for 5-8 seconds and swirl slightly to disperse the liquor and its fi ne aromas. There is no better way to symbolise the Chinese way of serving guests than a cup of fi nely brewed tea.

Prof. Wang Yifeng, senior advisor & agronomist at Jiqingli.英德積慶里紅茶谷高級顧問、高級農藝師王醫鳳教授。

和煦春風拂過，英德的積慶里茶園又是一派熱火朝天——3月底，春茶進入采摘季節。

盛唐時，陸羽就在他那本被后世譽為茶葉百科全書的《茶經》中提到，韶州等地的茶“其味極佳。”韶州即包括現在的英德。

英德紅茶香味濃郁、茶湯紅亮，最有名的品種是“英紅九號”，“英紅九號”將英德紅茶濃、強、鮮、爽的特點演繹到了極致，有蘭花和荔枝干混合的香味。上世紀50年代末，英德紅茶由云南大葉種選育而來，可與斯里蘭卡紅茶媲美，迅速成為人們所喜愛的上等紅茶。

英德屬于南亞熱帶季風氣候，冬無嚴寒，夏無酷暑，每年霜期不超過10天，土壤酸度PH值在4.5—5之間，特別適宜茶樹生長。一方水土養一方茶，同樣的英德品種，種在其他地區，產出茶的品質竟相去甚遠。

英德紅茶每年采摘三季，故有春茶、夏茶和秋茶之分。春茶每年3—4月采摘，香高味醇；夏茶5—9月采摘，滋味濃烈，較之春茶、秋茶略微苦澀；秋茶10—11月采摘，口感鮮爽香甜。

也許是飲茶的關系，年逾七十的茶葉專家王醫鳳看起來宛如五十歲。研究茶葉半個世紀的他解釋說，春季，氣溫走向由低到高，故茶香醇厚；夏季，持續高溫，茶葉當中茶多酚比例高，故茶濃烈微苦澀；到了秋季，氣溫由高到低，雨水少，茶樹體內糖分積累，故甘甜。

一爿嫩綠的茶芽從采摘到成為紅條茶飲用，需經過哪些工序呢？

王教授告訴我們，由于采好的新鮮茶葉含水量約為75%，茶葉制作要進行的第一步便是萎凋，使茶葉失去一定水份。之后是揉捻，通過外力揉捻成條，同時破碎茶葉的細胞。揉捻之后便進入最為關鍵的發酵階段。發酵往往需要4—8個小時的時間，對于氣溫、氧氣和濕度有嚴格的要求。最后，英德紅茶制作需要烘干兩次，使茶葉含水量降至4-6%。

經過烘干之后，英德紅茶至終成形。取一小撮紅茶，開水注入，5—8秒旋見紅亮茶湯，且有香氣撲鼻，中國人的待客之道便滿滿盛在此杯中了。

SAVE THE BEST TEA FOR LAST

Text by Ge Rufeng Photos by Zeng Jian, Jiqingli Black Tea Valley 特別鳴謝：積慶里紅茶谷