China 2024 Day 4 : Exploring the tea wonderland of Wuyi Shan

Welcome to the fifth in our series of blogs documenting our tea & teaware sourcing trip to China & South Korea.  At Comins we are very fortunate to have friends all over the tea world.  When we visit them on our trips we promise to share what we learn & in our recent survey you shared that our blog is one of the best ways to do that.  So we hope you enjoy the journey!
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Our last blog saw us spending time with teacher Su learning all about the song Dynasty tea culture and the art of tea whisking.  After our wonderful lessons in tea we enjoyed a final dinner together before heading to the train station.  Our next destination ; Wuyi ; arriving just in time to enjoy some oolong craft ale along the restored historic riverside street - lined with cute shops and cafes - before making our way to the overnight lodgings.  

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Wuyi Shan is a designated National park meaning there is a conservation law in place - the soil here & in Chaozhou [which we will visit later on this trip] are volcanic ash - the rocks become part of the soil which containing lots of minerals. The loose formation of the soil means it is easy for the roots to absorb its goodness.
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Our first day in Wuyi was to be spend in a small village with Ms Chen & as we begin our walk we discuss her thoughts on 4 critical elements that make up a tea

🍃Tea growing environment
🍃Whole year climate
🍃Picking day weather
🍃Tea maker processing skills

We are in the Ban Yan area of Wuyi. Ban Yan translates as “half rock”. This is the area immediately surrounding the National Reserve area of Zheng Yan. Michelle has previously travelled to Wuyi and written several blogs on the area - you can read our most in depth blog here which gives good background to the area and the teas produced here
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We are here to see the natural area of tea grown on the edge of the forest. Ms Chen & her family focus on Lancong Shui Xian, Tie Luo Han, Shui Jing Gui [water turtle] & Huang Mei Gui [yellow rose].  It is the tea that is growing naturally in this area with the forest for protection and boundary that we are interested to learn about and taste.  We walk and spend time in the environment understanding the location of the trees & the terroir.  We feel the energy of the old trees as we pass through and under them, take in the sound of the stream that runs through the land.  We discuss how each cultivar grown here has its own original taste as a tea maker the most important thing is to bring out the features of the tea.  'People should know that [for example] this is a Shui Xian even with their eyes closed.  As tea growers and tea makers we should use our skill and experience to bring out all the features of the tea.  Often if we encounter a tea that has a poor aroma then we can perhaps say the weather on the picking day was not good - for example it may have been raining and cloudy - you really should not pick for one day after the rain.....  A sunny day in contrast really brings out the aroma.  Some teas really linger on the tongue - the most important thing here is the quality of the material - if you cut your tea every year then how will you achieve a long lasting flavour?' 

  

  

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We take our time walking the land observing the different cultivars growing including a small area of Chai Cai belonging to a relative - this is the original cultivar for the famous Jin Jun Mei.  Organic Jin Jun Mei is a tea we are still in search of at Comins; our host offered a quick history lesson 'Before 2005 there was no Jin jun mei.   Tongmu where this famous tea comes from is a high place  - the whole year is raining and foggy all the time.  Lapsang was born as it was so wet they needed to dry the tea so they cut the pine tree wood to do the drying. In 2005 tea masters started to discover new plants and a new processing way.  They picked the bud. withered it, tenderly rolled it with machines and then let it undergo full oxidation for 12-16 hours using special equipment - heaters and lights.  Then they dried it.  The result was Jin Jun Mei'

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We head back to town via the forest road to share & enjoy tea in the office.  We were to start our tasting with black tea, then lapsang and then oolong with our host explaining 'you need to taste the soft tones first before the energy of oolong. It is difficult to get energy in Jin Jun Mei - for me you cannot feel in the body but with oolong you can feel it in the neck and palms - Jin jun mei is more a relaxing tea.'

   

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For each tea we try 5g of leaf is used and as we are evaluating them we use boiling water.   The first infusion is not for drinking - we start tasting from the second onwards [and can taste up to 10+].  Through the cupping of the teas we evaluate the tea colour change, smell the bottom of the spoon and see how each infusion changes.   As we taste the first black tea, Jin Jun Mei, our host shares some thoughts and feelings 'In daily life we have a long tea drinking history.  We don’t just stay in the aroma we think about the deeper complexity of the tea.  The Jin Jun Mei makes me think of a spring tea. Good aroma, soft tea soup and very sweet. These are important aspects of tea.  This tea is good.  The feeling of this tea is it’s just in the first part of my mouth but I can’t feel it in my body.  When I drink the unsmoked lapsang I can feel it in my body - like a thick porridge soup - after I drink it I have a warm feeling.  When I drink a Wuyi high energy oolong I feel it in my ears.  My body reacts.  This is the Chi of the tea.  Chi is energy'  Many of you may have heard Chi or Qi referenced when people talk about oolong from this region.  It is a topic you can research further for yourself & indeed perhaps experience if you drink the right teas.  We discussed this topic further with our host who explained that  Chi or Qi is the energy they feel when drinking specific teas especially in their case those from older trees.  Part of the magic is that it is impossible to say where exactly it comes from - in my travels it is mostly referenced, by tea growers, as coming from the environment the tea has grown in - and of course all of our experiences of how Chi or Qi are unique to ourselves.  It is perhaps why our host only drinks old tree Wuyi oolong in the winter when her need for Chi is higher - she explains 'I feel it is relaxing and helps my body circulation'

  

After the Jin Jun Mei we try the unsmoked lapsang.  There is certainly more energy in this cup; more complexity in the leaf and bud than just the bud.  We then try the Lancong Shui Xian - roasted 3 time - the first time in June - last in December.  Our host explains 'After 7 infusions you make it a little longer in the steep so the tea taste can come out'.  These types of tea evaluations are certainly not suitable for those short on time.  Next is the 2016 Tie Luo Han & then the Roi Gui - spicy and fruity.  We discuss Da Hong Pao - which as we have written about in the past is not a cultivar but rather a blend.  Our hosts family blend Qi Dan and Bei Dou for their Da Hong Pao - they have the same blend every year.  Although the blend has not changed our host explains how life for tea growers and families has changed considerably in recent years  'for our parents generation the living situation was not good. Now we have different worries as living standards have risen for tea garden owners.  We now want to create and protect natural things from generation to generation - and hope that we will hand on a clean garden - this is what lives in our conscience'

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Our tasting ends with the tea we are most likely to be adding to our collection at Comins; Huang Mei Gui  ; Yellow Rose Oolong - complex with floral sweetness.  A beautiful way to end our time here but a story that is just beginning.  Having been picked the tea from this season is now in the sorting period.  After this the roasting will take place and then we will receive the samples to taste and test!  Stay tuned!