Green tea making techniques (Juyan, Wuzhou)

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: green tea making techniques (Juyan, Wuzhou)

Applicant: Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province

Project No.: 931

Project No.: VIII - 148

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: traditional art

Region: Zhejiang Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province

Protection unit: Zhejiang caiyunjian Tea Co., Ltd

Introduction of green tea production technology (Wuzhou Juyan)

Applicant: Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province

Tea production technology has a long history in China. More than 3000 years ago, tea for drinking appeared in the sacrificial rites of the Western Zhou Dynasty. Tea is called "tea" in ancient times, and its name can be seen in the book of songs. During the Three Kingdoms period and the Western Jin Dynasty, tea drinking in the south of the Yangtze River became a custom. Tea was very popular in Tang Dynasty. Xuanzong changed "tea" into "tea" in "Kaiyuan characters", and later Lu Yu's "tea classic" appeared. Before the Song Dynasty, most of the tea was pressed tea, that is, the tea was steamed, mashed and made into lumps. When drinking, the tea was boiled with water, and sometimes dried fruits such as melon seeds and pine nuts were put into the tea. In the Qing Dynasty, it was changed to boiling water brewing. Green tea is a kind of tea which is killed by high temperature without oxidation and fermentation, also known as "non fermented tea". The production process mainly includes picking fresh leaves, killing green, rolling, drying and other steps. Top grade green tea is made from tender sprouts. It is usually picked before Qingming or Guyu. The finished tea is commonly known as "Mingqian" or "Yuqian". In the Tang Dynasty, it was popular to pick small sprouts of tea, which were sharp as a spear and had small leaves shaped like a flag. Because they were called "spear", their name has been used to this day. It can be divided into steamed green tea and roasted green tea. In ancient China, high-temperature steam was used to kill the green, which was called "steaming green"; in modern times, it was used to fry the green in an iron pot instead of "frying green". The tea leaves are softened and rolled tightly into a stick shape by rubbing with fingers, which is called "rolling". Rolling is beneficial to the extraction of tea juice during the brewing of finished products, and reduces the volume of tea, which is convenient for storage and transportation. At present, green tea is mainly produced in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Fujian, Sichuan and other places. Among them, Hangzhou West Lake Longjing and Jinhua Wuzhou Juyan in Zhejiang, Huangshan Maofeng, Taiping Houkui and Lu'an Guapian in Anhui, and Suzhou Dongshan Biluo (original "Luo") spring in Jiangsu are the most famous.

Juyan in Wuzhou is located in Shuanglong cave top of Beishan Mountain, Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province. It is named after "Wuzhou" in the Sui and Tang Dynasties. The production of Juyan tea in Wuzhou began in Tang Dynasty, flourished in Song Dynasty and flourished in Ming and Qing Dynasties. It was one of the top ten tea products in Tang and Five Dynasties, and became a tribute to the royal family in Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Most of Wuzhou Juyan tea grows in rock crevices or slopes. It is usually picked during the period from Qingming to Guyu when one bud and one leaf or one bud and two leaves first unfold. It takes about 60000 buds and leaves to fry 1000 grams of dry tea. Juyan tea is fine, tight, slightly flat, and slightly hairy; its color is silvery and green, and its fragrance is long-lasting; when brewing, the color of the soup is light green and bright, and the bottom of the leaves is light green and even; the taste is fresh, mellow and sweet, fresh and pleasant. Wuzhou Juyan production technology is mainly composed of seven processes: Grass picking, green pot, rolling, two pot, shaping, baking and selective storage. Roasting is the main method in roasting, and the combination of roasting and roasting forms a unique process.

Wuzhou Juyan tea is rich in tea tannin, protein and other substances beneficial to human body, including tea polyphenols, caffeine and amino acids. This kind of tea set has high medicinal value, which is recorded in the collection of Materia Medica in Tang Dynasty, tea Fu in Song Dynasty and compendium of Materia Medica by Li Shizhen in Ming Dynasty. At present, the raw materials of Juyan in Wuzhou are in short supply, and the tea garden area is less than 100 mu. It is difficult to expand the planting area because of the national scenic spots around it. At the same time, many tea making technicians are too old for young people to learn this traditional handicraft. At present, there are only 6 technicians who can make Juyan tea. Wuzhou Juyan tea production technology is facing the situation of no successor, which is in urgent need of rescue and protection.