The main origin and name
According to legend, in ancient times there was a man who sincerely worshipped Guanyin Bodhisattva. Every morning, he would worship a cup of green tea in front of the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva. Once he was offering tea, Guanyin Bodhisattva appeared, pointing out that there was a mountain where God could pick tea. So he trudged to the rock and found this magical tea, only to see the leaves of the tea tree shining with iron color. So, he carefully transplanted the tea tree to his home, carefully maintained it and propagated it through pruning. This is the ancestor of Tieguanyin tea tree.
Another legend is that during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, there was a woodcutter named Wei Xin in Songlintou Township, Anxi. Once, when Wei Xin was chopping wood, he accidentally found a strange tea tree in a crack in the rock next to Kannonji. Its leaves were shining with black sand and green iron in the sun. So he dug up the tea tree, brought it back to his home, planted it in his yard by cutting branches, and picked its leaves to make tea, which was called Tieguanyin.
There are also some legends similar to the above two legends. These legends are similar in that tea trees are all related to Guanyin Bodhisattva, so the name of tea has the word "Guanyin". There are two explanations for the word "iron": one is that the leaves of tea trees shine "iron color" in the sun, and the other is that the tea leaves are "brown as iron" after fermentation.
Tieguanyin originated in Xiping, Anxi County, Fujian Province, and has a subtropical monsoon climate. The folk proverb here says, "There are flowers in four seasons, and there are thunder and no snow in severe winter". Surrounded by Xiping mountains in Anxi, the soil is mostly weakly acidic red soil, which is very suitable for the growth of tea and can be described as the aura of the land. Anxi Tieguanyin is plump, curly and firm, with golden and bright soup color, rich fragrance, long and long, rich in taste, mellow and fresh, fragrant at the entrance, sweet and fragrant in aftertaste, and has the reputation of "seven bubbles and many fragrances".
Anxi Tieguanyin "bathes in the essence of the sun and the moon, gathers the spirit of the mountains, and gets the glow of haze. Eating it can cure all diseases." Drinking Tieguanyin tea regularly is good for health and longevity, just like the blessing of Guanyin Bodhisattva. In addition, the tea color of Anxi Tieguanyin has a unique black sand green iron color, so it is called "Tieguanyin". This explanation is logical and I think it is more appropriate.
process technology
Anxi Tieguanyin is rigorous in production and exquisite in skill. Harvest all the year round, spring tea is from Grain Rain to long summer (from mid-late April to early May), and the output accounts for 40-45% of the total annual output; Summer solstice is summer tea (from mid-late June to early July), and the output accounts for15-20%; Beginning of autumn is summer tea (from early August to late August), and its output accounts for 25-30%. Autumn tea is from the autumnal equinox to the cold dew (from late September to1early October), and the output accounts for 25-30%. In some places, winter tea can be produced in one season because of the high temperature. Winter tea is greener in color, greener in taste and less productive. Autumn tea is the best tea quality, followed by spring tea. Autumn tea has a very high aroma, commonly known as autumn fragrance, but the soup tastes thin. Summer and summer tea are of poor quality. The standard for picking fresh leaves must be to pick two or three pieces after the tender leaves form buds and when the top Ye Gang develops into a small or medium-opened face. When harvesting, we should achieve "five noes", that is, no leaves, no broken leaves, no tips, no single piece, no fish leaves and no old terrier. The fresh leaves of tea trees in different growing areas should be separated, especially the early green, afternoon green and late green should be made strictly separately, and the afternoon green has the best quality.
The picking technology of Tieguanyin tea is very special. Instead of picking very tender bud leaves, pick 2-3 leaves from mature new shoots, commonly known as "show-face picking", which means picking when all leaves have spread out and formed buds. The collected fresh leaves are fresh and complete, and then they are cooled, dried and shaken (turned green) until they release natural floral fragrance. When the fragrance is strong, they are fried, twisted and wrapped (rolled with cotton cloth) to make the tea leaves roll into particles, and then baked with slow fire. After making raw tea, it is screened, winnowed, picked, evenly piled and packaged to make commercial tea.
Cool green, sun green, cool green: fresh leaves are harvested according to the standard, cooled thoroughly and dried. It is advisable to bask in the sun at 4 o'clock in the afternoon when the sun is soft. The leaves should be thinned and lose their original luster, the leaves turn black, and the hand-made leaves are soft. The terminal leaves droop and the weight loss is about 6-9%. Then move it into the room to cool, and then do it.
Greening: shaking and spreading are carried out alternately, collectively referred to as greening. The high technology and flexibility of green making are the key to determine the quality of raw tea. Shaking the leaf causes the edge of the leaf to be rubbed, and the cells at the edge of the leaf are damaged and then spread. Under certain temperature and humidity conditions, with the gradual loss of water in leaves, polyphenols in leaves are slowly oxidized by enzymes and cause a series of chemical changes, thus forming the unique quality of oolong tea. Tieguanyin's fresh leaves are thick, so it needs to be shaken again to prolong the greening time. Shake them 3-5 times, and the number of revolutions per shake is from less to more. After shaking, the spreading time is from short to long, and the thickness of spreading blades is from thin to thick. The second and third shaking of green leaves must be rich in green flavor and stiff in fresh leaves, commonly known as "returning the sun", and the water in the stems and leaves should be redistributed and balanced. The fourth and fifth shaking depends on the change degree of green leaf color and fragrance. Moderate green leaves with vermilion edges, yellow-green (semi-ripe banana skin color) in the middle, convex surface, spoon-shaped leaves from the back, emitting orchid fragrance, slightly shiny leaves, bright red leaves and wrinkled stem epidermis.
Stir-fry: stir-fry in time. As the smell of green Julia disappears, it should be done when the fragrance first appears.
Rolling and baking: Tieguanyin's rolling is repeated many times. Knead for about 3-4 minutes, and bake for the first time after deblocking. Bake until it is 50% to 60% dry, then bake it when it doesn't stick to your hands, wrap it while it is hot, knead, press, rub, scratch and shrink it, and then bake it slowly at 50-60℃ to make the finished product rich in fragrance, mellow in taste and shiny in appearance, with a layer of hoarfrost on the surface of tea strips.
Air separation: the slowly baked tea leaves are finally air-separated, and the stems and impurities are removed to obtain the finished product.
Tieguanyin is the best oolong tea. Its quality characteristics are: the tea strips are curly, round, thick and even, with sand-green color, and the overall shape is like dragonfly head, snail body and frog leg. After brewing, the soup is golden and rich as amber, with natural and rich orchid fragrance, mellow and sweet taste, and has a long history of returning to Gansu, commonly known as "rhyme". Tieguanyin tea has a high and lasting aroma, which can be described as "seven bubbles are more fragrant".
trait
Tieguanyin was originally the name of tea tree variety, because it is suitable for making oolong tea; Its oolong tea products are also called Tieguanyin. The so-called Tieguanyin tea is oolong tea made of Tieguanyin variety tea tree. In Taiwan Province Province, Tieguanyin Chaze refers to oolong tea made by a specific method of Tieguanyin tea, so the raw material of Tieguanyin tea in Taiwan Province Province may or may not be the bud leaves of Tieguanyin tea tree. This is different from the concept of Fujian Tieguanyin tea.
High-quality Tieguanyin tea strips are curly, strong and thick, showing the head shape of a green-bellied dragonfly. Fresh and moist color, sandy green, bright red spots and frosty leaves are one of the important characteristics of high-quality Tieguanyin. Tieguanyin soup is golden in color, rich and clear, with thick and bright leaves and silky luster. The brewed tea soup is mellow and sweet, and the entrance is sweet and honey-flavored; The fragrance is rich and lasting, and it has the reputation of "seven bubbles and many fragrances". Recent experimental studies at home and abroad show that Anxi Tieguanyin contains the most abundant aroma components, and the proportion of medium and low boiling point aroma components is obviously larger than that of oolong tea made from fresh leaves of other varieties of tea trees. Therefore, the unique aroma of Anxi Tieguanyin is intoxicating. As soon as a cup of Tieguanyin is opened, it smells fragrant immediately. It smells delicious.
To produce high-quality Tieguanyin tea, we must have: ① pure Tieguanyin tea tree; ② Tea trees grow in good soil and climate environment and are carefully cultivated; ③ Exquisite mining technology. All three are indispensable. To drink Tieguanyin tea, you must have a small and exquisite tea set, and the teapot and teacup should be small. Put the tea in the teapot until it is full for five minutes. Wash the tea leaves with boiling water, add water for 2-3 minutes, and pour into a small cup to drink. You can continue to brew with water afterwards. When drinking Tieguanyin, smell its fragrance first, and then taste it. Although the amount of drinking is not much, the aroma is overflowing and the aftertaste is endless.
At present, the drinking method of Tieguanyin still follows the traditional drinking method of "Kung Fu Tea" in Quanzhou, Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Chaoshan, Guangdong and Taiwan Province provinces. Use a small clay pot and a small white porcelain cup (small cup), first blanch it with boiling water, then add half to two-thirds of the tea in the pot, and then pour it out with boiling water. At this time, there is a special fragrance, which is "smell the sacred fragrance first, then taste the dew". 1-2 minutes later, pour the tea soup into a small pot evenly, smell it first, then taste it, and take a sip. It is really an artistic enjoyment of life. Friends from afar presented Kung Fu tea to show their respect for the guests, and the drinker quickly tasted a precious cup of Tieguanyin tea.
Tieguanyin tea has always been loved by Chinese tea drinkers in Fujian, Guangdong and Taiwan Province provinces and overseas. Once this kind of tea is tasted, it is difficult to put it down. Since the 1950s, Tieguanyin tea has been gradually loved by people in the north, and now it enjoys a high reputation in the whole country, and its consumption is increasing. 1979 and 1984, there were two "Oolong Tea Fever" in the Japanese market, especially Tieguanyin in Fujian, which was popular all over Japan with its charming fragrance. In Japan, Tieguanyin has become synonymous with oolong tea.
Three major effects
Tieguanyin is dark green in color, shaped like a pearl, golden in soup color, fresh and refreshing in taste and high in aroma, and is known as "green leaves with red edges and seven fragrant bubbles". Tieguanyin is not only a precious natural drink, but also has a good beauty and health care function. Scientific analysis and practice have proved that Tieguanyin is rich in amino acids, vitamins, minerals, tea polyphenols and alkaloids, and has a variety of nutritional and medicinal components. Has the effects of clearing away heart fire, improving eyesight, killing bacteria, diminishing inflammation, losing weight, caring skin, delaying aging, preventing cancer, reducing blood fat and cholesterol, and reducing cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. It is a household name in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, Japan, Europe and America, and is deeply loved by consumers. Overall, there are five significant effects:
Value one: detoxification and digestion to get greasy.
Zheng Daoxi felt the long history of Anxi Tieguanyin and called it the "time-honored brand" of China tea family. Regarding its value, he first discussed "detoxification, digestion and oil removal". According to the article, tea is recognized as the best healthy drink for human beings. As early as the Western Han Dynasty, there was a record in Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica that "seventy-two poisons were encountered every day, and tea was used to solve them". In the 20th century, scientists discovered that there is a flavonoid mixture in tea, which has the function of sterilization and detoxification.
Value two: beauty, weight loss, anti-aging
According to the article, medical research shows that Tieguanyin's crude catechin composition has strong anti-chemical activity and can eliminate reactive oxygen molecules in cells, thus protecting the human body from aging diseases. It is mentioned that the content ratio of manganese, iron, fluorine, potassium and sodium in Anxi Tieguanyin is higher than other teas, especially the high fluorine content ranks first among all teas, which has a remarkable effect on preventing and treating dental caries and osteoporosis in the elderly. 1979 and 1984, there were two "Oolong Tea Fever" in Japan, and Anxi Tieguanyin was known as "Beauty Tea" and "Diet Tea".
Value three: preventing cancer and increasing intelligence.
According to relevant scientific research results, Anxi Tieguanyin has a high selenium content, ranking first among the six famous teas. Selenium can stimulate immune proteins and antibodies to resist diseases and inhibit the occurrence and development of cancer cells. At the same time, Anxi Tieguanyin also has the effect of increasing wisdom. It is mentioned in the article that British scientists have found that the pH of human brain fluid is related to IQ. Tea is an alkaline drink, and Tieguanyin in Anxi is obviously alkaline. Regular drinking can adjust the acid-base balance of human body and improve people's IQ. In addition, the article also said that Anxi Tieguanyin is rich in vitamins, caffeine, amino acids, minerals, tea polyphenols and so on. These substances have also been confirmed by scientific research, which are closely related to brain development and have a good influence on improving people's intelligence.
Value 4: Being in a good mood to make friends.
The article also analyzes the social attribute of Anxi Tieguanyin, and holds that Anxi Tieguanyin, as a kind of high-quality tea, has a unique effect in entertaining guests, making friends and cultivating self-cultivation. The article said that Anxi Tieguanyin needs brewing, and guests should wash cups. In the process of preparation, the host and guest should be caring and attentive and have a harmonious relationship; The guests catch up with the host while drinking tea, and the process is very harmonious and friendly. Therefore, programmed brewing and drinking can make people feel calm and help nourish their hearts and feelings.
Value five: refreshing
It is almost known that drinking tea can refresh you. There are many medical books in China in the past dynasties, and all the literati and monks in the past dynasties waved their wonderful pens and praised the refreshing and beneficial effects of tea. Bai Juyi's poem "To the Thirteen Kings of the East" said: "Chi Pan's moon is hand in hand, and bamboo is blowing. Drive away the sorrow and know the strength of the wine, and break the sleep and see the tea. " This poem clearly mentions the efficacy of tea in refreshing and breaking sleep. Su Dongpo's poem said: "Make thirty cups of tea, regardless of taste, and pack laymen with monks who beat sand people." He said that he would give the tea to Bao Jushi and let him drink it to avoid falling asleep during meditation. Drinking tea can be beneficial to thinking, so it is loved by people, especially some writers, poets and other mental workers. For example, Balzac, a great French writer, Han, a Chinese-American woman writer, and Yao, a famous writer in China, all like drinking tea to help their writing. Tieguanyin can refresh the mind, and its function mainly lies in caffeine in tea. Caffeine can excite the central nervous system, improve thinking and improve efficiency. Therefore, drinking tea can break sleep, refresh and relieve boredom, clear the mind, improve thinking, and significantly improve oral defense ability and mathematical thinking response. At the same time, Tieguanyin contains polyphenols and other compounds, which counteracts the adverse effects of pure caffeine on human body. This is also one of the important reasons for the long history, enduring and continuous development of tea drinking.
Brewing method
Xu Cishu said in the Book of Tea in the Ming Dynasty: "Tea is nourished by water, stored in containers, and soup turns into fire. The four are connected and indispensable. " Tea, water, utensils and fire are all closely linked, which just echoes what we said about how to make good tea.
Making tea seems easy. Put the tea in the pot, pour in hot water, wait a while, then pour it out, and you'll finish making tea! On the surface, Tieguanyin tea, like the decomposition action above, can get a good tea soup! However, the first step to make tea well is to look at tea, know tea and study its characteristics! In addition to the above written records, in the actual process of making tea, and in the face of different tea leaves and tea sets, it is necessary to distinguish carefully in order to get a good taste of tea soup.
In the process of making tea, Tieguanyin in Anxi, Fujian and Tieguanyin in Muka, Taiwan Province have different rope-like appearance and baking degree after making tea, and also have their own characteristics in tea soup performance, especially in soaking methods. Now the main points are as follows:
Anxi Tieguanyin:
In the process of making tea, Anxi tea is not "kneaded" like Tieguanyin in Muka, Taiwan Province. The appearance of tea leaves is distinct, and Tieguanyin produced in Anxi will also be slightly baked. When it comes to Hong Kong teahouses or export products, the tea rhyme of Tieguanyin will be changed by baking tea. Therefore, if you want to soak the fragrance of Anxi Tieguanyin or the "official rhyme" of Tieguanyin, you must also consider the degree of baking.
To show the characteristics of tea fragrance, it is advisable to use Zhu Tao jars with high firing temperature. The appearance of the pot should be flat and round, and it is not advisable to choose a high-grade straight pot. This is to let the rope-shaped Anxi Tieguanyin tea fully soak in the water soup, and smoothly release the tea rhyme and floral fragrance of Tieguanyin! Flat pot, it is easy for the cable-like Anxi Tieguanyin to be comfortably installed inside, without pressure and crowding. With a good pot shape, tea will happily release the aroma of the whole body, and will also disperse all the rhymes!
The above applies to Tieguanyin, which is lightly baked. If you encounter Tieguanyin, which is roasted moderately, how to avoid "burnt taste"?
Choose a teapot with low sintering temperature. If you meet the old Tieguanyin, remember to fill the teapot with tea when making tea, and come out quickly, so as not to release the burnt smell!
Tieguanyin rhyme in baking fire, high-density tea, fast tea tasting, can be squeezed out in a short time, just like the feeling of a cup of Italian espresso: the entrance is very strong and the throat is very sweet.
If you want to make baked Anxi Tieguanyin tea with strong aroma, the pot type is not limited, but it should be appropriate.
How about the amount of tea? Put the tea leaves into the pot, which is subject to six-point fullness, and because the tea leaves are broken after baking, be careful not to block the water outlet, and rush quickly to get the real taste!
The retention time of each tea in the pot should not be too long, and it should end after four or five consecutive infusions. This method of tea tasting is generally used by experts. After soaking once, brew continuously for four or five times. Put the tea soup in the sea of tea, and then slowly share it with people who love tea. Also known as "soaking sperm" method. This is a kind of "extraction" essence soaking method, which is characterized by soaking tea at one time without leaving any aftertaste.
People who want to study tea art can pick up Tieguanyin tea residue and soak it after extraction, and study it carefully: if the tea itself is soft and not baked away with baking fire, only a "dead bone" is left, which shows that the tea roaster is "stewing" slowly with his heart (baking tea with slow fire), instead of trying to cover up the inferior tea with baking fire, it is equivalent to baking the tea dry, leaving only a charcoal smell, which is not good tea.
If you want to soak the real taste in the roasting fire, there is a special "roasting taste" after roasting tea. You must carefully choose the tea set, the amount of water injected, and master the time of pouring tea!
If the roasted tea leaves are put in a porcelain jar, the sour taste of fruit will naturally be produced after oxidation and fading. At this time, if it can be handled properly, it should be moistened with fruit acid and sweet with fresh air. If the brick pot is replaced when brewing, the possibility of absorbing dry taste in the pot will increase, which will bring a soft and smooth feeling to the tea soup.
Baking fire is to prolong the life of tea. How to distinguish baking power from good or bad tea? Check whether the tea bottom is soft or hard. To test whether the tea maker has made a real roasting smell, as long as he smells the tea soup fiercely, if it has a "charcoal smell" for a long time, it is inferior. When the tea soup is finished, the sour fruit fragrance appears at the bottom of the cup, which is a good product! If the ashes left by charcoal burning smell fragrant, it is a loss of interest in tea.
"Baking" gives a real taste. Only by soaking the real taste can we know the real taste of Tieguanyin! To make a real taste, you must first put a proper amount of tea.
Muka Tieguanyin:
The number of Tieguanyin in Anxi and Muka is obviously different. The quantity of tea leaves is actually interactive with the size of tea-making equipment. Due to the tight knot of tea shape caused by Muka Tieguanyin's twisting, leave a stretch space for her when putting tea, so that she can fully distribute the true fragrance of tea!
Therefore, in the wooden fence, choose a pot to soak Tieguanyin, which should be wide and not narrow. Round pot is better than square pot, and high pot is better than flat pot; The sintering temperature should be higher, and the mud with strong water absorption is better, and cinnabar and purple sand are both good. This pot has good heat preservation, and the tea soup in the pot is not easy to cool down, so the water should be moderate and should not be soaked for a long time. Moreover, Zhu Mud has strong conductivity, so it is necessary to grasp the timing of pouring tea soup. Remember: after the first sip of tea soup is poured out, you must pour out the remaining tea soup at the bottom of the pot to avoid the release of Tieguanyin theophylline, which will affect the sweetness of tea soup and fall into the dilemma of biting your tongue and pricking your gums!
For tea farmers, the fair mug, soaked in three grams for three minutes, is the best way to get the real taste. If you drink well now, it will be better to go back and make a pot. In fact, this statement is debatable. The curled shape of Taiwan Province Muka Tieguanyin tea, combined with the characteristics of slow fire baking, will "crush" the soup flavor if there is no excellent and moderate space for making tea, which will make good tea lose its characteristics and even waste Tieguanyin's "official rhyme" in vain, in exchange for a "miserable" taste! Meanwhile, water is the key. With only unfiltered tap water at home, it is difficult for powerful tea people to reverse their disadvantages!
Therefore, it is difficult to make a good wooden fence Tieguanyin, nor can you travel around the world with a general rule. For example, some people say that Tieguanyin can be brewed at 95 degrees Celsius and left for 10-20 seconds. This statement must be clear about the shape of the teapot it chooses. Where is the water used? And how to boil water?
It is the most correct to make tea with boiling water at 100 degrees Celsius, especially Tieguanyin tea. Only at high temperature can the true taste of tea be released! The key is to master the right amount of tea at the same time, which is generally lower than the amount of oolong tea, and reduce the soaking time and speed up the time of pouring tea soup!
In short, we should pay attention to the roasting degree of Anxi Tieguanyin, and then increase or decrease the amount of tea. The pot should be flat and sintered at high temperature in order to bubble out the "official rhyme"; However, to reduce the consumption of tea, use a round pot to widen the pot body and leave room for the bottom of the leaves. The time for pouring tea is faster than that of Anxi Tieguanyin.
Legend of Tieguanyin
Tieguanyin is the most famous oolong tea produced in Anxi County, Fujian Province. This famous tea is as beautiful as Guanyin, as heavy as iron, and has a mellow taste, which is deeply loved by tea customers at home and abroad. There is a story about the origin of this kind of tea tree in Anxi: It is said that in Songlintou Village, Shangyao Township, Xiping, Anxi, there was an old tea farmer named Yin Wei who could make good tea. He makes three cups of tea every morning and worships Guanyin bodhisattva. For more than ten years, he has never stopped, which shows the sincerity of the Buddha. One night, Yin Wei dreamed that there was a tea tree with orchid fragrance on the cliff. When he tried to pick it up, a dog barked and woke up his good dream. After getting up the next day, he immediately went to the cliff behind the house to look for tea trees. Sure enough, he found a tea tree exactly like his dream on the cliff stone. So I picked some bud leaves, took them home, made them carefully, and then boiled water to make tea. I felt the rich fragrance of flowers, and the taste of tea was sweet and refreshing, which refreshed my spirit. Yin Wei thinks this is the king of tea, and he is determined to propagate by layers. He first planted tea seedlings in several iron pots at home. Three years later, the tea tree grew thick and leafy, and the tea was carefully made. Sure enough, the quality is still the same and the fragrance is rich. He hid the tea in a jar, and whenever a distinguished guest came to the door, he made tea for the guest, and everyone who tasted it praised him. One day, after tasting this kind of tea, a teacher found it very special and asked where it came from. Yin Wei told the story of seeing precious tea in his dream. The teacher decided that this tea must have been given by Guanyin Dream, and it was planted in iron pot. This tea is as heavy as iron. He thought about it and told Yin Wei that it was as beautiful as Guanyin's dream, so he called it "Tieguanyin". Yin Wei repeatedly applauded. Since then, "Tieguanyin" tea has become famous all over the world.