Jingting Green Snow Tea

Jingting Green Snow Tea

　　   Jingting Green Snow Tea is a specialty of Xuancheng District, Xuancheng City, Anhui Province. The quality characteristics of Jingting Green Snow are: shaped like a sparrow’s tongue, straight and plump, with thick leaves covered in white downy fuzz and a vibrant green color; when brewed, the tea liquor is clear and bright, with white fuzz swirling like dancing snowflakes; the aroma is fresh and rich, resembling a green mist gathering at the top.

　　   Jingting Green Snow is produced in the Jingting Mountain area in the northern part of Xuancheng City, Anhui Province. The Jingting Mountain region features deep valleys, overlapping rocks, rising clouds and mist, short sunlight hours, abundant diffused light, and a mild, moist climate. Tea gardens are mostly located in mountain hollows, shaded by bamboo and trees, with fertile and loose black sandy soil that allows the tea bushes to grow lushly with plump, tender buds and leaves. Thanks to its superior ecological environment and exquisite tea processing techniques, Jingting Green Snow has developed outstanding intrinsic quality and a unique style.

　　   The tea is harvested annually between Qingming and Grain Rain, picking only “one leaf embracing one bud”—that is, the tender one bud and one leaf that have not yet unfolded, or early one bud and two leaves—each about an inch long. It undergoes multiple refined processes including fixation, shaping, tipping, and drying.

　　   The finished tea has a vibrant green appearance with white fuzz all over like snow; it is shaped like a sparrow’s tongue, straight and full-bodied; the buds and leaves are tightly connected without separation; each tea bud is neat and clean, resembling an orchid; the tea liquor is clear and jade-green, with tender leaves at the bottom; it leaves a refreshing aftertaste, fragrant and sweet. It can be steeped two or three times in a row without losing its aroma. “Jingting Green Snow” tea is shaped like a sparrow’s tongue, with thick leaves covered in white fuzz and a vibrant green color; when brewed, the tea is clear and jade-green, with white fuzz swirling like dancing snowflakes; the aroma is fresh and rich, resembling a green mist gathering at the top.

　　   Jingting Green Snow is divided into four grades: Special, First, Second, and Third. Depending on the micro-environment, the dry tea may exhibit chestnut, orchid, or osmanthus floral aromas. Tea critics have praised it in verse: "Shaped like a sparrow’s tongue with white fuzz showing, uniformly tender and green with high fragrance, mellow taste that soothes the heart, boiling spring water in clear porcelain with snowflakes floating." When brewed, the tea is clear and jade-green, with white fuzz swirling like dancing snowflakes; the aroma is fresh and rich, resembling a green mist gathering at the top.

　　   Jingting Green Snow has made a splendid return to China’s tea scene, winning widespread acclaim. In 1976, Guo Moruo, then Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, gladly inscribed its name. In 1983, it was awarded a certificate of honor by the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade; in 1989, it received an award at the first Anhui Provincial Science and Technology Conference. By 1994, the tea plantation area on Jingting Mountain had reached 6,000 mu, equipped with sizable tea processing facilities and production capacity, and it was registered for sale nationally, earning high praise from both domestic and international tea enthusiasts. The Jingting Mountain Tea Farm has developed a series of more than ten premium teas, with Jingting Green Snow as the flagship product.