Deer Garden Tea

Deer Garden Tea

　　Deer Garden Tea is another fine variety of yellow tea. It is produced at the Deer Garden Temple in Yuan'an County, Hubei Province, and has a history of 750 years. According to local chronicles, it was initially cultivated in small quantities by monks beside the temple. The fragrant aroma of the tea caught the attention of nearby villagers, who began planting it themselves, gradually expanding its cultivation. A stone tablet at the Deer Garden Temple also bears a poem from Qing Dynasty eminent monk Jintian, who visited the temple in the ninth year of the Guangxu reign (1883) and praised Deer Garden Tea: “A celestial elixir surpassing all, its fragrance intoxicates the air; not only does it clear the heart and brighten the eyes, but it also helps suppress drowsiness during meditation.”

　　Named after its place of origin, the Deer Garden Temple, this tea is a type of yellow tea with unique characteristics. It features golden-yellow color, visible white pekoe, a fragrant and enduring aroma, and tender, evenly yellow leaves. Produced in the mountainous regions northwest of Yuan'an County, Deer Garden Tea has over seven hundred years of history and has been included in both the Selected Research Collection of China’s Famous Teas and the national agricultural higher education trial textbook Tea Manufacturing.

　　Deer Garden Tea from Yuan'an County, Hubei Province, is a unique gem among China’s diverse teas. Renowned throughout history, it remains highly favored by tea drinkers across the country and has been recognized as a national famous tea multiple times.

　　Deer Garden Tea gets its name from the Deer Garden Temple. In the first year of the Baoding era of the Southern Song Dynasty (1225 AD), a temple was built at the foot of Luyuan Mountain, about seven kilometers northwest of the county seat in Mingfeng Town. This area is surrounded by fragrant orchids in quiet valleys, birds singing in the empty mountains, a clear stream winding at the foot of the hills, and white clouds lingering atop the peaks. The forest was often home to herds of deer that would sing out, hence the mountain was named Luyuan (Deer) Mountain, the temple Luyuan Temple, and the tea Luyuan Tea. Truly, the mountain is named for the deer, the temple for the mountain, and the tea for the temple — a naturally connected legacy of renowned mountain, temple, and tea.

　　Deer Garden Temple is located at the foot of Yunmen Mountain in the mountainous region northwest of the county town, at an elevation of about 120 meters. The Longquan River flows past the front of the temple, and the tea gardens are mostly distributed at the foot and along the slopes of the hills. In the valley, orchids and wildflowers grow alongside evergreen nanmu trees that have stood for centuries, companion to the tea plants. The area enjoys a mild climate year-round with abundant rainfall, and the soil, weathered from red sandstone, is fertile and loose. These conditions allow the tea plants to thrive, forming their distinctive character.

　　During the Qianlong era, Deer Garden Tea was selected as a tribute tea. Legend has it that after tasting it, Emperor Qianlong was immediately struck by its refreshing fragrance, feeling invigorated and ravenous. He spoke highly of the tea and even bestowed upon it the imperial name “Haoyin Tea.” In the ninth year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty (1883), eminent monk Jintian arrived at Deer Garden Temple during his travels to preach, and after tasting the tea, he composed a poem praising it as an exceptional brew: “A celestial elixir surpassing all, its fragrance intoxicates the air; not only does it clear the heart and brighten the eyes, but it also helps suppress drowsiness during meditation.”

　　Well-made Deer Garden Tea has a very distinctive style. It has a golden-yellow appearance with visible white pekoe; the tea leaves are rolled into rings, commonly known as “ring feet”; it offers a long-lasting, fragrant inner quality; the leaf base is tender and evenly yellow; and when brewed, the liquor is bright greenish-yellow with a mellow, sweet, and cool taste.

　　Processing and Quality of Deer Garden Tea: Tea leaves are picked several days before Qingming (Tomb-Sweeping Day) up to Guyu (Grain Rain), with the standard being one bud, and one or two leaves. The fresh leaves must be tender, uniform, clean, and free of fish leaves, old leaves. The processing includes fixation, second fixation frying, piling, sorting, and final frying. Among these, piling is a crucial step in developing the unique qualities of Deer Garden Tea. The tea leaves are piled in bamboo trays, pressed tightly, covered with a damp cloth, and left to pile for 5–6 hours to promote yellowing. The finished product has a golden-yellow appearance (with slight fish egg bubbles), visible white pekoe, ring-shaped leaves (ring feet), a lasting fragrant inner quality, a mellow, sweet, and cool taste, bright greenish-yellow liquor, and a tender, evenly yellow leaf base. In 1982 and 1986, the tea participated in national famous and high-quality tea evaluations and was rated as a national famous tea by the Ministry of Commerce.

　　Deer Garden Tea is a precious variety of Chinese yellow tea. In addition to benefiting from its unique soil and climatic conditions, it requires extremely strict, meticulous, and refined standards in fresh leaf picking and dry tea production. Fresh leaves must be tender, fresh, uniform, and clean, and are picked within fifteen days before and after Qingming Festival. The picking standard is one bud and one leaf, free of fish leaves, old leaves, or young fruits. The production process of Deer Garden Tea generally consists of five major steps: fixation, second fixation frying, piling, sorting, and final frying. The refined Deer Garden Tea has a valley-yellow color, covered in white pekoe, ring-shaped leaves, a lasting orchid fragrance, a mellow, sweet, and cool taste, and tender, evenly yellow, and clean leaf bases.

　　In recent years, Deer Garden Tea in Yuan'an County has developed rapidly. The tea plantation area has reached over 15,000 mu, with an annual tea production of 300,000 kilograms. Many tea farmers have achieved prosperity through the development of Deer Garden Tea. The tea is sold across the country, and some Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan compatriots, as well as overseas Chinese returning to their hometowns for family visits, enjoy bringing a few kilograms of their native Deer Garden Tea back to share with family or give as gifts to relatives and friends.

　　As the saying goes, a good horse deserves a good saddle, and good tea deserves good water and good teaware. In terms of tea, water, and utensils, Yuan'an offers a delightful harmony, as the local folk rhyme goes: “Water from the Mingfeng River, tea from the Deer Garden Temple, a purple clay teapot to match, and sunflower seeds or peanuts to munch on.” Yuan'an has since ancient times been a fief of the Chu Kingdom, known for its beautiful mountains and rivers, simple and honest folkways, and warm hospitality. When guests arrive from afar, they are always treated with the finest Deer Garden Tea. In summer, hosts invite guests to cool off under the melon trellis in front of the house; in winter, they are welcomed by the warmth of the hearth. Once seated, the host first serves the guest a cup of sweetened tea (sugar water) to calm the nerves, then boils water, washes the teaware, and prepares to brew the tea. The kettle used for boiling water is made of copper, and the water comes from mountain spring water diverted from the Mingfeng River. The teapot used for brewing is a locally produced purple clay teapot, paired with a few purple clay cups, giving an antique charm full of interest. Once the tea is brewed, host and guest each hold a cup, savoring it slowly while snacking on sunflower seeds and peanuts, chatting about friendship and daily life — a scene like a genre painting.

　　Deer Garden Temple has long been a scenic attraction in Yuan'an, often celebrated in poetry by literati. The most famous is the “Eight Scenes of Deer Garden” poem jointly composed by Ming Dynasty figures such as Zhang Qianying: “A jade belt winds around the emerald stream (Seven Bends of the Jade Belt),

　　A painted screen unfolds by heaven’s design (Solitary Peak of the Brocade Screen),

　　Bamboo leaves by the stream hang like clouds (Bamboo Grove in the Secluded Stream),

　　Pine and vines by the pavilion hook the moon (Pine Pavilion Calling the Phoenix),

　　Stone pillars truly display a thousand sights (Stone Pillars Piercing the Sky),

　　The ancient terrace forgets the cycle of spring and autumn (Ancient Terrace of the Lotus Sutra),

　　Peaks cradle arhats in their front row (Arhats Nodding),

　　Smiling as they greet the immortal’s call (Dangerous Cliff Beckoning the Immortal).

　　Only in such breathtakingly beautiful landscapes can tea of exceptional quality grow. Legend has it that a monk once discovered a tea tree near the temple, and after picking and tasting its leaves, was amazed by its rich fragrance and endless aftertaste, exclaiming it was divine tea. The news quickly spread through the temple, prompting monks to plant tea, and local people to follow suit. Later, three rare white tea trees were found on Guanyin Rock behind the temple, with pale leaves and strong vitality, making the temple also known as the “White Tea Deer Garden Temple.”