Taoyuan Black Tea

Taoyuan Black Tea

Taoyuan Black Tea is a product recognized with a geographical indication for agricultural products.

　　Taoyuan, located in northwestern Hunan, nestles against the vast Xuefeng Mountains to the south and leans on the towering Wuling Mountains to the north. The most beautiful clear-water river—the Yuan River—flows eastward across the central part of the county for 99 kilometers. Its unique geographical location allows it to embrace the scenery of Dongting Lake, capture the charm of western Hunan, bathe in the mystical light of the Five Streams, and take in the vistas of the Wuling Mountains. Secluded, exquisite, majestic, and grand. Looking around, paintings unfold before your eyes, and you find yourself within them, making it a heavenly paradise on earth as described by Tao Yuanming of the Eastern Jin Dynasty.

　　The southern part of Taoyuan, especially Chananpu, is even more enchanting. Driving onto the Changji Expressway leading to Chananpu feels like drifting through picturesque landscapes of verdant mountains and danxia landforms. Being there refreshes the spirit; with undulating green hills, surrounding clear waters, lush forests, overlapping tea terraces, birdsong, and floral fragrance, it’s no wonder visitors feel their hearts light and experience the wonderful poetic imagery of “birdsong makes the mountain seem quieter, cicadas make the forest seem still,” and “paintings within poetry, poetry within paintings.”

　　“In the south, there are fine trees, and their leaves hold true fragrance.” Legend has it that this refers to Taoyuan—the Taonan Mountainous region where the Xuefeng and Wuling Mountains converge, and the Yuan and Zi Rivers almost embrace. In ancient times, this was a magical kingdom of tea. “Shennong tasted hundreds of herbs, encountered seventy-two poisons in a day, and was cured by tea” speaks of this place; the unnamed "Jingzhou Land Records" from the Western Jin Dynasty recorded that “the seven counties of Wuling all produce tea, and the best comes from here”; the black tea that dominated markets in the 18th and even early 19th centuries was also primarily produced here; and the development of large-leaf tea holds a promising future.

　　I. Unique Geographic Conditions

　　No world-famous tea can disregard geographic conditions—a region’s environment defines the quality of its tea.

　　Tengqiong Company enjoys the perfect combination of timing, location, and human resources, occupying uniquely superior geographic conditions. It lies precisely at the intersection of 110° east longitude and 28° north latitude, in a typical subtropical agricultural ecological zone and a high-quality tea industry belt. The area features continuous mountains, layered peaks, dense streams, crisscrossing ravines, and abundant water resources (average annual rainfall of 1,650 mm), with a mild climate (average daily temperature of 16.5°C, no severe heat in summer or bitter cold in winter), and loose, fertile soil. These geographic, climatic, moisture, and soil conditions determine the excellent quality of the tea.

　　It is said, “High mountains produce good tea.” This place has deep valleys and towering peaks, with 48 summits over 800 meters above sea level. Indeed, “high mountains produce good tea” doesn’t mean the best tea grows at the mountaintops, but rather in mountain streams, valleys, and gullies—because tea prefers warm, moist climates and dislikes direct sunlight. The mountains here are close together. When the sun rises, sunlight filters through the woods and shines onto the valley tea terraces, casting rays like delicate veils over the tea gardens, akin to the hand-shaded technique of Japanese matcha, helping the tea maintain pure, tender, and fragrant qualities.

　　They say “misty tea is the best.” Here, the duration of fog cover might be the longest in the country. Stepping into this environment is like entering a dreamy world of mist, with clouds and fog lingering all year round.

　　Where does the fog on these mountains and valleys come from? A look at the map reveals the mystery:

　　Hunan has four major river systems—the Xiang, Zi, Yuan, and Li—but this area lies embraced by the Yuan and Zi Rivers, just 40 kilometers apart. It’s hard to find another place on the map of China where two such mighty rivers are so close and the mountains and waters fit together so perfectly. Coupled with human ingenuity, the construction of the Wuqiangxi and Zhexi high-head hydroelectric stations turned the over 100-kilometer river sections above the dams into shimmering high-gorge lakes. The mist rising from these waters drifts over the Xuefeng Mountains and spreads eastward toward the 800-li Dongting Lake. Such special geographic and climatic conditions naturally give rise to unique tea varieties, and Wild Tea King rightfully enjoys protection under the national geographical indication for origin. Chananpu is a fertile land of hope, a treasured place for creating miracles.

　　II. Magical Varietal Brands

　　The excellence of Taoyuan large-leaf tea lies in its superior quality—“large leaves, soft leaf texture, robust leaf color, abundant fuzz, emerald soup color, fragrant aroma, and long-lasting aftertaste.” Tea experts have identified that it is rich in health-beneficial trace elements like selenium and zinc, along with over 500 types of phenolic compounds, with tea polyphenol content as high as 35% and amino acid content at 8.56%, more than double that of conventional teas.

　　Because this tea tree only blooms and does not bear fruit, and due to over-harvesting over centuries, by the 1960s, wild Taoyuan tea had become extremely rare. At that time, many domestic tea experts and scholars came in search of it. Liu Yuzhao, a tea taster from Anhua, surprisingly discovered two distinctive large-leaf tea bushes on the cliffs of Lujia Chong. “A duck knows first when spring river water warms.” In 1969, Lu Wanjun, a native who had just graduated from the Hunan Tea School, dedicated himself to developing large-leaf tea. To rescue this nearly extinct treasure, the county Party committee and government chose to establish the Large-Leaf Tea Breeding and Research Institute in Lujiawan, Taipingpu. Renowned tea authorities such as Zhu Xianmin, Tang Mingde, and Shi Zhaopeng provided on-site guidance. Ji Guangteng, from a young tea-making family, not only joined the R&D team but also took on the role of director of the Taipingpu Commune Tea Factory. Under the experts’ leadership and through thousands of experiments, they finally overcame the challenge of asexual propagation—not only preserving the wild tea but also maintaining the integrity of its wild genes and the noble quality of Taoyuan wild tea.

　　Resources are precious, but brands are even more valuable. Although the intrinsic quality of large-leaf tea was excellent, its brand lacked recognition, prices were low, market reach was limited, and farmers had little motivation to grow it. From the discovery of large-leaf tea in 1939 to 1992—24 years—only 2,000 acres of large-leaf tea had been developed in the entire county. In 1992, Xiong Fuxing, then secretary of the Chananpu District Party Committee and former standing deputy county head, along with other leaders, sought to accelerate large-leaf tea development. They transferred Ji Guangteng, then director of Taipingpu Tea Factory, and his wife Zhong Kaiqiong to the district to specifically promote large-leaf tea. The Tengqiong couple, convinced that “this tiny leaf holds great business potential,” embarked on the journey of brand-building. Defying skepticism, Ji used premium large-leaf buds (fresh tender shoots) picked within one week before and after Qingming Festival to craft an elite green tea with “tightly rolled strips, flat and straight, tender green, glossy, richly aromatic, mellow in taste, and long-lasting aftertaste.” When brewed, it reveals the marvelous sights of “ten thousand brushes writing in the sky” and “bamboo shoots after rain.” Watching the tea leaves dance gracefully in the cup, unfurling and releasing fragrance, one feels delighted even before tasting. Upon its debut, tea experts and industry friends applauded, calling it “superior in shape to Longjing, richer in aroma than Biluochun, and more flavorful than Maofeng.” Then-county Party secretary Hu Zongqing, director of the Provincial Township Enterprises Bureau Long Xinping, and senior reporter Tian Zhengxiao of Hunan Daily proposed naming it Wild Tea King, giving birth to “Tengqiong” Wild Tea King and “Lingya” Wild Tea King. That July, the tea won gold at the first Hunan Tea Cup, later claiming multiple gold awards at the China Tea Cup, Hunan Tea Cup, and international tea competitions, and was ranked alongside “Furongwang” cigarettes and “Wulingwang” liquor as one of Changde’s “Three Kings.” In 2005, the county government applied for national geographical indication protection for Wild Tea King, which was approved in December of that year. Since then, Taoyuan Wild Tea King has begun to enjoy the prestige of historical famous teas like West Lake Longjing, Huangshan Maofeng, and Junshan Yinzhen, becoming a renowned brand in the tea world.

　　III. Glorious History of Black Tea

　　In 1662, Portuguese Princess Catherine married England’s King Charles II. At the royal wedding banquet in the British palace, Catherine frequently raised her goblet in thanks—but it wasn’t wine she held, but an ancient and mysterious beverage from China—black tea. From then on, the British regarded black tea as the ultimate luxury. Britain doesn’t grow tea, yet Lipton’s black tea is sold worldwide. Tens of thousands of Chinese tea companies can’t compete with a single Lipton—the secret lies in Lipton’s focus on a single black tea brand.

　　Taoyuan black tea began in the fourth year of the Tongzhi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1865). At that time, Shaping served as the distribution hub. Merchants from Jiangxi and Guangdong sold tea via the Hankou port, exporting over 20,000 cases annually. In the late Qing and early Republican period, black tea exports reached 30,000 cases per year, each case weighing 60 jin and earning 40 taels of silver—profits were substantial. Tea stems and husks were also pounded into powder and transported to Hankou to be sold to Russian merchants for pressing into brick tea (commonly called golden bricks), which was exported to Siberia, Turkey, Pakistan, and other countries. This is documented in the *Provincial Tea Chronicles* (see appendix).

　　In the tenth year of the Republic of China (1921), international trade gradually normalized, and Taoyuan tea production slowly recovered. By the fifteenth year (1926), Soviet tea merchants were buying large quantities of black tea in Shanghai and Hankou, purchasing over 100,000 cases annually at about 100 silver dollars per case, leading to a surge in Taoyuan tea businesses.

　　After the seventeenth year (1928), Sri Lanka, India, and Japan began competing for the global tea market. By the twenty-sixth year (1937), with the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the international tea market was lost. In the twenty-seventh year, the China Tea Company was established to oversee the national tea procurement and export. In the thirty-first year (1942), the Pacific War broke out, interrupting maritime transport... followed by years of continuous warfare. Due to societal turmoil and political infighting, tea gardens were abandoned, tea businesses collapsed, and the tea industry fell silent.

　　After liberation, the state invested in building state-owned tea factories directly under central and provincial authorities in Shaping, Taoyuan.

　　In 1957, the National Black Broken Tea Technology Experiment and Promotion Conference was held at the Taoyuan Tea Factory, with visits from the head of the Soviet expert group Bekov and expert Sulinov.

　　In 1959, the National Tea Machinery Integrated Automation Experience Conference was held at the Taoyuan Tea Factory, attended by representatives from 98 tea factories nationwide.

　　Over the past century, Taoyuan’s tea industry has experienced ups and downs, traversing a rugged and winding path. Overall, only black tea has endured the test of time.

　　IV. Broad Prospects for Black Tea

　　First, Taoyuan large-leaf tea is exceptionally suitable for making black tea. On the 40th anniversary of Taoyuan large-leaf tea development, Liu Zhonghua, vice president of the China Tea Science Society and president of the Hunan Tea Science Society, gave a scientific evaluation: “Taoyuan large-leaf tea possesses the lineage of large-leaf varieties and the temperament of small-leaf varieties, making it a rare and superior resource in medium-small leaf variety regions. It has vigorous growth and exceptional tenderness retention, representing a typical high-yield tea variety in China. It combines the high polyphenol traits of large-leaf tea with the high EGCg characteristics of small-leaf tea, making it the best resource for catechin product development. With its lush, plump buds, rich water extractables, and balanced phenol/amino acid ratio, it offers elegant upright appearance, mellow and refreshing taste, and long-lasting brewability—making it an ideal choice for single-bud premium green tea. It also boasts strong polyphenol oxidase activity and a rational catechin composition ratio, giving it a rich, strong, and fresh flavor—making it the best choice for producing high-quality black tea in medium-small leaf variety regions. Taoyuan large-leaf tea is a uniquely charming treasure in China’s premium tea germplasm resource library!” This assessment tells us: using Taoyuan large-leaf tea for black tea is simply the best choice.

　　Second, Tengqiong has successfully developed top-tier black tea. Using wild large-leaf tea, Tengqiong produces black tea that is gentle as jade and bright as water, exuding unique nobility and elegance—it is a rare black tea treasure, branded as “Taoyuan Red.” “Taoyuan Red” has a bright red and shiny soup color, a rich, mellow, and refreshing taste, with a unique floral-fruity aroma. Drinking it refreshes the eyes and mind, stimulates appetite, benefits digestion, soothes the throat, and nourishes skin.

　　Third, the market prospects for black tea are promising. Black tea is a fully fermented tea, accounting for over 90% of the total global tea trade volume in the international tea market. Based on appearance, black tea can be divided into two categories: strip black tea and broken black tea. Its characteristics are formed through fermentation, which promotes enzymatic oxidation of polyphenols, producing oxidation products such as theaflavins and thearubigins, giving black tea its distinctive color, aroma, and flavor. The common quality traits of black tea are its red liquor and red leaves. During fermentation, most of the catechins in black tea are converted into oxidized polymers, which have strong antioxidant properties. This gives black tea anti-cancer and cardiovascular disease-preventing effects. Folk remedies also use black tea as an effective remedy for warming the stomach and aiding digestion, while aged black tea is used for treatment and alleviation.

　　Taoyuan Black Tea

　　Tea

　　Hunan

　　Taoyuan County Economic Crops Station

　　The area under the jurisdiction of Taoyuan County includes 13 towns and townships: Xi’an Town, Taipingpu Township, Guniushan Township, Chayanpu Town, Yangxiqiao Township, Shaping Town, Siping Township, Luhuatan Township, Zhengjiayi Township, Xinglongjie Township, Lingjintan Town, Taohuayuan Town, and Zhangjiang Town. The geographical coordinates are between 110°51′14.8″ to 111°31′44.1″ east longitude and 28°24′29.7″ to 28°56′18.7″ north latitude.