Qianjiang Old Eagle Tea

Qianjiang Old Eagle Tea

　　   Old Eagle Tea is a natural green beverage known for its ability to quench thirst, relieve summer heat, regulate qi, strengthen the spleen, harmonize the stomach, and refresh the spirit. It is a treasured choice for home use, travel, and as a gift for family and friends. It has been awarded the title of High-Quality Tea in the Third National "China Tea Cup" Famous and High-Quality Tea Competition and won the First Prize for Technological Progress of Township Enterprises in Chongqing.

　　    Old Eagle Tea is a type of green tea. To distinguish whether a tea is black or green, one must first understand the concepts of black and green tea.

　　    Green tea is unfermented and is the most widely produced and consumed type of tea in China. Its characteristics include clear broth and green leaves.

　　    Black tea is made through fermentation based on green tea. It is refined through typical processes such as withering, rolling (or cutting), fermentation, and drying, using fresh tea buds and leaves as raw materials. It is named black tea because both the dry tea leaves and the brewed tea liquor are predominantly red in color.

　　    Old Eagle Tea is a woody plant from the Lauraceae family and is directly referred to as the "Old Eagle Tea Tree" in the *Sichuan Wild Economic Plants* record. It is an evergreen tree with alternate, thick-textured, dark green leaves. This tree is widespread in the mountainous areas of Sichuan. Its tender branches and leaves are picked, sun-dried, and then brewed like tea. Locals call it Old Eagle Tea, also known as Old Yin Tea. Particularly in rural Sichuan, there is a tradition of self-picking, self-processing, and self-consuming Old Eagle Tea. In towns and at transportation hubs, sun-brewed Old Eagle Tea is commonly available. Even in large cities like Chongqing and Chengdu, this kind of iced tea can be found—affordable and satisfying enough to drink your fill. Old Eagle Tea contains abundant aromatic oils and polyphenolic compounds, giving it a refreshing fragrance, a robust taste, initially astringent but later sweet. New drinkers might find the aroma "unpleasant," but regular consumption reveals its strong mouthfeel and rich, invigorating flavor. In summer, it is especially valued for its cooling, thirst-quenching, and energizing properties.

　　    Therefore, the production of Old Eagle Tea involves direct sun-drying without undergoing fermentation, which means Old Eagle Tea should be classified as a green tea.

　　    Old Eagle Tea, commonly known as Red-White Tea or White Spring Tea, belongs to the Lauraceae family. It thrives at altitudes above 1000 meters and is mainly distributed in the Wuling Mountain area of southeastern Chongqing. According to experts from the Ministry of Agriculture, the tea produced in Qianjiang is of the highest quality.