Longzhu Tea from Kaixian

Longzhu Tea from Kaixian

Longzhu Tea is a geographical indication certification trademark.

　　Region

　　　"Longzhu Tea" is mainly grown in the area around Longzhu Temple in Longzhu Village, Dunhao Town, Kaixian District, Chongqing. This region sits at an altitude of 800–1200 meters, featuring fertile soil, a beautiful environment, lush mountains, clear waters, and misty surroundings — the ideal terroir for producing high-quality tea.

　　Distinctive Qualities

　　　　Longzhu Tea has long been known for its “beautiful shape, green color, rich aroma, mellow and excellent taste, and freedom from extraneous plants.” The main nutritional components of Longzhu Tea include being a natural organic food, containing protein, amino acids, tea polyphenols, theobromine, theophylline, aminophylline, sugars, fats, and various vitamins. Its key benefits include refreshing the mind, improving eyesight, promoting saliva production and quenching thirst, clearing heat, relieving summer heat, detoxifying, aiding digestion, reducing greasiness, lowering blood lipids, and providing anti-radiation effects, among many other health benefits.

　　Cultural Background

　　　　According to the "Kaixian County Annals": “Tea planting in Kaixian began in the Han Dynasty, flourished in the Tang Dynasty, and tea was produced on all mountains with excellent quality.” The "Kuizhou Prefecture Annals" from the Qing Dynasty’s Jiajing era recorded: “The tea from ‘Chaling’ four li north of Kaizhou City has an excellent taste and no extraneous plants.” During the Song and Ming dynasties, due to the development of tea production in southeastern China and the gradual eastward shift of the tea economic center, the imperial court did not pay much attention to Sichuan tea. As a result, there are few historical records about Kaixian tea from this period, making it difficult to trace. During the Qing Dynasty, the development of tea production in Kaixian went through phases of growth, decline, and resurgence. According to the "Kaixian County Annals": “In the fourth year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty, Longzhu Tea was listed as a tribute tea by the imperial court, which led to the development of tea production. The county produced 2,000 dan of tea, mainly from Zhengba, Dajin, Wenquan, and Yanshui; but by the Xianfeng era, it had disappeared entirely, only to recover again in the late Qing Dynasty.” During this period, neighboring areas such as Chengkou and Dazhou saw rapid development in tea production, with thriving supply and demand. The main products were sun-dried tea, pan-fired tea, and coarse tea. It is evident that tea production in Kaixian during the Qing Dynasty experienced certain growth, especially with the successive revival of premium teas such as Longzhu Tea, Dajin Early Tea, and Suokou Tea. Tea sales were divided into three channels: “border quotas” for Gansu and Shaanxi, “interior quotas” for downstream regions, and local sales to places like Wanzhou and Chongqing. According to the "Yunyang County Annals · Commerce" by Gan Guilin et al. from the Qing Dynasty: “Imported Goods List. Item: Tea; Place of Origin: Kaixian, Chengkou… Mode of Transport: Land and Water.” This indicates that some of Kaixian’s “interior quota” tea passed through Yunyang. In the early Republican period, tea production in Kaixian had reached a considerable scale. By the 30th year of the Republic (1941), tea production reached 430 tons, and by the 37th year (1948), it exceeded 500 tons, making Kaixian one of the ten-thousand-dan tea-producing counties in eastern Sichuan alongside Chengkou. During this time, tea was mainly sold to downstream regions, with Gansu and Shaanxi being secondary markets. During the Anti-Japanese War, continuous warfare severely damaged tea production. By 1949, the county produced only 140 tons of tea, mainly sun-dried and pan-fired, with sales focused locally. After liberation, the Party and government placed great emphasis on tea production and increased investment, revitalizing the tea industry in Kaixian. After initial recovery in the early years of the People’s Republic, in 1960, the tea cultivation area covered 800 hectares, with a yield of 215 tons; by 1970, it expanded to 2,333 hectares, yielding 300 tons. In the 1970s, production of broken black tea began, reaching 250 tons by 1983, and by 1985, the tea plantation area had reached 2,533 hectares with a production of 1,000 tons. In 1978, Kaixian was listed as a national tea production base county. In 1984, tea was purchased and sold under the unified system of foreign trade.