Luochuan Sun-Cured Tobacco

Luochuan Sun-Cured Tobacco

　　Luochuan sun-cured tobacco, a specialty of Zhengning County, commonly known as "early tobacco," is also called "Dragon-Phoenix Tobacco" or "Tangtai Tobacco." It is mainly grown in Luochuan and has over 1,200 years of cultivation history. It was once regarded as a tribute to the imperial court. The tobacco leaves are thick, richly aromatic, and have a smooth and mellow flavor, making it one of Zhengning’s renowned specialties. Currently, the county cultivates 1,400 acres, yielding 700,000 jin of tobacco, with products sold to more than 10 provinces and cities such as Shaanxi, Sichuan, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, and Qinghai, generating a total output value of over 1.8 million yuan.

　　 Zhengning County was historically known as Luochuan County. Luochuan sun-cured tobacco has a cultivation history spanning thousands of years. With golden-yellow color, high flammability, white ash, fragrant aroma, and an exceptional taste, it is considered premium. Legend has it that Emperor Suzong of the Tang Dynasty, Li Heng, stayed in Zhengning and tried the sun-cured tobacco. Where his fallen ashes landed, the tobacco grew with tall stalks, broad and thick leaves, deep yellow color, and strong fragrance, hence regarded as a treasure. Since the Tang Dynasty, it has been a tribute in every subsequent dynasty.

　　In September 756, Emperor Suzong of the Tang Dynasty traveled to Pengyuan Commandery in Ningzhou, now Pengyuan in Xifeng District, Qingyang City. He departed on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month in 757, passing through Luochuan in Zhengning County, heading south to Fengxiang in Shaanxi, and returning to Chang’an. Along the way, he rested on an earthen platform west of Luochuan City. An elderly man passed by the platform while smoking sun-cured tobacco, and the fragrance wafted over. The emperor took the pipe and smoked it, immediately feeling refreshed and revitalized, with all fatigue disappearing. Upon returning to Chang’an, he listed Luochuan sun-cured tobacco as a tribute and exempted Ningzhou from military service for two years.

　　Zhengning County is located in eastern Gansu Province, at the western foot of the Ziwuling Mountains. The county administers 12 townships, covering an area of 1,319.5 square kilometers, with a population of 220,000. The terrain is part of the loess plateau gully region of eastern Gansu, with relatively thick loess layers. The soil is mostly loessal and black loam. The average elevation is 1,460 meters. It enjoys 2,447.7 hours of sunshine annually, with a sunshine rate of 55%, an average annual temperature of 8.3°C, a frost-free period of about 180 days, and annual precipitation of 630 millimeters. The climate is temperate, semi-humid continental, featuring mild temperatures, distinct seasons, abundant rainfall, large diurnal temperature variation, long sunlight hours, and high soil organic matter content. According to tests by the Northwest Tobacco Quality Supervision and Monitoring Station and years of tobacco-growing experience by local farmers, it is indeed one of the best regions for growing flue-cured tobacco.

　　Zhengning County has a long history of tobacco cultivation. Historical research shows that sun-cured tobacco was planted in Zhengning even before the Tang Dynasty. Legend has it that when Emperor Suzong of the Tang Dynasty, Li Heng, ascended the throne in Lingwu, Ningxia, and returned to Chang’an via Zhengning, he tried Luochuan sun-cured tobacco and praised its strong aroma and refreshing effect. From then on, Luochuan sun-cured tobacco gained great fame and was known as "Tangtai Tobacco," becoming a tribute to the royal court. Over 1,200 years later, "Tangtai Tobacco" remains enduringly popular and is still a major source of production and income for local residents. Similarly, the cultivation of flue-cured tobacco in Zhengning also has a long history, with rich experience accumulated. Currently, flue-cured tobacco has become the leading pillar industry of the county's economy and a "flagship" product for farmers to escape poverty and achieve prosperity. Zhengning has become the largest flue-cured tobacco-producing county in Gansu Province.

　　Luochuan sun-cured tobacco belongs to Nicotiana tabacum, the common tobacco species within the Solanaceae family. Tobacco is native to Central and South America and has been cultivated as a crop for four to five hundred years globally. It spread worldwide in the 16th century. Tobacco began being grown in China in the late 16th century, introduced from overseas to Fujian and Guangdong provinces, and gradually spread northward. Prior to this century, most tobacco grown was sun-cured. Flue-cured tobacco cultivation has only been introduced to China in the last few decades, whereas sun-cured tobacco has been grown in Luochuan for two to three hundred years.

　　Luochuan sun-cured tobacco is characterized by its golden-yellow color, richly fragrant aroma, smooth and mellow taste, and its ability to invigorate and refresh. Regular smokers of this tobacco often find regular cigarettes unsatisfactory. Those who have never tried Luochuan sun-cured tobacco are particularly drawn to its aroma. The tobacco is quite famous in the Qingyang region, and habitual smokers prefer it for its intense flavor. Therefore, Luochuan sun-cured tobacco sells well in Gansu, Shaanxi, Ningxia, Henan, and Qinghai. Besides meeting consumer demand, tobacco leaves can also be used to extract nicotine (also called nicotinic acid, C10H14N2), which serves in agricultural insecticides and medicine. They can also be refined into malic acid and citric acid for use in confectionery and food industries. Tobacco seeds contain 30–40% tobacco seed oil, usable as raw material for paint and soap. Tobacco stems can be made into fiberboard, activated carbon, and wood tar.

　　Legend has it that when Emperor Suzong of the Tang Dynasty stayed in Zhenning County, he visited the Taishan Temple south of the Luo River with his favorite concubine, Lady Zhang Liangdi, to pray for a child. He often rested on a several-acre earthen platform outside the west gate of Luochuan City. During a time of war and chaos, after months of exhausting travel and irregular meals, the deeply palace-raised Lady Zhang suffered from stomach pain due to an inability to adjust to the local environment. Despite the imperial doctors’ efforts, her condition did not improve. The resourceful Guo Ziyi suspected it was due to the environment and summoned a local farmer to diagnose her. The farmer glanced at Lady Zhang, lit the sun-cured tobacco pipe he carried, took a few strong puffs, and then passed it to the lady. After finishing the pipe, Lady Zhang felt her stomach pain vanish, her body light, and her spirits lifted. Delighted, the emperor also tried the pipe and, after a long puff, exclaimed, “This truly is Dragon-Phoenix Tobacco!” Because the tobacco was grown on the platform where the emperor had rested outside the west gate, locals called it “Tangtai Dragon-Phoenix Sun-Cured Tobacco.” After returning to the capital, Emperor Suzong couldn’t forget the tobacco and instructed the local officials to send it as a tribute on schedule. From then on, Luochuan Tangtai Dragon-Phoenix Sun-Cured Tobacco became widely famed, attracting buyers from far and wide, its reputation lasting for thousands of years without fading.

　　There is another version of the legend about Luochuan Tangtai Sun-Cured Tobacco. When the emperor rested on the earthen platform west of the city, he suddenly caught the strong scent of fragrance. Looking up, he saw an old man passing beneath the platform, smoking a sun-cured tobacco pipe. The emperor summoned the old man and asked where the aroma came from. The old man replied that it came from the smoke he exhaled while smoking. Upon hearing this, the emperor took the pipe from the old man, took a few strong puffs, and immediately felt a fragrant sensation in his mouth, a refreshing clarity in his mind, and he praised it repeatedly. Later, there was also a tale that the reason the Luochuan Tangtai tobacco had such a rich aroma was because Emperor Suzong’s concubine, Lady Zhang Liangdi, spilled her cosmetic rouge water on the Tangtai platform, and the fragrant lipid soaked into the earth and penetrated the tobacco leaves.