Guang Dong Black Tea is a very rare type of
black tea. Long ago, it was a very popular
tea. But now, only a very limited number of
tea manufacturers remain. Moreover there are
too many counterfeits in the market. Some of
them even consist of tea leaves that appear
gold in color. The genuine quality is made
of a specific cultivar called Ying Hong
No.9, which is cultivated from Yunnan big
leaf cultivar (Assam species) by the tea
research institute in Guang Dong Province.
Guang Dong Black Tea gives a subtle sweet
aroma, like honey. The taste of this tea is
mellow, thick and long lasting on your
throat. Unlike to the commercial black tea,
Guang Dong Black Tea does not give a
bitterness taste and astringency. No matter
how long it is brewed, it maintains its
smoothness and mellowness.
This tea is also second to none when you
look for milk tea. Since originally this tea
is very smooth, when it is combined with
milk, the taste is unimaginably smooth; it
gives a very silky feeling meandering down
the throat.
This tea is also a great partner with cake.
Since tea is quite thick and with body, it
is suitable to serve together with a wide
range of cakes.
1. History and Culture of Guang Dong
Black Tea
Guang Dong Black Tea is one of the China
historical teas which is sold to the
overseas market. It is produced at Ying-de
City (英德市 Ying-de Shi) at Guang Dong
Province (广东省 Guang-dong Sheng)
It originated from the Yunnan Big Leaf
Cultivars (云南大叶种 Yun-nan Da Ye Zhong) which
was planted at Guang Dong ever since 1956.
After three years of research, the Guang
Dong Black Tea was successfully produced. As
a result of the research carried out by the
tea institute, the new cultivar was bred and
named as Ying Hong No. 9 (英红九号 Ying Hong
Jiu-hao). Since then, it was widely planted
and its product covered a full range of
grading for black tea, i.e., BOP, OP, and
FBOP up to fanning and tea dust. It gave a
very strong honey-like flavor with thick red
liquor; these distinctive cup characteristic
had gained much attention. During the 19th
century, great amounts of Guang Dong Black
Tea were exported to European countries. The
yearly production quantity had reached
almost 5,000 tones from about 5500 hectare
of tea garden.
In 1963, the Queen of Britain particularly
selected this tea to serve Her honored guest
during a royal banquet. Its strong flavor
with thick and mellow taste was highly
praised and renowned.
Guang Dong Black Tea has been awarded many
times at international and domestic tea
competitions. The main awards are:
1986: Guang Dong Black Tea BOP won the Gold
Prize from the Paris Food and Travel
Association. (巴黎美食旅游协会)
1991: Awarded the Gold Prize at
International Expo
1992: The series of Guang Dong Black Tea
products won the Silver Prize at the 92nd
International Food Expo held at Hong Kong.
However, starting from the late 19th
century, Guang Dong Province had undergone
rapid development in the industrial sector,
and agricultural products no longer remained
as the main economy index. Tea product faced
the same situation. Up to date, the only
place in the world which produced this tea
is the Tea Institute located at the Guang
Dong Agriculture School of Tea at Ying-de
City. It is specially treated solely for the
purpose of preserving the cultivar: Ying
Hong No. 9. The production is carried out
during April and May. Every year, only very
limited quantity is produced: about 50kg or
less.
2. Cultivar and Plucking
It
was originated from the Yunnan Big Leaf
Cultivars (云南大叶种 Yun-nan Da Ye Zhong) which
was planted at Guang Dong ever since 1956.
Plucking is carried out by hand. We selected
the earliest plucked spring tea in order to
maintain the long lasting flavor and taste.
3. Quality Inspection Criteria
· Shape of dry leaf: Leaf is thick, robust,
tightly rolled taut strips.
· Color of dry leaf: Leaf in dark black in
color and looks glossy and lustrous.
· Aroma: Dry leaf gives a mild sugar syrup
flavor with a flowery scent. When brewed,
the liquor gives the same aromatic profile.
· Color of liquor: When brewed, the tea
produces liquor with a thick red color, with
is lustrous and bright. One of the
distinctive criteria of Guang Dong Black Tea
is it gives a very bright golden ring
appearing near the edge of liquor to the
cup. The presence of the golden ring
indicates that the tea leaves are rich in
theaflavins that is vital for good quality.
When added with milk, the bright golden
brown color remains.
· Taste: Smooth and thick. The taste lingers
on the tongue and mouth, and gives a
refreshing note with a mild sweet after
taste.
· Brewed leaf: The brewed leaves show a
bright brownish red color, very consistent
and even over the leaf, indicating good
quality and well-made tea. When touched with
the finger, the leaves are thick, soft and
elastic. If the tea is of poor quality,
leaves are a mixture of greenish brown and
red color. When touched, the leaf is very
thin but stiff, with very thick and coarse
leaf vein. Besides, the green color spot if
found on surface of the leaf indicates
insufficient oxidation. The leaf looks dull
and lack of brightness, and in dark color
indicating inappropriate processing.
4. Recommended Brewing Method
Water
In you are using tap water, it is necessary
to use a water filter that consists of
activated carbon filter. Otherwise, you
wouldn’t be able to enjoy the authentic
taste of tea. If using commercial mineral
water, it is important to choose the natural
mineral water. Never use distilled water or
reversed osmosis processed water. These
water lack of mineral content and thus the
taste of tea is too soft and a little plain.
Soft water is better than hard water.
Brewing tea with hard water makes it taste
bitter while soft water makes it taste
gentle and sweet. The softness of water is
written on the mineral water bottle as TDS:
total dissolved solid. You need to choose
the water that TDS is below 200mg/liter.
Brewing Temperature
Use boiling water. It is very important to
boil water so as to evaporate chlorine and
other kinds of contaminated substance in
water. Do not boil for more than a few
minutes. Boiling too long would rather
concentrate the minerals and the character
of water may change to hard water.
Brewing Time
The suitable teapot for black tea is the red
clay teapot. The bone China ware also gives
a good effect. But still the effect of red
clay is far beyond bone china. Make sure
rinse the tea pot with boiling water for
about 10-20 seconds in order to warm it up.
Brewing time is about 30 seconds. For 2nd
brewing, please keeps the brewing time less
than a few seconds.
Quantity of Tea Leaf
Volume of water / 5 = Weight of tea leaf to
be used.
Remark
Once brewing is completed, make sure to pour
out the tea until the last drop. In
addition, please leave the lid opened while
waiting for the next brewing. This is
important to maintain the taste of
subsequent brewing and also to avoid tea
leaves from being over cooked.
5. Storage of Tea
Stable Quality
Once a bag of tea is opened, please finish
it within 3 months if you wish to enjoy its
freshness. From the medical point of view,
it is safe to consume the tea even if it is
kept for a few years. However the freshness
disappears if it is kept for too long. Tea
must be tightly sealed before it is kept.
Tea should be kept in ambient and dry
conditions such as in the living room, but
it must be completely away from humidity.
Tea should not be kept in the kitchen as the
environment is very humid. Avoid enclosed
area such as inside the cupboard or drawer
as these places are damp. Also avoid opening
the bag of tea in humid atmosphere. It is
recommended to open the bag during a sunny
day or under air-conditioned atmosphere.
Once tea leaves absorb moisture,
deterioration of tea will be triggered
within a few days. Tea will then give an
astringent taste, sometime it tastes sour.
The fresh aroma also becomes weaker.
Beware of keeping the tea in the fridge
The quality of tea lasts longer if it is
kept in the fridge. However we strongly
recommend you not to keep tea in the fridge.
When tea is withdrawn from the fridge, there
is usually condensation. Once tea is exposed
to moisture during condensation, the quality
will deteriorate within a few days. The
higher moisture content in the tea leaves
will trigger oxidation and it will
completely destroy the quality of tea.
Here’s another frequently asked question:
what happens if bag is sealed using tape or
tea is packed in a zipper bag and kept
inside the fridge?
For your information, these simple sealing
methods are not sufficient. When the bag is
withdrawn from the fridge, it is cold inside
the bag and therefore causes negative
pressure. Air will be drawn from outside and
condensation will occur. In addition, if the
bag is taken in and out from the fridge very
often, this will cause heat stress to the
tea leaves as temperature is increased and
decreased very frequently. If tea is kept in
the fridge, when it is withdrawn from the
fridge, it is necessary to leave it in
ambient atmosphere for more than 24 hours in
order to warm up the tea leaves. Based on
our experience, 12 hours is not long enough.
We may think tea is warmed up, but inside
the bag, the tea leaves are still cold due
to insulation effect.
Enjoy maturation
You can also enjoy the changes of taste and
aroma of tea caused by the maturation. When
the tea is stored in ambient atmosphere for
a few years, tea gets matured and changes
its character. Tea lost refreshing aroma
like flowery scent or fresh fruity note,
instead, it gives more matured and sweet
aroma. It is hard to conclude which is
better between the fresh and matured tea. It
is depend on individual preference. In
general, elderly people prefer a more
matured taste of tea.
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