The Origin Story of Zhu Ye Qing 竹叶青的故事

Zhu Ye Qing, also called "Green Leaf Manna" (青叶甘露), is a pre-Qingming tea (明前茶) collected from Mount Emei. Its appearance is moist, tight and even, flat and smooth. The tea leaves are in the shape of a bamboo leaf, with one leaf and one bud (一旗一枪). There is a little-known story about the origin of its tea name:

On April 20, 1964, General Chen Yi and his party passed through Sichuan. When he came to Mount Emei, he rested at the Wannian Temple on the mountainside. The old monk brewed a cup of freshly picked bamboo leaf green tea and sent it to Chen Yi. A fragrant aroma hit his nose. Chen Yi took two sips with a smile and suddenly felt relaxed and happy. His fatigue disappeared and he asked: "Where is this tea produced?" The monk replied: "This tea is a specialty of our Mount Emei. It is refined with unique techniques." Chen Yi asked again: "What is the name of this tea?" The old monk replied: "I haven't chosen a name yet! Please give me a name, chief. Give me a name!" Chen Yi declined and said, "I am just a layman and don’t have the refined taste to do so." Finally, after repeated requests from the old monk, Chen Yi said happily: "I think this tea looks like a bamboo leaf, and it is green and beautiful, so I will call it ‘Zhu Ye Qing.’” Since then, this native tea from Mount Emei has had the same name as the famous Chinese baijiu (liquor) from Shanxi Province.

History 历史

Zhu Ye Qing has a long relationship with Buddhism and Taoism. The prosperity of tea has evolved with the times. At the end of the Western Han Dynasty (西汉), Buddhism was introduced to China. Because sitting in meditation for a long time can easily make monks tired and sleepy, tea became the most ideal drink for them because it has the effects of refreshing the mind, quenching thirst, and eliminating fatigue. According to "Emei Reading Chronicles" (峨嵋读志): "There are many medicinal herbs in Mount Emei, and the tea is especially good, which is different from the rest of the world. A kind of tea is produced at the top of the mountain behind the water temple. The taste is bitter at first and sweet at the end, just like the spring harvest in Jiangnan" (峨眉山多药草，茶尤好，异于天下；今水寺后的绝顶处产一种茶，味初苦终甘，不减江南春采).

China's First Branded Tea "Zhu Ye Qing" 中国第一家品牌化茶“竹叶青”

In fact, China's first branded tea company was not Xiao Guan Cha (小罐茶), it was Zhu Ye Qing. For a long time, most of the bamboo-leaf green tea factories near Mount Emei mainly sold loose tea, but could not sell at high prices, making it difficult to do business.

In the late 1990s, "Tang Xianhong" (唐先洪) who was running the sales department in a tea factory, discovered the rules of the industry. Each place has its own tea products, and most locals only drink local tea. Loyalty to a specific category was very high. The tea market is highly fragmented, with almost no leading companies and brands. After that, Tang Xianhong decided to take over the state-owned Zhu Ye Qing Tea Factory and create the Zhu Ye Qing brand to break the Sichuan tea brand deadlock.

In 1998, the Zhu Ye Qing brand came out. With the help of the local government, they acquired the "Zhu Ye Qing" related trademarks of other tea factories. By September 1999, the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board of the Industrial and Commercial Administration determined that Sichuan Emei Shan Zhu Ye Qing Tea Co., Ltd. had the exclusive right to use the "Zhu Ye Qing" trademark.

Since then, "Zhu Ye Qing" is no longer just a collectively shared geographical trademark, but has become the only registered trademark among famous Chinese teas.

Legendary Novelist Jin Yong Spreads Zhu Ye Qing to Hong Kong

During the Mid-Autumn Festival in 2004, Tang Xianhong invited the Chinese martial arts novelist "Jin Yong" (金庸) to visit, and before leaving, he gave him some bamboo leaf green tea-flavored gifts. After returning home, Jin Yong gave the tea to his friends "Cai Lan" (蔡澜) and "Ni Kuang" (倪匡) to taste. After that, the reputation of Zhu Ye Qing quickly spread in the Hong Kong literary group.

National Gift 国礼

Zhu Ye Qing is also regarded as a national business gift and has been given to foreign guests as a national gift many times. In 2006 and 2008, Zhu Ye Qing was presented as a national gift to the then Russian Presidents Putin and Medvedev respectively. In early 2015, Zhuyeqing was selected as the only tea served by the China International Exchange Center to entertain ambassadors to China and United Nations officials from more than 50 countries around the world.

Although there are many famous local teas given to foreign guests as national gifts, only one tea brand, Zhu Ye Qing, has frequently been a national gift. Zhu Ye Qing has therefore gained the reputation of being the "Moutai" (China's most famous liquor brand) of the tea world.

Origin Location 原始产地

Mount Emei is located in Leshan City (乐山市), Sichuan Province. The Emei Scenic Area presents different climate characteristics with different altitudes. The Wannian Temple, Qingyin Pavilion, Bailong Cave, and Heishui Temple on the mountainsides of Emei Mountain range at an altitude of 800 to 1,200 meters are good places for growing Zhu Ye Qing. Surrounded by mountains, the places are covered in green bamboo and shrouded in clouds and mist all year round. 

The Mount Emei Scenic Area covers an area of ​​154 square kilometers and includes four mountains: Da’e (大峨), Er’e (二峨), San’e (三峨) and Si’e (四峨). Da’e is the main peak of Mount Emei and is commonly referred to as Mount Emei itself. Such steepness and majestic majesty made the legendary poet Li Bai (李白) of the Tang Dynasty once write quatrains such as "Emei is higher than the sky in the West'' (峨眉高出西极天) and "Many mountains in Shu could be called paradise, but no mountain can compete with Mount Emei” (蜀国多仙山，峨眉邈难匹).

There is a "boundary" in the middle of Mount Emei. The lower part of the mountain is called "the world of the living" (yang jian 阳间, literally “yang space”) and the upper part of the mountain is called "the world of the dead" (also translated as “underworld”, yin jian 阴间, literally “yin space”). Cumulus clouds have a certain weight and stay at the boundary of Mount Emei. Therefore, tourists often hear thunder when they are at the Golden Summit, but it is only raining in the "world of the living" and not in the "world of the dead".

Wannian Temple 万年寺

Wannian Temple Scenic Area belongs to the central area of ​​Mount Emei, with an altitude of between 800 and 1,900 meters. The trees are mainly broad-leaved trees. In spring, the mountains are green; in autumn, the maple leaves turn yellow, which is picturesque and intoxicating. In the Wannian Temple area, there are scattered cottages, like a tranquil mountain painting. Wannian Temple is one of the eight major temples in Mount Emei. It was founded in the Jin Dynasty (晋朝) and was called Puxian Temple (普贤寺). It was renamed Baishui Temple (白水寺) in the Tang Dynasty (唐朝) and Baishui Puxian Temple (白水普贤寺) in the Song Dynasty (宋朝).

Wannian Temple is located at the foot of Xixin Ridge (息心岭), 1020 meters above sea level. The natural "Baishui pool" (白水池) is on the flat valley to the left of the temple gate, and the water is still and clear as a mirror. The shadows of the mountains and the moonlight are often reflected in the pool, and the water and sky are the same color. It is also known as the "Mingyue Pool" (明月池). The Tang poet Li Bai visited Emei and stayed in the temple for a long time, playing the guqin and composing poetry with the eminent monk Guangjun (广浚) in the temple. There was originally a monument beside the pool with the words "Where Li Bai listened to Zen Master Guangjun play the guqin in the Tang Dynasty" (唐李白听广浚禅师弹琴处).

In the 1950s and 1960s, Zhu De (朱德), Chen Yi (陈毅), and He Long (贺龙) (Marshal of the People's Republic of China) went to Wannian Temple to enjoy orchids and drink tea during their spare time at work. The famous Emei "Zhu Ye Qing" tea was created by the temple monks. Marshal Chen Yi Named the temple. At present, the temple also has 20 acres of tea hills.

Qingyin Pavilion and Bailong Stream 清音阁 白龙涧

Qingyin Pavilion is located at the confluence of the Black and White Waters at the foot of Niuxin Ridge (牛心岭) in Emei Mountain. Together with Longmen Cave (龙门洞素), it is known as Shui Sheng Shuang Jue "水胜双绝." Facing Qingyin Pavilion, a picture of green mountains and green waters unfolds. High up, exquisite pavilions look down. In the middle, there are the Jieyu and Zhongxin Pavilions of the Red Eaves Red Building. There is a stone bridge on both sides of the pavilion, spanning the Black and White Waters, shaped like two wings, so it is called "Shuangfei Bridge" (双飞桥). The close-up view shows the Black and White Waters converging under Niuxin Pavilion. The black water on the right side originates from the Black Dragon Pond under Jiulao Cave (九老洞) and comes around Hong Chunping (洪椿坪). The water is so dark it’s practically black and is also known as "Heilong River" (黑龙江). The white water on the left originates from the Sancha River (三岔河) at the foot of Gongbei Mountain (弓背山) and comes around Wannian Temple. The water is white in color and is also called "Bailong River" (白龙江). The two rivers converge and hit the huge stone shaped like an ox heart in the Green Pool. No matter how violently the black and white waters beat against it, the ox-heart stone remains unmoved, forming a unique temple landscape garden environment. Garden architects call it a poem with sound and a three-dimensional painting.

Bailong Cave (白龙洞), also known as Bailong Temple, is located 200 meters above Qingyin Pavilion in Mount Emei, Sichuan, at an altitude of about 800 meters. It is surrounded by an evergreen broad-leaved forest dominated by Zhennan Lauraceae plants. It is a relatively well-preserved typical primitive evergreen broad-leaved forest in the mid-subtropics in the world. The forest outside Bailong Cave is called "Gudelin" (古德林). It was planted by Zen Master Biezhuan (别传) and his disciples in the first year of Longqing in the Ming Dynasty (明朝). When planting trees, they recited the “Lotus Sutra” (法华经) orally, praying word by word, counting the trees according to the words, and a total of 69,777 trees were planted this way. It took decades for the trees to grow into forests. To commemorate his merits, later generations named him "Gudelin" (literally, “ancient virtue forest”). Unfortunately, it has been destroyed over the generations. The remaining 10 or so ancient nan trees are 20 to 30 meters high and over 400 years old.

Monk Qingguan (清观) of Mount Emei used the fresh leaves of the famous Bailong Cave tea to make green tea using Hangzhou tea-making technology, creating "Erui" (峨蕊) green tea, which is tightly knotted and slender, with hair as thick as eyebrows, green leaves and clear soup, with a rich and mellow flavor.

Heishui Temple 黑水寺

Heishui Temple is located by the Wufeng Mountain Stream, surrounded by Jiuqu River on three sides. The water area is more than 10 kilometers long and flows through Ziyang Yancheng (资阳雁城) into the Tuojiang River (沱江). Downstream, Laoyingyan (老鹰岩) started construction of the Laoying Reservoir with a capacity of 36.7 million cubic meters in 1959 to ensure irrigation of farmland and drinking water for humans and animals along Ziyang (资阳) and Jianyang (简阳). Therefore, the reservoir is listed as a first-class drinking water protection zone. As a result, from ancient times to present, the mountains and rocks have been beautiful with lush vegetation, and it has been a vast, timeless, and pure environment from ancient times to present day. There is a thousand-year-old tea tree behind the temple which is particularly valuable. The "snow buds" (雪芽) made from its buds are used as tribute in tea.

Tea Quality Characteristics 品质特点

The fresh leaves used to make Zhu Ye Qing tea are very delicate and so the processing technology is also very delicate. It is generally harvested 3 to 5 days before the Qingming Festival. The standard is one bud and one leaf or one bud and two leaves. The fresh leaves are tender and uniform in size. After being spread appropriately, the buds are dried at high temperature, stir-fried and cooled three times, and the techniques of shaking, spreading, grabbing, pressing, and striping are used to shape and dry it. The tea leaves are flat, smooth, emerald green, and shaped like bamboo leaves; then roasted, the tea leaves have a beautiful appearance, high aroma, clear soup, rich taste, and uniform green color.

Production Process of Zhu Ye Qing 竹叶青的生产

Picking 采摘

Spring is the best time to pick Zhu Ye Qing tea. The new buds that sprout in spring are thick and rich in nutrients. Spring tea is the best tea of ​​the year. On the eve of the Qingming Festival, tea farmers in Emei Shan begin to pick new tea. The requirements for picking buds and leaves are very strict, and the standards are different according to different grades such as first grade, second grade, and third grade.

The general standard is to pick single buds, shaped like cucumber seeds, uniform in size, without hollow buds, and do not pick purple-red tea buds, because the purple-red buds turn black after processing and affect the commercial quality. Secondly, pick “one bud, one leaf” (一芽一叶) and diseased buds and scorched buds should not be picked. The bud shapes of each grade should be basically the same.

Fresh Leaf Processing 鲜叶加工

Initial processing: fresh leaves are automatically kept fresh and cooled - ultra-high temperature humidified hot air is used for greening - cooling and microwave dehydration - automatic sorting - automatic milling - screening and sorting and microwave slowing - automatic flattening and shaping - drying – sensory and physical and chemical inspection, semi-finished products are vacuum packed and stored for finishing.

Low Temperature Storage 低温贮藏

Because Zhu Ye Qing is a bud tea, the production and initial processing of fresh leaves are very seasonal. There is only about 40 days of production time from late February to early April every year. Therefore, after the fresh leaves are processed into semi-finished products, they are vacuum sealed in large-sized packages and refrigerated in a warehouse at minus 20°C for continuous shipment throughout the year, ensuring that the green color, aroma, taste and bamboo leaf shape of the tea leaves remain fresh all year round, with consistent quality.

Finishing 精加工

In the finishing stage of Zhu Ye Qing tea processing the semi-finished tea leaves are selected manually after initial processing (only Luandao 论道 Zhu Ye Qing uses manual selection and then further refines the processing with finishing equipment). This step is for sorting and removing any unwanted debris that is mixed in with the leaves which will ensure that the final product will be of the highest quality and develop its signature aroma and taste. 

Zhu Ye Qing Characteristics 品质特点

Appearance: Flat and smooth, straight and beautiful, neat and well-spaced.

Color: The dry tea leaves have a bright green and oily color.

Aroma: Tender chestnut aroma, rich and long-lasting.

Soup Color: light green and bright, fresh and mellow taste, bright yellow-green.

Taste Standard: It should be refined from the fresh and tender tea buds produced in the high mountain tea area of ​​Mount Emei. Its color, aroma, taste and shape are all excellent, earning it the classification of top-grade tea.

Experiential Standard: It is carefully selected from the fresh and tender tea buds produced in the high mountain tea area of ​​Mount Emei. After savoring it carefully, you will only feel the fragrance lingering on your lips and teeth, and you will feel calm and peaceful. It is truly a treasure among teas.

Lundao 论道 Zhu Ye Qing Standard: It is made from fresh and tender tea buds produced in a specific area of ​​the high mountain tea area of ​​Mount Emei. It is carefully selected to capture the interest of Mount Emei’s mountains and waters. By tasting it, you can better understand the essence of "Tea Zen" (茶禅一味). Due to limited production, it is therefore extremely rare.

Brewing  Method 冲泡方法

Selection of Utensils: Generally, glass cups or white porcelain cups are used for drinking tea, and there is no need to use a lid. The advantages of this are that, in the case of glass, the transparency of the tea set allows one to appreciate the tea leaves as they dance around in the cup and expand; second, it prevents the tender tea from being cooked. Ordinary Zhu Ye Qing green tea can be brewed in a teapot. This method is called "delicate teacup, old teapot brewing" (嫩茶杯泡，老茶壶泡).

Tea Viewing: For high-quality tea, tea viewing is often a step before brewing and drinking. When viewing tea, first, take a cup of dry tea and place it on a white paper (or a special utensil for serving tea). Let the drinker first appreciate the color and shape of the dry tea, then smell the fragrance, and fully appreciate the fine quality of the tea. Savor the natural charm of Zhu Ye Qing. This procedure is not necessary for low to average quality tea. For average quality Zhu Ye Qing, this procedure can be omitted.

Secondly, tilt and rotate the Zhu Ye Qing tea can, and pour the Zhu Ye Qing into the tea bowl. Use a teaspoon to put it in the tea tray, appreciate the color, tenderness and evenness of the dry tea, and smell the aroma of the dry tea.

Cleaning and Warming the Cups: First comes cleaning the tea ware, which means to wash the selected tea sets one by one with boiling water to clean the utensils and add to the fun of drinking tea. The second step is to warm the cup, which is to scald the tea cup with boiling water to increase the temperature of the tea cup. This is especially important in winter.

Preparing the Tea: The general capacity of a tea cup for brewing green tea is 150 ml, and the amount of tea used is about 3 grams. Use a teaspoon to pour the Zhu Ye Qing tea evenly from the tea tray or tea serving cup into each tea cup.

Brewing: Steep about 3 times, using the "Phoenix Three Nods" (凤凰点头) method, pour water into the cup to about 70% of the total capacity, which means "seven points tea, three points love". After three pours of water the tea leaves in the cup have swirled up and down, and the concentration of the tea soup in the upper and lower parts of the cup is even. This method also shows etiquette and welcomes the arrival of the guests. The brewing process requires the kettle to be hung high, so that the water stream has impact and a beautiful curve.

Tea Appreciation: For high-quality tea, during the process of brewing tea, drinkers can watch the appearance of the tea, the changes in the tea soup, the dispersion of the steam coming off the cups, and the final appearance of the tea leaves to appreciate the natural beauty of the tea.

Serving Tea: After brewing, hand the tea to the guests as soon as possible so that the guests can smell and taste it. To prevent the tea from being soaked in water for too long and losing its unique fragrance, during the second and third brewing, pour the tea soup into a pitcher before then pouring it into the cups.

Drinking: Before drinking tea, you usually smell its aroma and then sip the tea. Take a small sip, let the tea soup reverberate in your mouth and make full contact with your taste buds. Brewing Zhu Ye Qing tea generally 2 to 3 times is appropriate, but you can always try for more steeps.

Tea Culture of The 24 Solar Terms (二十四节气茶文化)

According to Chinese tea culture, different tea varieties are recommended according to different seasonal “solar terms” observed throughout the year. The twenty-four solar terms are divided into four seasons: spring, summer, autumn and winter, with six solar terms in each season. These include:  the Beginning of Spring (立春), Rain Water (雨水), the Waking of Insects (惊蛰), the Spring Equinox (春分), Pure Brightness (清明), Grain Rain (谷雨), the Beginning of Summer (立夏), Lesser Fullness of Grain (小满), Grain in Beard (芒种), the Summer Solstice (夏至), Lesser Heat (小暑), Greater Heat (大暑), the Beginning of Autumn (立秋), the End of Heat (处暑), White Dew (白露), the Autumn Equinox (秋分), Cold Dew (寒露), Frost's Descent (霜降), the Beginning of Winter (立冬), Lesser Snow (小雪), Greater Snow (大雪), the Winter Solstice (冬至), Lesser Cold (小寒), and Greater Cold (大寒).

Tea “Yangsheng” (Nourishing Life) Recommendations for the Greater Heat 养生茶饮指南 (大暑)

This is the last solar term of summer. Every year between July 22nd and 23rd in the Gregorian calendar, the sun reaches the celestial longitude of 120° which marks the Great Heat (Da Shu) solar term. Around Great Heat it is the hottest period of the year, with the highest number of sudden outbreaks, the most serious and rapid epidemics, and the greatest number of meteorological disasters.

Ancient Chinese divided the Greater Heat into three periods 大暑三候, each period is called a "hou" (侯):

1) Yi Hou (一候): "The rotten grass becomes the firefly" (腐草为萤). Refers to the fact that plants and trees turn into fireflies after they decay. This explanation is something imagined by the ancients who did not know the origin of fireflies. But fireflies are truly an iconic animal of the summer season.

2) Er Hou (二侯): "The earth is moist and warm" (土润溽暑). Rushu (溽暑), specifically refers to hot and humid weather. There is a Chinese proverb: "When the summer heat comes, the energy of the trees is rising and steaming" (大暑到，树气冒). Moisture evaporates and the sun irradiates, so there is a saying, "steaming at the top and boiling at the bottom"

3) San Hou (三侯): "Travel during heavy rain" (大雨时行). This means that before and after the Great Heat, thunderstorms with strong convection are prone to occur, and heavy rains often occur.

Due to the pervasive heat during the hot summer, it is easy for the elderly, children and people who work outdoors all year round to get various "heat diseases." Before the widespread adoption of air conditioning in China, people needed alternate methods to keep cool. Green teas similar to Zhu Ye Qing were ideal drinks during the hot solar terms. According to Chinese medicine, Zhu Ye Qing tea can quench thirst and relieve heat, detoxify and promote diuresis. It is a fragrant and delicious beverage that can promote production of bodily fluids, reduce inflammation, and resolve phlegm. It is an excellent choice for summer health care.