Te guan yin what kind of tea. Tie Guan Yin - Iron Goddess of Mercy

Translated from Chinese - Iron Bodhisattva of Mercy. This is the most famous and well-known Oolong, originally from the south of Fujian Province, Anxi County. Monks have grown it in this area since the Tang Dynasty (7th-9th centuries).

Tie Guan Yin is a large-leaf, semi-fermented oolong tea. In China, it is referred to as blue-green or turquoise teas. Tie Guan Yin occupies a position between green and red (in Russia - black) tea. For its production, more mature tea leaves are used than for green tea, and weak fermentation compared to black tea allows you to save vitamins and tannin, and also gives it a unique taste and a pronounced spicy-fruity aroma.

The price of Tie Guan Yin can vary greatly, depending on the time of collection and grade. The spring collection is 50% of the annual one, so it is much easier to buy such a te guan yin and it costs less, the autumn collection is only 15% and ends on the market much faster, affecting the price.

Origin Legend

A long time ago, there lived a tea grower in China, whose name was Wei Yin. He lived in the town of Shangyao, Anxi County. For ten years, every morning and evening, Wei Yin offered oolong tea to the bodhisattva Guanyin (Buddhist deity). But one night, the tea grower had a dream where Guanyin came to him and, taking him by the hand, took him to a mountain cliff, where he saw a tree of unprecedented beauty, from which a divine, alluring aroma emanated. Waking up, he climbed the mountain and found the same tree from the dream. The tea grower quickly recognized it as a tea plant and immediately named it Tie Guan Yin or "Iron Guanyin", after the bodhisattva.

Varieties and varieties

Tie Guan Yin tea is of different types, depending on the place of its growth, the time of collection and grade.

According to the place of growth, teguanyin is divided into:

• Anxi Tie Guan Yin, grows in Anxi County (安溪县), Quanzhou City, Fujian Province. In appearance, such tea is quite bright and fragrant; the crop is harvested mainly in autumn and spring.
• Xiping Tie Guan Yin, grows in Xiping Township (西坪), Anxi County. Here are the mother bushes, and the production uses the most ancient production technology, which is still a secret. Outwardly, such teguanyin is darker, and its taste is very dense and oily.
• Chengxiang Tie Guan Yin, grows in Chengxiang Township (城厢), Anxi County. The production technology here is quite different and very similar to how Lao Cha Wan is prepared. In Chengxiang, teguanyin is lightly roasted and smoked over charcoal, although traditional technology is also used. In everyday life, Chen Xiang Te Guan Yin is also called aged oolong.

Anxi County is divided into 13 towns and 11 townships, and everywhere they produce their own unique Tie Guan Yin, so when choosing, you should rely on your personal taste preferences.

Towns producing Tie Guan Yin:

• Penglai (蓬莱)
• Hutou (湖头)
• Guanqiao (官桥)
• Jiandou (剑斗)
• Chengxiang (城厢)
• Jingu (金谷)
• Longmen (龙门)
• Huyu (虎邱)
• Lutian (芦田)
• Gande (感德)
• Kuidou (魁斗)
• Xiping (西坪)

Townships cultivating and producing Tie Guan Yin:

• Shangqing (尚卿)
• Zannei (参内)
• Bailay (白濑)
• Hushan (湖上)
• Daping (大坪)
• Longjian (龙涓)
• Chanken (长坑)
• Langtian (蓝田)
• Yanghua (祥华)
• Taozhou (桃舟)
• Futian (福田)

By collection time:

• Spring: from April 20 to May 18
• First summer: from June 15 to July 10
• Second summer: from July 20 to August 15
• Autumn: from September 20 to October 25
• Winter: from October 25 to November 25

By variety and taste:

Tasting

• Color: Tie Guan Yin infusion is light green in color with a turquoise hue.
• Aroma: intoxicates with a magical floral aroma with subtle notes of lilac.
• Taste: rich, refreshing and slightly sweet.
• aftertaste: a slight sweetness remains on the palate, and notes of fresh lilac play on the tongue.

Tie Guan Yin: effect and beneficial properties

Drinking a bowl of oolong Tieguanyin calms and pacifies, but when brewed strongly, it can have a tonic effect on some people.

Calms the mind and reduces the flow of thoughts, giving the body an extraordinary lightness. In the process of drinking tea, sometimes you can feel harmony with the world and with yourself.

Tie Guan Yin creates an atmosphere of lightness and ease, makes conversations pleasant and sincere, sets the interlocutors on a common wave.

According to the specifics of medicinal properties, Tie Guan Yin is close to green tea, but nevertheless it has a number of differences. This oolong has a rejuvenating effect on the body, normalizes blood pressure, reduces blood viscosity and strengthens the walls of blood vessels. In addition, tea is rich in vitamins B, C, D, P, PP, E, K, which are very useful and easily absorbed by the body. It also contains many minerals, among which are iodine, fluorine, selenium, phosphorus, potassium, iron, manganese and others. Due to its ability to remove toxins and burn fat, Tie Guanyin is often used in diets. In some sources, information has repeatedly appeared that this type of oolong effectively helps against tumor diseases, but, unfortunately, it has not yet been possible to confirm or refute this information.

How to brew

For brewing, it is better to use soft, with a ph of no more than 5. It is better to take dishes from porcelain or Yixing clay.

Te Kuan Yin should be brewed in the following way:

• We heat the water to a temperature of 85-90 degrees.
• We wash the dishes and warm them up.
• For a volume of 200 ml. put 8-12 grams of tea.
• We hold the first brew for 2-3 seconds and drain, helping the tea to open up.
• Then pour and infuse for 5-10 seconds, increasing the time with every second brew by 5 seconds.
• The sixth and subsequent tea leaves should be insisted for a minute or more.

The water temperature may change during the brewing process. So for later brewing, water at 95 degrees is used, and starting from 8-9 brewing, tea is infused for 3-5 minutes. The method of brewing may differ slightly from that described above and it will depend on the variety, time of collection and the quality of te guan yin itself.

Oolong Tieguanyin - an intoxicating floral scent

The history of Tieguanyin Oolong has more than 12 centuries. It is one of the ten most famous teas in China. Tieguanyin Oolong tea is a member of the oolong family, semi-fermented teas that occupy a niche between green and black teas.

How does the process of fermentation (oxidation) of tea leaves take place to obtain Tieguanyin oolong tea? The leaves, slightly more mature than for green tea, are harvested in advance, dried, rolled and prepared for fermentation.

As a result of this process, only the edge of the sheet is oxidized, while the core remains fresh. At the same time, some enzymes are activated in the tea leaf, essential oils are synthesized - hence the heady fruit and berry aroma of this wonderful tea appears. He is rightfully considered the best representative of his family.

You can buy Tieguanyin Oolong from Tian Ren. Especially for those who value every second, the Tian Ren company offers packaged Tieguanyin oolong tea. Elite Chinese oolong tea Tieguanyin is also included in gift tea sets prepared for you and your loved ones by Tian Ren.

Tieguanyin tea - Iron Goddess of Mercy

The name of the goddess Kuan Yin tea received thanks to an insight that happened to a person who then found a tea tree. In a dream, the goddess showed him a cliff on the slope of which this tree grew. The infusion of the leaves of this tree turned out to be a wonderful drink.

Oolong Teguanyin is a semi-fermented Chinese tea from the Fujian province. The area of ​​Anxi, on the plantations of which Tieguanyin grows, has gained fame far beyond the borders of China. The local climate and soil composition determine the splendor and uniqueness of the tea growing here, its taste and beneficial properties. Leaves for oolongs are taken more mature than for green teas. Partial fermentation of the leaf leaves its internal structure intact, preserving the beneficial substances of tea, making its taste and aroma bright and noble.

Oolong is brewed repeatedly until the tea retains its taste. Water is taken at temperatures of 98 degrees, gradually increasing the infusion time in each subsequent brew. The teapot or gaiwan is heated before brewing, allowing the tea to brew better in less time. Insist oolong from one and a half to five minutes.

Tieguanyin opens gradually. Aromas of an oriental fairy tale are heard in this tea. Lilacs and delicate flowers open with a sophisticated palette of taste - velvety, full of fruity and vanilla hues.

To listen to the silence and look inward, drink Tieguanyin before your meditation. By stimulating the respiratory centers, it increases efficiency and creativity. Tieguanyin invigorates and gives you its strength when you drink it after a light breakfast and at any time during the day. For good sleep, you should drink oolong no later than 3-4 hours before bedtime.

In addition to the fact that tea perfectly quenches thirst, it is good for health. Oolong improves immunity, cleanses the body and improves skin condition. Tieguanyin normalizes metabolism and helps to actively get rid of excess weight. Protects against the risk of metabolic diseases, cardiovascular system and nervous disorders.

Tieguanyin gained fame as a "cult" tea. Affectionate "tageshechka" firmly entered into verbal use. The ability to give health and inspiration made it one of the most beloved Chinese teas.

Does it "insert" Puer tea? The effect of Puerh tea, Tie Guan Yin, Da Hong Pao

Recently, among young people, the topic of the impact of Chinese tea on consciousness has been relevant. There are many different opinions on this matter, but the general trend promoted in society is as follows: a certain type of Chinese tea (Puer, Tie Guan Yin, Da Hong Pao) “inserts”, “pret”, "pins", "relaxes","causes intoxication", in general, has a pronounced narcotic effect.

How true and true is this? Is this a rumor or is there some truth in it? We decided to thoroughly understand this issue, this is what our article is about, let's look at it in order.

And let's take the song as a basis "Tea Drinker" popular rappers Basta and Gufa ...

It's not a drug, he's not rushing,
Well, yes, but tea is different
There are dangerous varieties
I made the top three for some reasons
And I decided to draw some parallels ...

3rd place: Puer

First of all, pu-erh has a pronounced tonic effect. This effect can be compared with a light narcotic, but still it is tea, so in moderation it has a beneficial effect on the entire body.

Puer has a direct effect on the body. If you describe the effect of pu-erh in one word, then we can say that you become from it: "wound up", "excited", "wound up". Pu-erh is very good to use before sports training, before exams, for drivers during a long journey. From a real high-quality Pu-erh tea, the effect cannot be confused with any other.

The main effects of good and high-quality Pu-erh tea:

• Tones, invigorates, reduces drowsiness,
• Clears the mind, makes the mind clear,
• Calms the spirit, helps to control oneself, focus,
• Improves digestion and metabolism in the body,
• Sobering, makes the eye keen and clear,
• With many medicinal properties, it is one of the most medicinal teas in the world.

How to brew pu-erh:

When brewing pu-erh, the water used is of great importance, it is better if it is spring or soft, purified. Shu (black) pu-erh should be brewed with boiling water at 95-100 ° C, you can even boil it a little. Young Shen (green) Pu-erh should be brewed at a temperature of 80-90 °C. The first infusion must be drained, then the tea is infused for about 3 minutes.

The effect of pu-erh also depends on the time of infusion. The longer the tea is infused, the stronger its tonic properties. Pu-erh can be brewed in a thermos and drunk for several hours. It perfectly retains the temperature and all its properties.

Puer flavor:

Shu (black) pu-erh has a specific earthy flavor, can be with hints of prunes, combine fruity or nutty notes. Shen (green) pu-erh - more tart in taste and more reminiscent of.

In high-quality Pu-erh there should be no bitterness (or it should disappear quickly), it should easily and gently pass down the throat, warming and soothing. The longer the pu-erh is stored, the softer its taste becomes. Starting from 3 years of aging, pu-erh becomes for consumption.

Aftertaste:

Depending on the variety, the aftertaste of pu-erh is sweetish, full, pleasant and quite long.

2nd place: Tie Guan Yin

A real high-quality Te Kuan Yin calms and pacifies, leads the soul and body to harmony. Tie Guan Yin belongs to turquoise teas, has an exceptionally bright and multifaceted floral aroma and taste.

Physical sensations are enhanced by organoleptics (Method for determining product quality indicators based on the analysis of the perceptions of the sense organs - sight, smell, hearing, touch, taste). Therefore, you can enter into a kind of euphoria from the harmonious perception of this tea. These are not just words - with the right brewing, you can really feel it pretty quickly.

Tie Guan Yin has a beneficial effect on the general well-being of a person. This tea cheers up, gives vitality and energy, helps creative people to find inspiration. Ideal for communicating with friends, makes the conversation pleasant and sincere, tunes in to a common wave and brings people together.

Ideally, it should be brewed using the Gongfu Cha (Superior Tea-Drinking Mastery) method, which is how oolongs should be brewed. Can be brewed in the usual way: at a temperature of 80-90 °C. Water should be spring or soft, purified. The first infusion must be drained, then the tea is infused for about 2 minutes, the number of brews is up to 5-7 times. Tie Guan Yin should not be infused for a long time, as it may lose its taste and properties.

Tie Quan Yin is ideal for communication. If you invite a few close friends for a couple of teapots of Te Guan Yin tea, the conversation will flow easily, sincerely, openly and naturally. This tea is able to create a special atmosphere in which all participants of the tea party are immersed.

The apotheosis of tea drinking can be a kind of euphoria that all participants in the tea ceremony will feel. For the best effect, tea drinking should be carried out in a room isolated from extraneous noise, with subdued light and light, pleasant music.

Taste of Tie Guan Yin tea:

Rich, slightly sweet, honey, with pronounced floral notes. The taste of Tie Guan Yin tea can vary from cup to cup, from tart and rich to light, barely perceptible.

Aftertaste:

Fresh, bright, extraordinarily long lasting with floral undertones.

1st place: Da Hong Pao

So, the first line of my hit parade
I boldly give a big red robe
That's what I like is Da Hong Pao
The tea drinker is here!

In the production of Da Hong Pao tea, fermentation is longer than that of Tie Guan Yin tea, so its taste can be described as full, rich, honey. Its effect is similar to Tie Guan Yin tea, but slightly longer in duration.

Da Hong Pao has a relaxing effect, it will warm you from the inside and let you feel the comfort of the environment. Tea perfectly improves mood, promotes harmonious communication in the company of friends, sets you on the same wavelength.

Da Hong Pao gives a very interesting state and allows you to feel exactly “tea intoxication”, which is unlike anything else. The Big Red Robe makes the mind clear and sober, relieves emotional tension, allows you to feel pleasant spreading sensations throughout the body.

Tie Guan Yin tea is a semi-fermented large-leaf tea grown in Anxi County in the south of Fujian Province. Tie Guan Yin belongs to the elite oolongs, occupying an intermediate position between green and black teas. In China, they are referred to as turquoise.

Legends about the origin of Tie Guan Yin tea

As befits an elite drink, Tie Guan Yin tea is associated with two legends about its origin. The first tells of a devout peasant who grew teas and regularly carried cups of fragrant drinks to the image of the goddess Guanyin. One day she appeared to him in a dream and showed him the way to a mountain stream, near which grew a tree never seen before. Waking up, the peasant decided to follow the advice of the goddess and soon discovered a new tea tree.

The sprout, carefully brought home by the tea grower, was planted in an iron pan. When the time came to collect the leaves of an overgrown tree, the peasant and his friends discovered a drink that was unusual in aroma and richness of taste. It got its name from the name of the goddess, which in translation means the Iron Goddess of Mercy.

The second legend is connected with the name of Emperor Qianlong. The drink, brewed from the leaves of a new variety of tea, was presented to him as a gift by a scholar named Wang, who lived in the city of Xiping. The emperor had an exquisite taste, which immediately allowed him to properly appreciate the noble aroma of the new variety. The name Tie Guan Yin was borrowed from a rock near which tea trees grew.

Quan Yin - Goddess of Mercy and Compassion

The goddess Kuan Yin herself is incredibly popular in China and is found on images not only in temples, but also in the homes of ordinary residents. She is considered the patroness of women, fishermen and all those who find themselves in a difficult situation. Chinese peasants believe that during World War II, she appeared in the sky and covered cities from falling bombs with her cloak.

The name Guan Yin means "he who listens to the sounds of the world." Buddhists believe that she hears all human requests and helps everyone who prays. There are a huge number of stories about miracles and healings of Guanyin. In each temple, you can see many votive items in memory of her mercy and help.

Cultivation history

No matter how fabulous the myths about the origin of Te Guan Yin may seem, they have historical foundations. This variety of tea was collected and brewed as early as the 7th-9th centuries during the reign of the Tang Dynasty. The first to discover Te Kuan Yin were monks living in Anxi. Tea cultivation soon became the backbone of the region's economy.

The uniqueness and unusualness of the tea variety rightfully awarded the Anxi area the title of the tea capital of China, and the drink itself was recognized as a national product of the highest quality.

Where is Tie Guan Yin grown?

The climate of Anxi is extremely favorable for tea cultivation. Constant fogs and high humidity effectively nourish tea plantations, and high solar activity and an average annual temperature of 15-20 C allow harvesting 4 times a year. The best time to collect is April to May and September to November. The favorable features of the local soil provide a wealth of vitamins and beneficial trace elements in the composition of tea leaves.

The main areas of Tie Guan Yin tea cultivation are:

• Changken - the taste of tea is tart with a slight sourness, the tea leaves are tightly twisted, the color is light yellow;
• Xiping is a classic version of Tie Guan Yin with a delicate aroma and deep taste;
• Xianghua - tea from the highest mountains, with a distinct taste and sweet aftertaste;
• Gande is a greenish drink with moderate astringency and fragrant aroma.

Each of the varieties of teas from the Anxi area has its own characteristics and differences. Tie Guan Yin is grown in Taiwan and Thailand, but the taste of these varieties is different.

How Tie Guan Yin is made

"Good to drink, but not easy to grow." Such an approximate translation of the Chinese saying about Te Guan Yin. Indeed, high demands are placed on the cultivation, collection, and especially on the technology of tea production.

After collecting mature, fairly fleshy leaves, they are laid out in the sun for several hours and lightly stirred for even wilting. The next step is leaf fermentation. To do this, tea is placed in a special drum, where it is shaken and crushed. To stop the fermentation, the leaves are subjected to high temperature by placing them in drum ovens. The rotating blades prevent the leaves from burning.

Then proceed to twisting the sheet. Tea is wrapped in a cloth, shaped into a ball and placed under a press. After some time, the resulting ball is transferred to the drum and broken. Two processes - twisting and breaking - should be repeated up to 25-30 times. At the final stage, the final drying is carried out either in an electric oven or on charcoal, and the tea is manually cleaned from cuttings.

The use of manual labor during the production of high-quality tea is one of the secrets of its unique taste. In order for the drink to turn out just like that, a combination of three components is necessary: ​​proper natural conditions, strict adherence to technology and human skill.

Tea culture in Anxi

Only once you get to Anxi, you can truly understand what a big role tea plays in the life of the Chinese. It is drunk everywhere: in hotels, cafes, shops, railway stations. And to buy Te Guan Yin, you can go to the Tea Market of the city.

Poor knowledge of English by local merchants will not be an obstacle to the selection and purchase of famous varieties, as well as tea utensils and various accessories. Before buying, you can conduct a tasting.

Near the wholesale market there are many shops, from where a unique aroma is heard. The areas around the shops are occupied by small tables, at which girls and women separate dry cuttings from tea leaves with quick and precise movements.

The Chinese are big fans of not only tea ceremonies, but also festivals dedicated to the drink. The tea festival is not just a holiday and active tea drinking, but also the knowledge of the cultural traditions of the provinces, the peculiarities of tea preparation. Here you can make business connections, listen to the performances of musicians, discover new varieties.

The tradition of holding tea competitions dates back to ancient times. Different varieties of tea compete for the title of the best. Separately, competitions are held among masters who reveal the secrets of tea ceremonies.

When dry, Tie Guan Yin is small lumps of a greenish tint. The brewed drink is characterized by a pronounced floral-herbal aroma and a pleasant sweetish taste. The initial yellowish shade with a turquoise tint changes its color to a darker one as it brews.

Regular consumption of Tie Guan Yin tea will help prolong youth, maintain optimism and overcome depression. The product contains vitamins B, C, K and D, potassium, calcium, phosphorus and other useful chemical compounds.

Sometimes it seems to me that there is no need to write anything about tea - the tea itself will tell about itself in the process of tea drinking better than anyone else. The true joy of human freedom of choice is to enjoy the subtlety and delicacy of tea in modesty and calmness, to hear it and stay in the moment. Questions come after. We will try to answer these questions.

Why do we try? Because each technologist who produces this tea has his own explanation, his own understanding, his own method of preparation. If we consider the numbers, then annually in the south of Fujian, in Anxi County, about 64 thousand tons of tea are created. How to generalize and schematize these figures by translating them into a true verbal equivalent? (I immediately recall the tea market in the city of Anxi, where at least twice a year - in spring and autumn - an unrealistically large number of farmers flock, with their TieGuanyin, the best). Is this task realistic at all? But we'll try. And may Bodhisattva Guanyin help us in this! – we write with a smile and hope in our eyes.

Tie Guan Yin: history and place of growth
So Anxi. Since 1995, this "heart of China", as they say here, has officially received the status of "Homeland of Chinese Oolongs". And a few years later, the county from the poorest entered the hundred richest areas in China. Subtropical climate without extreme heat and frost; not dampness, but precisely humidity - frequent rains alternating with the sun, and fogs enveloping the slopes of hills and mountains. Maybe that's why the locals believe that they have an endless spring. It seems that tea grows everywhere here: both in vegetable gardens and on numerous mountain terraces - fortunately, red-earth soils allow this.

Hence, one of the common classifications of tea:

• gao 高茶 - alpine (often also called TeGuanyin Wang, premium, AA)
• zhong 中茶 - from the middle of the mountain (conventionally denoted as A)
• di 底茶 - flat (may be referred to as B).

The best, of course, is the one that is collected from the tops of the mountains, which in Anxi County are about 1500m. He grew higher - he saw more - we will write in the manner of the Chinese. But in fact, this tea survived temperature fluctuations and climate peculiarities more vividly, the vegetation process was slower.


By the way, the farmers themselves consider this classification not entirely correct. They consider it much more important

• what fertilized the tea plant,
• in what weather were the leaves collected,
• how they were processed.

Earth, sky and man are the three most important taste factors for quality tea. The soul must be calm like the Buddha, the observation clear and the reaction quick. The weather is sunny with a northerly wind and light humidity in the air. Because rain also gives excess moisture to the leaves, which makes it difficult to identify the aroma. Fertilizer - natural, natural, so that the earth does not deplete, and the taste remains pure, without chemical impurities.

And given that the best leaf for making tea is harvested from three to four year old bushes, while the old ones, ten to fifteen years old, are uprooted to make room for new ones, maintaining soil fertility is a very pressing problem, in a modern economy, for farmers.

Spring or autumn? Which Te Kuan Yin is better?
Tea in Anxi is harvested all year round. The most valuable collection periods are spring (approximately 12 days: from April 20 to May 10) and autumn (15-20 days: September 15 - October 15 or October 15 - November 15, but the second is called winter collection in China). There are also summer ones (June 10 - July 5 and July 25 - August 20), but they are not as refined and charming as the previous ones. Which one is better - spring or autumn collection - is up to those who drink.

It is generally believed that the spring Tie Guan Yin benefits from the richness of the unsurpassed numerous flavors of the infusion. Whereas autumn is magnificent with its amazing multifaceted aroma. Although there are absolutely opposite opinions: that it is the taste that will be the crown of autumn tea, and the delicious aroma of spring tea.

But in the spring, there is a lot of moisture in the air and, consequently, in the tea leaf, and it is not easy for the technologist to create fragrant tea from wet shoots. In autumn, there are morning fogs and a lot of low sun, hence the opinion that the autumn TG is especially refined. Plus, the very name of tea is associated with iron, and autumn, according to Chinese philosophy, is the time for “metal” and tea, so to speak, is in its element. But according to the same philosophy, imperial tea should be prepared exclusively in spring, when everything in nature grows and ripens, pouring strength.

Therefore, which harvest will be tastier, in fact, depends on tea technologists, their methods of making tea leaves, and, of course, all of the above factors: variations of variations.

How is Tie Guan Yin made? Production technology of the Iron Goddess
It is said that this tea appeared in ancient times during the Tang Dynasty. The technology of cooking today and in ancient times, of course, is different. But its essence remains unchanged, passed down from generation to generation, varying from fashion, made up of the tastes and preferences of those who drink this tea.

- Cutting young shoots with a bud in early spring, so that after 50 days you can start collecting suitable leaves for this tea.

- Gathering. A mature shoot with three upper leaves, after shedding dew, in the afternoon or early in the morning (from about 9 am to 4 pm), is torn off in a circular motion, placing it in bamboo wicker baskets. The daily collection is especially distinguished - good photosynthesis, a little water and a sufficient amount of amino acids in the shoots.

- Withering or drying. For 5-6 hours, the shoots are in the open air under the sun, laid out on mats or baskets. Or indoors under fans and lamps if it rains. For uniform drying, they are periodically turned over every 5-10 minutes. The goal is to reduce the intensity of the processes that occur in the shoots of the plant, change the biochemical and physiological properties. Due to the evaporation of moisture, observed as “softening”, “relaxation”, the leaf will remain intact during subsequent processing (which can be observed in sleeping tea).

- Cooling or winnowing. In a dark place, in a stationary position (for example, on racks in bamboo pallets), moisture is redistributed between the leaves and stems. Farmers believe that in this way the shoots rest, sleep.

- Shaking it is necessary to eliminate the heterogeneity of taste and reveal the floral aroma inherent in TeGuanyin.

According to the old method (manually), twigs with leaves are shaken in a one and a half meter bamboo basket suspended from the ceiling. Masters, varying the ways of shaking tea shoots, reveal the sweetness, strength, purity, aroma of tea. Observation, sensation, smell and touch are the key words in this business, and mastery is acquired after processing 5 tons of tea. Shaking alternates with cooling (or winnowing when the tea leaves cannot be disturbed) 4 times. The first time it is necessary to shake it evenly, the second time it is shaken to remove moisture, the third time to reveal the taste and aroma, the fourth time to create the melody or poetry of Te Guanyin.

According to the modern (machine) method - tea shoots are poured into long woven bamboo drums by ⅔ and rotated along their axis at first from 1 to 3 minutes, then the shoots are aged for about an hour (sometimes at lower or higher temperatures, the average is 26- 19 C), then they are again placed in the drum for 2-5 minutes and again they are allowed to rest. The third time, shaking lasts for 20-30 minutes. Then the shoots are again aged and the next stage of processing begins.

In this process, tea is already divided into qing xiang and nong xiang, into the so-called “clean, fresh aroma” and “dense, thick”. And also the division according to the appearance of the leaf: into the more traditional “Lu Ye - Hong Bian” - 70% green leaf to 30% red, i.e. green leaves with scarlet edges and a brown base, and "bright green", according to modern fashion. That is, uniform green leaves and emerald leaves with red spots, where 90% green accounts for only 10% scarlet.

- Roasting-fixation. At a high temperature (about 200 * C), the activity of enzymes is disturbed and the properties obtained by shaking the shoots are stabilized, and the aroma is also fixed.

Manually, this is done in a tripod with a wooden spatula or by hand: the moderately fermented leaves are constantly turned over until the grass aroma disappears and the leaves turn dark green.

Machine heating takes place in ovens, similar to an oven, autoclaves. If the frying of the leaves began the next day at 9-10 am, and at a temperature of about 205 * C, then you get qing xiang. If it is about 2-3 pm or 5 pm, and at a higher temperature, about 250-300* C, then the taste and aroma will be more mature, velvety, and the leaves will be darker - nong xiang. (It should be added that they can roast tea the next day and about 22 hours, then the color of the tea will be gray-green, dark. And even in the morning on the third day, the lumps eventually turn black-green, with a silver tint).

- Twisting and creasing or rolling. The more juice is released from the tea leaves and interacts with the air, the more oxygen penetrates into the cells of the leaf, due to damage to the membranes, the more the shoots will continue to change.

According to the old method, warm shoots on bamboo boards are gently crushed, kneaded like dough and rolled into a ball. After that, they are dried on charcoal, precisely following the temperature of the fire, as the masters say - an external cause, in order to influence the internal cause through it - to improve the taste and aroma of tea. To create an excellent tea it is necessary to control the moisture content of the shoots. After drying, the leaves are crushed and twisted again, placed in a canvas bag or tea towel and, in a circular motion, pressing and, as it were, rubbing, twist the shoots into tight knots. After that, it is dried again and twisted again, and crushed. Thus, the processes of drying and twisting alternate 3 times. As a result, the leaves become shiny, dark green.

According to the modern method, warm raw materials, about 10-15 kg, are also crushed and rolled into a ball in the canvas, and then placed on a mechanism with two disks. The upper one is static, while the lower one twists the leaves in a circular motion, each time squeezing and crushing them more and more tightly. After that, the pressed ball is either first kneaded by hand, or immediately sent for secondary heating at a temperature of 110 * C and secondary twisting, which this time occurs simultaneously - in metal rotating cylinders, where warm air enters.

- Final drying.
According to the old method, it lasts about 8 hours on charcoal, at a low temperature. The modern method of drying takes place in special ovens with a temperature of about 70 * C for 3 hours. (Although, as you know, this is also variable).

So, according to the method of preparing tea shoots, at present we can identify, albeit conditionally, Tie Guanyin:

- Qing Xiang– clean or fresh aroma. Its taste is light, simple, similar to meadow herbs and flowers, achieved due to weak oxidation (fermentation): a decrease in the duration and number of repetitions of tea processing cycles, plus more intensive shaking and cooling (blowing) with cool air between crushing.

- Nong Xiang- dense, dense aroma. It is shaken harder and longer, just like qing xiang, often cooled with cool air, and, if we understand correctly, they strive to retain as it were a greater amount of moisture until the final drying process. Hence the darker color of the leaf, often with a hint of the traditional border, and the rich, sweet taste and aroma.

- Hua Xiang- floral scent. Some kind of floral middleness, which is difficult to identify as qing or nun.

- Chen Xiang- aged, ancient aroma.

It, in turn, can be divided into three subgroups.

• 1. This is already a faint aroma of tea that has lain for some time, but is able to “suddenly recall youth” in the straits.
• 2. This is the aroma of stale, but several times reheated tea in hongpei, for example, and often not even in China anymore. Often it is also called Hei (black), or Kao (baked), as it is really baked to black, according to the fashion for aged teas.
• 3. But roasting once or twice a year and aging in earthenware jars (with minimal access to oxygen for tea and minimal humidity) in a cool place turns Chen Xiang Te Guan Yin into Lao Tie Guan Yin or Lao Cha Wang. You can talk about such a TG, as well as about Shen Pu-erh - the older, the better. It is also called Chuan Tong, that is, a TG prepared for a long time, gradually, "in the traditional manner."

- Tang Bei- the last stage of heating takes place according to the old technology - on coals.

- Huang Pian- "yellow leaf", rejected during the sorting of finished tea. It turns out either due to technological variations in the preparation of tea leaves, or in connection with the transition to machine picking, which is not as accurate as manual picking. Also, Huang Pian is a tea made from old yellowish leaves. But to get such “absolutely ugly” tea, according to the Chinese, is not at all easy. This is absolutely not a commercial product - either for their own or for restaurants. This tea is said to be good for a weak stomach and upset nerves. By the way, Huang Pian can be from both Yiush and Fudin raw materials.

And finally Mao Cha. Since it is not the leaves themselves that go through the dressing, but the whole shoot, usually, after the final warming up, the branches are cut off, while sorting through the tea, rejecting “ugly” lumps. But often they do not do this, leaving five centimeter stems. This tea is called Mao Cha.

It should be added that traditional TG is sweet, while modern tea making allows and even welcomes the appearance of sour taste. But in Anxi they distinguish between "genuine sourness, due", harmonious, refreshing and "distorted sourness", unpleasant. The second is manifested due to illiterate processing of shoots.

In general, a distinctive feature of the real Te Guanyin will be what the Chinese call Guanyin Yun - "Guanyin melody" or "poetry of harmonious taste." It consists of the so-called "metallic shade in the throat" - Hou Yun, pure, delicate, rich taste, natural, floral aroma and aftertaste must necessarily be Hui Gan or "returned sweetness", which fills the entire oral cavity and is able to return even over time.

Tie Guan Yin is the leader in the amount of tea polyphenols, vitamins, amino acids, alkaloids and other compounds. There are more than thirty inorganic trace elements, including calcium, potassium, sodium, phosphorus, selenium, zinc and iron. And aromatic substances - about seventy items, some of which are unique and inherent only to this tea. Hence the versatility of the aroma and the multi-layered taste, which you really want to discover gradually, enjoying the strait after the strait, cup after cup, sip after sip.


What is often confused with Te Guan Yin?
By the way, in addition to the bushes of the TeGuanyin variety, Xie Zhong or Zhong Cha are grown in Anxi - “colored or multi-colored species”. That is, all other varieties, about 12, which were selected (mostly) from Te Guan Yin. True, it is often also a literal name for a blend of South Fujian oolongs. To mention some of the Se Joons:

• Variety Huang Dan known to us by the name Huang Jin Gui (Golden Cinnamon). Its vegetation occurs earlier than that of Te Guan Yin and its leaves are slightly lighter. The taste of the infusion is sharper, festive, bright.
• Mao Xie (Hairy Crab) has more rounded teeth along the edge of the hard sheet. The taste of the infusion is more modest and quiet. In general, in addition to tea, Mao Xie is the collective designation of "Chinese simple delicacy."
• Ben Shan (This Mountain). A distinctive feature is a smaller leaf, in contrast to the leaf of the TG variety.
• Fo Shou (Buddha Palm)- a variety of tea that is grown both in Wuyi, and in Taiwan, and now in Anxi, in Yongchun County, where the environment is carefully taken care of. The taste of the infusion shows coniferous shades, a certain sea freshness.

Where does the real Tie Guan Yin grow?
“The value of Tie Guanyin tea is higher than gold,” is often heard in Anxi. By Anxi, we do not mean a specific city, but rather a large number of villages, towns, lands where tea is grown, in the prefecture above the designated center. Each area has its own nuances. We are simply not able to describe everything, so we will focus on some that an admirer of TG simply must know.

• Siping- the officially recognized homeland of TeGuanyin. Experts, based on the Anxi Handbook, came to the conclusion that the discovery of the Tie Guan Yin tea bush was made by the peasant Wei Yin, yes, the one who brought three cups of tea to the image of Guanyin every day. The height of the mountains, on which the terraces with tea bushes are located, is up to 1000 meters. It is generally accepted that the production of tea here is close to the traditional manner (although there are also fashionable trends for “bright greens”, of course), and, consequently, the taste of the infusion will be predominantly sweet.
• Gande- the unofficial birthplace of tea. Here they consider the first discoverer and the first technologist Wang Shizhan, who in a crevice of mountains in ancient times saw a plant in a dream, which he later actually discovered and transplanted into an iron tripod. And Emperor Qianlong, having tasted the presented infusion, gave him a name - "Iron Goddess of Mercy and Compassion." The mountains here reach a height of about 1300 meters. The tea from this county is leading the market due to "pure, special taste and aroma", created by low oxidation with innovative production methods (freshness of greens with sourness). From here came the innovative decision to leave either a piece of the stalk a few millimeters in the finished tea, or the entire stalk of two to five centimeters. As a result, Gande has established itself as a place with TG tea, where the “proper sourness” prevails in the taste.
• xianhua. The name of the county speaks for itself: the traditional "returning sweetness" in the aftertaste, floral in the infusion and in the aroma. Plus, the area is still relatively new to tea production.
• Sanyang. A 10,000 sq km plant factory was put into operation in Hutou Township last year with automated computer control of temperature, humidity, LED lighting, and nutrition conditions. No, as long as they only grow vegetables.
• The bush of the Te Guan Yin variety can now also be found in Yunnan, Taiwan and even Vietnam.

The Legend of Tie Guan Yin
Sometimes farmers say that their tea mountains are the place where the immortal Maiden herself cuts the tea plants. We, people with a different way of thinking, are accustomed to believing facts, and when facts rest against legends, a smile involuntarily appears on our lips. Let it be.

Toli it was so, it could be so, but one of the stories of the origin of tea says that on the territory of the modern province of Fujian, in an area called Anxi, there lived a tea grower famous in ancient times. It was famous throughout the region for its beautiful tea gardens. Absolutely all the land of this glorious farmer was given over to tea lands. The rumor about him reached the emperor, who immediately decided to see this man, to taste tea from his hands. But a misfortune happened - a swarm of locusts swooped in, destroying the work of the tea grower in a short time. The emperor arrived, but there was nothing to drink him. For the last time, the hero of the legend decided to take a look at his beloved land, where tea once grew. Looking around the empty area, the tea grower's gaze also touched the iron statue of Guanyin - several bushes sprouted through her knees, as if carefully preserved by her hands from devouring insects. The tea grower, not expecting to see such a miracle, later builds a temple in honor of this bodhistava, but for now he happily collects tea leaves, prepares them and presents the emperor with a precious drink. Naturally, this tea receives a grateful name: Te Guanyin, that is, "Iron Guanyin."

Guanyin or Guanshiyin - "Hearing or contemplating the sounds of the world." In fact, this image of an enlightened being arrived from India along with Buddhist philosophy around the 1st century AD and was perceived for some time in male form. The name Guanyin is a tracing-paper from the name of Avalokiteshvara. But, either it was difficult for the Chinese to understand the exceptional infinite mercy and compassion emanating directly from a man, Avalokiteshvara himself could take on any form on earth, or local legends about the Virgin were added here, who, in spite of everything, followed the precepts of the teachings of the Buddha and became enlightened and immortal, or with mercy as such, the image of the Virgin Mary was also associated, but one way or another, by about the 11th century, the male image was universally transformed into a female one. To be honest, based on the philosophy of Buddhism, this is not so important, because such enlightened beings no longer need to be born or die in any of the worlds, including the human one. They are free, their karma is pure, they can go further, into this kind of nirvana (the Buddha himself did not say what it is, and we would hardly understand). But their compassion and mercy for the living is so great that they take the bodhisattva vow, the vow of the awakened ones, that they will not leave a single living being until the inhabitants of numerous and very different worlds become as enlightened and awakened as the bodhisattvas themselves. . “Hearing all the sounds of the world,” Guanyin is one such bodhisattva.

Brief instructions for brewing Tie Guan Yin:

• 1. Explore and experiment with water (but not tap water, please), and with temperature, and with the time of infusions, and with the amount of tea, and with the duration of infusions. Each time you will discover new facets and shades of Te Guan Yin.
• 2. Yes, you can try brewing in a bowl, provided that with each sip you will observe how the taste changes, how the aroma changes, how quickly the leaves from small lumps unfolded into whole sheets.
• 3. No, brewing light oolong is still not accepted.
• 4. The best way to brew tea is by spilling. Gaiwan is used in Anxi - porcelain is neutral in aroma and taste, unlike a clay teapot, the teapot will add shades to the taste, provided that it is intended exclusively for light oolongs. The average temperature is 90-95 degrees. But you can start brewing the first straits at 85, but then heat the water to 90, then 95 degrees. Pour enough tea leaves so that they fill the bottom of the gaiwan or teapot (variations to taste). Drain the first strait, you can wait a bit and start tasting the second one (in general, this is individual, if you want large strokes, saturated - keep it longer, if you want slow, flowing changes - drain the infusion immediately). Brew until you taste good, remembering that the last infusions (when the taste of water appears) can be held longer if you want.
• 5. Summer version: rinse the tea and pour it into a container (for example, into a 1.5 l glass teapot) with cool water and refrigerate. In a few hours, a real ice tea will please you very much.