West Lake Longjing, a green tea, ranks among the top ten famous teas in China, and is the material cultural heritage of Hangzhou with a deep historical and cultural heritage.
West Lake Longjing tea belongs to the green tea, only produced in the West Lake around 160 square kilometers of the region, in this small area, there are four places of Longjing tea quality is the best, respectively, the Lion Peak Mountain, Longjing Village, Yunqi Temple, Tiger Run Spring around. In the late Republic of China, Meijiawu produced Longjing tea also shine, so people in the "lion, dragon, cloud, tiger" on the basis of another "Mei". These five origins of tea, commonly known as the West Lake Longjing, of which the Lion Peak Longjing is the most well-known.
West Lake Longjing tea has a long history, the earliest can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty in China. West Lake Longjing tea culture system is located in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province. The unique microclimate of the natural barrier surrounded by mountains on three sides of the West Lake is an important factor in guaranteeing the quality of Longjing tea. Hangzhou West Lake Longjing tea is known for its emerald color, beautiful shape, lush aroma and mellow taste that crowns the world, and the buds of Longjing tea trees grow faster.
West Lake Scenic Spot is the main production area of West Lake Longjing tea, and its scope covers all of the West Lake Longjing tea base primary protection area [5]. West Lake Longjing tea picking has three main characteristics: one is early, two is tender, and three is diligent.
Product Characteristics
West Lake Longjing tea has a flat appearance, green and green color, and a mellow flavor inside, and the buds and leaves are green in color when steeped in the cup. It is known for its "green color, lush fragrance, sweet taste and beautiful shape".
Spring tea in the special grade west lake longjing, zhejiang longjing shape flat and smooth, seedling sharp cutting, buds longer than the leaf, color and lustre tender green, body surface without hair; soup color tender green (yellow) bright; fragrance or tender chestnut fragrance, but some tea with high fire incense; taste fresh or strong alcohol; leaf bottom tender green, still intact. The rest of the levels of Longjing tea with the decline of the level, the shape of the color from young green → green green → dark green, tea body from small to large, the tea strip from smooth to rough; aroma from tender and cool to thick coarse, the fourth level of tea began to have a coarse taste; leaf bottom from tender buds to the folder leaves, the color from young yellow → green → yellowish-brown. Summer and Autumn Longjing tea, dark green or dark green color, tea body is larger, body surface without hair, soup color yellow, bright, fragrant but coarse, taste thick slightly astringent, leaf bottom yellow, overall quality is worse than the same level of spring tea.
Classification
There are several famous categories of West Lake Longjing, such as "Shifeng Longjing", "Meiwu Longjing", "Yunqi Longjing", "Hupeng Longjing" and so on. "etc. "Lion Peak Longjing" is produced in Longjing Village, Lion Peak, Wengjiashan area, the color is slightly yellow, known as "brown rice color". "Meiwu Longjing" produced in Yunqi, Meijiawu area, the shape is quite beautiful, flat and smooth, bright green color. There are more than 30 brands of West Lake Longjing tea.
Production Methods
Longjing tea is made by a pair of hands in a smooth special iron pot, using the "ten major techniques" of shaking, bringing, squeezing, shaking, pushing, pushing, expanding, buckling, grasping, pressing, and grinding. Stir frying according to the size of the fresh leaves, the degree of old and young and the degree of molding in the pot of tea blanks, constantly changing hand-shaped method, very clever. Only people who have mastered the skillful techniques can fry the excellent Longjing tea, aroma, flavor and shape.
Longjing tea frying green pot, back to the tide and Hui pot three processes.
Green pot, that is, the process of killing and preliminary modeling, when the pot temperature reaches 80-100 degrees, coated with a little grease to make the pot smoother, about 125 grams of fresh leaves per pot. Begin to grasp, shake gesture-based, disseminate a certain amount of moisture, gradually changed to lap, pressure, shake shake and other hand-style preliminary modeling, pressure from light to heavy, to achieve straighten into a strip, flatten the purpose of molding, frying to seven or eight percent dry that is, start the pot, lasted 12-15 minutes.
Moisture, that is, after the pot for thin spreading moisture, spread cool after sieving, sieve bottom sieve surface tea respectively for Hui pot. The time for cooling and rejuvenation is generally 40-60 minutes.
The purpose of Hui pot is to further shape and fry dry, usually four pots of green pot leaves into a pot of Hui pot, the amount of leaves about 250 grams. The temperature of the pot is 60-70 degrees, and it takes 20-25 minutes to stir-fry, with the pot temperature mastering the process of low, high and low. Gesture pressure gradually aggravated, mainly using grasp, buckle, grinding, pressure, push and other techniques. The main point is that the hand does not leave the tea, tea does not leave the pot. Fry until the hairs fall off, flat and smooth, tea fragrance through, folded that is broken, the water content of 5-6% for the right degree, you can start the pot, cooled after bumping off the yellow pieces, sieve the tea into the end.
Why is West Lake Longjing so expensive?
Longjing tea is not expensive, Xihu Longjing expensive, Xihu Longjing + Mingqian + special grade that is even more expensive!
Longjing tea a total of "West Lake Longjing, Qiantang Longjing, Yuezhou Longjing" three major producing areas, only the West Lake producing areas within the tea known as "West Lake Longjing tea", the rest of the producing areas are known as "Longjing tea" or "Zhejiang Longjing"
Rarity is expensive, "scarcity effect" plus "brand premium", good West Lake Longjing tea in short supply, coupled with gift attributes, it is destined to be cheap, and it also has a history and stories can be told, it is not the average person can afford to drink!
Xihu Longjing is geographically protected, like the hairy crabs of the Qiantang River, there are specific production areas, Xihu Longjing has five major production areas are Lion Peak Mountain, Longjing Village, Yunqi, Tiger Run, Meijiawu, you can choose to push the brand Xihu brand, Tribute brand, the Royal brand, the Lion brand, Lu Zhenghao, if you think Xihu Longjing is expensive, you can choose a relatively inexpensive of these brands, or choose Longjing tea, if you are just Casually drink tea, will not taste tea, there is no need to buy so expensive!
Why most of the Xihu Longjing tea on the market is fake?
It is because the origin of Xihu Longjing is small and the production is not high. In the whole Zhejiang Longjing tea, the production of West Lake Longjing only accounts for about 10%, Qiantang Longjing accounts for 30%, and the rest is Yuezhou Longjing and Longjing tea produced in other regions.
Hangzhou West Lake core origin of Longjing tea, production is scarce, the price of high grade Mingqian easily thousands of tens of thousands of ordinary consumers will not go to buy. The market price of three or five hundred dollars a catty of West Lake Longjing, think about it is unlikely, because even the cost price of raw materials for fresh leaves are less than.
This price of Longjing tea, most likely are not Zhejiang tea. Now the logistics system is more and more developed, many people run to Guizhou, Sichuan and other places, with local raw materials, in accordance with the Longjing tea process, imitation into the West Lake Longjing, shipped back to Zhejiang local sales.
Because of the early opening of the tea plantations in Sichuan and Guizhou, they have been produced in large quantities at the end of February and the beginning of March, and now focus on the market, all of which are sold as pre-mingming Xihu Longjing. In this case, do not know how to friends, may buy are foreign goods.
In short, the core origin of the West Lake Longjing is very small, the production is not high, but the price is very expensive. Even if it is the local production of Zhejiang Mingqian Longjing tea, the price is not cheap. If you want to buy, do not figure cheap, too cheap certainly can not buy the real thing.
Which brand of Xihu Longjing tea is good?
Longjing tea has always been color Tsui, shape beauty, fragrance, taste mellow crown the world, its unique "light and far" "fragrance and clear" of the world of grace and extraordinary quality, unique in many teas, ranked among China's top ten famous tea first.
Longjing tea which brand is good, recommended West Lake Longjing tea brand list of the top 5.
1, Lu Zhenghao Longjing tea
Now Lu Zhenghao brand, it is Lu Zhenghao's children to his father's name to create a brand, and the establishment of Hangzhou Zhenghao Tea Co., Ltd., the implementation of scientific, systematic, standardized brand operation strategy, is committed to remodeling the "Lu Zhenghao" this Xihu Longjing gold standard, and for the majority of enthusiasts and consumers to offer the most authentic, high-quality Top Xihu Longjing tea.
2、Gong brand Longjing tea
Hangzhou Xihu Longjing Tea Co., Ltd. was established in 1985 to produce and operate "Gong" brand Xihu Longjing Tea is known throughout the country, is the birth of the time early is also the production of large-scale Xihu Longjing Tea production enterprises.
3、Xihu brand Longjing tea
Hangzhou Tea Factory Co., Ltd. formerly known as Hangzhou Tea Factory in Zhejiang Province, was founded in 1949, 2000 conversion. Hangzhou Tea Factory is a professional manufacturer of Xihu Longjing tea, the enterprise has more than 60 years of experience in tea production and processing, with import and export rights. The main products are Longjing tea, flower tea, black tea, Hangzhou white chrysanthemum and so on.
4, Royal brand Longjing tea
Royal brand Longjing tea belongs to Hangzhou Longjing Tea Group Co., Ltd. is located in the beautiful scenery of Xizi Lake, the famous "West Lake Longjing tea" origin - Hangzhou City, West Lake District.
5, Lion brand Longjing tea
Hangzhou Shifeng Tea Co., Ltd. was founded in 1984, the company's headquarters is located in the West Lake Longjing core producing areas of the Shifeng Mountain, adhering to the traditional craft of West Lake Longjing, West Lake Longjing set of research and development, production, sales, cultural exchanges in one.
1. Relieve fatigue
Longjing tea contains a substance called purine alkali, when the body is tired, a cup of Longjing tea, can effectively relieve the fatigue state.
2. Antibacterial and anti-inflammatory
Tea contains tea polyphenols and ellagic acid and other substances, bacteria itself is composed of proteins, tea polyphenols and bacterial proteins meet, bacteria that is the death, so Longjing tea for antibacterial and anti-inflammatory aspects have a very good effect.
3. Weight loss
Tea caffeine, inositol, folic acid, pantothenic acid and aromatic substances and other compounds, can regulate fat metabolism, especially oolong tea has a good decomposition of protein and fat. Tea polyphenols and vitamin C can reduce cholesterol and blood lipids, so drinking tea can lose weight.
4. Diuretic
Because tea contains caffeine and theophylline and other ingredients, it has diuretic effect, which is good for edema, water retention tumor and so on.
5. Antihypertensive and lipid-lowering
Tea polyphenols, vitamin C and vitamin P in tea are effective pharmaceutical ingredients in the prevention and treatment of hypertension. Tea polyphenols in improving the function of capillaries and catechin compounds and theaflavins on vascular converting enzyme activity has an inhibitory effect, can directly play a role in reducing blood pressure. At the same time for the inhibition of atherosclerosis, cardiac antispasmodic have a good effect.
6. Prevent dental caries
Tea contains fluorine, fluoride ions and dental calcium has a great affinity, can become a more difficult to dissolve in acid "fluorapatite", like a protective layer to the teeth, improve the teeth acid resistance to caries.
Longjing tea is known as China's top ten famous tea, is because it has a very good effect on the human body, but pay attention, do not fasting Longjing tea, any tea can not be drunk on an empty stomach, or brewing time is too long, do not often replace the tea, easy to cause physical discomfort.