Basic Introduction to Tongbai Jade Leaf Tea
Tongbai Jade Leaf is one of the specialties of Tongbai County, Nanyang City, Henan Province. It is a type of tea produced in an old tea-growing area on the eastern side of Taibai Peak, Tongbai Mountain. This area includes Jintai Temple, Water Curtain Cave, and Peach Blossom Cave. It's characterized by fertile soil, a mild climate, abundant rainfall, and frequent mists. The tea gardens are surrounded by mountains with significant temperature differences, and trees and wildflowers are common all year round, creating a unique microclimate. This tea is a new variety developed by the Tongbai Tea Research Field.
Nutritional Value
Chemical analysis has identified over 500 compounds within tea. Some of these compounds are essential components for human health, known as nutritional components, such as vitamins, proteins, amino acids, lipids, sugars, and mineral elements, which have high nutritional value for the body. There are also compounds that have health-preserving and medicinal effects, known as components with pharmacological value, such as polyphenols, caffeine, and polysaccharides.
Product Characteristics
The tea is flat and smooth in shape, with hidden buds and fine hairs, a lustrous green color, a clear light-green infusion, a fresh and full-bodied taste, and a long-lasting aroma. The leaves at the bottom of the cup are tender, bright green. It has various benefits, including preventing colds, aiding digestion, tonifying the liver and kidneys, nourishing essence and blood, improving hearing and vision, combating aging, protecting against radiation, and quenching thirst. It has received high praise from tea drinkers both domestically and internationally and is often compared favorably to “West Lake Longjing.”
History and Folk Customs
The unique natural ecological environment of Tongbai Mountain has created the distinctive quality and flavor of Tongbai Mountain tea. It was already famous during the Tang Dynasty and was one of the thirteen major tea-producing regions in China during the Song Dynasty. Today, it is a key tea-producing county and a high-quality tea production base in Henan Province, with 50,000 mu (approximately 3,333 hectares) of high-quality ecological tea gardens, producing more than 1,000 tons of dried tea annually.
According to historical records, “Three-story pavilion for reading and discussing the world, springs flying down ravines for listening to waterfalls and brewing tea” is a couplet written specifically for Tongbai Mountain tea by a renowned scholar during the Song Dynasty.
Tea deity Lu Yu provided a detailed evaluation of the tea from ancient Yiyang Commandery (eastern part of Tongbai Mountain) in his “The Classic of Tea.” A folk poem reads: “Where has Master Lu gone? He tastes tea only on Taibai Peak.”
“When guests come on a cold night, tea takes the place of wine; bamboo stove boils water, fire turns red.” Serving tea to guests first is a custom in Tongbai. If the host does not offer tea, they feel they have neglected their guests. If the guest does not drink the tea, they may be perceived as unwelcome. A cup of fragrant tea is presented, and amidst the mist, threads of friendship emerge. The conversation between guests becomes harmonious, and the distance between them narrows without them even realizing it.
Awards and Honors for Tongbai Jade Leaf Tea
In 1986, it was recognized as a high-quality tea in Henan Province, and in 1997, it won an award as a famous tea in Henan Province.