"Gunpowder" or pearl tea "zhu cha"

Non-oxidized tea
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LeoFox
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Tue Jul 27, 2021 4:19 pm

Gunpowder or pearl tea has a long history and is probably one of the first green teas many in the west encounter. This is from wiki:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpowder_tea
Gunpowder tea (Chinese: 珠茶; pinyin: zhū chá; lit. 'pearl tea'; pronounced [ʈʂú ʈʂʰǎ]) is a form of tea in which each leaf has been rolled into a small round pellet. Its English name comes from its resemblance to grains of gunpowder. This rolling method of shaping tea is most often applied either to dried green tea (the most commonly encountered variety outside China) or oolong tea.[1]
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Considering the depth and history of this tea, I thought it would be nice to have its own thread. Please share your experience with this tea here.
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LeoFox
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Tue Jul 27, 2021 4:19 pm

To begin this thread on a high note, I want to report on a full hand crafted pearl tea. This tea is made by a team who spent many years of research to revive the processing methods that have not been put into practice for decades.

This is a Yongxi Huoqing tea from the core region of FengKeng sourced by DaXue JiaDao:
viewtopic.php?p=37648#p37648

Again the calligraphy and painting are the works of the producer. It is interesting to note how the characters here are a  bit "fatter" than the characters on the other labels. It reflects the puffed bird, as well as the rolled shape of the tea, hand formed in a tense, meta-stable state, like a thick scroll rich with art and wisdom - but also like a warm, soft comforter.
Again the calligraphy and painting are the works of the producer. It is interesting to note how the characters here are a bit "fatter" than the characters on the other labels. It reflects the puffed bird, as well as the rolled shape of the tea, hand formed in a tense, meta-stable state, like a thick scroll rich with art and wisdom - but also like a warm, soft comforter.
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Here is the tiny little bit if information we in the West can get about this tea:

http://www.teaspring.com/Yong-Xi-Huo-Qing.asp
Yong Xi Huo Qing first became available during the Ming Dynasty but it wasn't until Qing Dynasty that this tea became well-known. It originates from Jing County in the western part of An Hui province, and legend has it that this tea was originally processed using tea leaves that were picked from a Jin Yin (Gold and Silver) tea tree. It is so called because the all the leaves from this tea tree were gold on one side, and silver on the other. The appearance of Yong Xi Huo Qing resembles Gunpowder tea but it is actually a much higher quality tea.
Below, I link to more detailed information on this tea by the producer, and the enormous and "crazy" efforts that went into its revival.

https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/LfDsSlGptrK_H-BVMakn5w

Translated:
https://mp-weixin-qq-com.translate.goog ... ax,nv,elem

And,

https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/WHy4rOVd0dJvr5xYkybbzQ

Translated:
https://mp-weixin-qq-com.translate.goog ... ax,nv,elem


Here are some key quotes:
In recent years, when we introduced Yongxi Huoqing, one thing we said the most was that it was "the rock tea of ​​green tea". On the one hand, it is because the craftsmanship of Yongxi Huoqing is very complicated, which is the best green tea, and it can compete with Wuyi Yancha; on the other hand, it is also because of the environment of Yongxi Huoqing, most of which were born in pits and valleys.

Judging from this record, Huoqing should have taken shape by the end of the Qing Dynasty at the latest. Shijingkeng is located in Huangtian Village beside Yongxi Village. From the large number of existing Huizhou buildings, we can infer the prosperity of merchant trade at that time.

In the late period of the Republic of China, Huoqing stopped production due to war. Production resumed in the 1950s. The core production areas are Huangtian Shijingkeng, Yongxi Fengkeng and Pankeng Yunwuzhua . 

For the past two years, I have always had my wish to restore the hand-made in Yongxi Huoqing. This year it finally came true.

Before Gu Yu, select a pot of the best tea plants in Fengkeng and Pankeng Yunwuzhao (the quantity of hand-made tea plants in Yongxi Huoqing is calculated based on the amount that can be put into the pot, and each pot can produce about twelve finished teas. Three catties), found the best tea-making masters in the two groups in Yongxi, and started making handmade tea.

Fire green craftsmanship is complicated. The pot is fried first, and the finished tea leaves are kneaded on a bamboo sieve while they are hot. (This method is different from other teas which are kneaded after cooling. I suspect there are traces of the early "steaming" system.)

After kneading it, put it into the pot to "fry the billet". (This re-frying process should be an improvement on the "steaming" of Kecha mentioned above.)After frying the second billet, it enters the "broken old pot" stage of carbon fire and low temperature "drying". 

The temperature of the pot is low, the action is light, and the time is long (twelve to fourteen hours) to break the old pot. Participating in it makes people tired and emotional for the painstaking effort the ancients took to make a good tea.The hand-made Yongxi fire green is really different from the machine tea I drank back then.

The aroma is in the water, but it is not vented, the taste is quiet and has a light pollen and frankincense, the tea soup is sweet and full, and the spring is like a spring, which is very different in time and wind. The whole is not floral, not fruity, but "stone-like". It's simply the best green tea I've had in so many years. very happy.

During the tea making period, Mr. Jiang, who participated in the restoration of fire production at the time and is now 92 years old, was very excited to guide us in making tea and was very moved. Although he can't understand his dialect, we can feel his love for tea.

The manual production of Yongxi Fire Green takes a long time and the craftsmanship is also very complicated. It requires long-term tea-making experience to make it well. Production has been discontinued for more than 20 years. Those who know how to do it now have been in sixties, and there are no successors. I am afraid that they will be lost in another ten years. I hope that through my efforts, I can continue to make this ancient green tea.

After four days and two nights, we got more than 20 kilograms of fine handmade tea.
*an interesting tid bit from the link is that the precursor to this tea was steamed.

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Here is the tea. The dry leaf has a subtle sweet and fruity scent

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I brewed 2.5g in 85 mL boiling water starting at about 1 min.

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Behold the characteristic 2 leaves + 1 bud
Behold the characteristic 2 leaves + 1 bud
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The gaiwan lid has a beautiful fresh green vegetal scent that I could almost taste with sweetness that reminds me of fresh melons.

The early infusions brought me to the field. I had the impression of walking among very fresh vegetables along a stream in the spring after some rain. The rain hitting the pebbles - and the stream skipping on the rocks- were captured in the cup.

The mid infusions brought me to the flame warmed "kang" bed (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kang_bed-stove). There is no smokiness. Instead, there is a charcoal like warmth that felt very nostalgic and comforting.

The later infusions brought me back into the garden. The rain is over. And I can enjoy a salad. The sweetness and the complex vegetal and herbal aromas linger for a long time.


Brewed in a reduction clay pot, the tea loses elegance and flavor dynamics. However the longer later steeps are deeper and more rich.
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Last edited by LeoFox on Wed Jul 28, 2021 10:10 pm, edited 20 times in total.
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LeoFox
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Tue Jul 27, 2021 4:19 pm

The next tea is also a Yongxi Huoqing tea from the core region of FengKeng, as described above but from wild, seed grown trees that have never seen fertilizer. Again, this is offered by DaXue JiaDao:

viewtopic.php?p=37648#p37648
As before, it is interesting how the hand painted illustration and calligraphy reflects the character of the tea
As before, it is interesting how the hand painted illustration and calligraphy reflects the character of the tea
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As typical of wild, seed grown tea, there may be low batch to batch consistency. In this case, I was told the processing in terms of firing level etc was identical to the non-wild cultivated tea. Differences would be in the raw material.

And what differences!


The appearance and scent of the dry leaf appears comparable to its cultivated cousin:

Seems a bit tighter and more yellow. Actually, it unfolded much more readily.
Seems a bit tighter and more yellow. Actually, it unfolded much more readily.
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I brewed 2.5 g in 85 mL starting at 1min 15s. I added additional 15s due to my experience with true wild teas that are typically milder but more complex.


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Greater heterogeneity, as expected for a wild tea.
Greater heterogeneity, as expected for a wild tea.
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The first key difference is the taste of the fire: whereas it is very obvious and hot in the non-wild tea, here it is much more restrained. The difference is like between charcoal and steam. In fact, after a few infusions, the tea is mostly cooling to me.


The second key difference, and it is an obvious difference - is the flavor profile. This wild tea has a sticky fruitiness (peach) that reminds me of certain greener yancha! it grows in strength as steeps progress - and along with it comes a vitamin pill coating minerality and a certain level of astringency that adds nice structure. The qi is also quite strong. Wow, I did not expect such powerful flavor from a wild tea!

At first I thought the teamaster reduced the firing regime to let the leaf shine- but no. I was told that the processing was not modified. Something about this raw material had a different reaction with the processing. I suspect maybe this tea experienced greater oxidation due to longer lag time between plucking and kill green. I was told this is possible- though the vendor attributes differences more to the wild character of the leaf. After talking to an expert, I was told this kind of tea is fired really high with almost no withering. So I guess I am very wrong. There is something special about this material!

Apparently there were 3 batches of this wild tea - and the vendor selected this one with the unique profile.

I would say this tea tastes a bit like an oolong for a green - but it really doesn't matter. It is a fantastic tea!


On day 2 with this tea, I had a fantastic session using reduction clay. The oolong like quality was diminished and smeared across the infusions, allowing many other aspects of the tea to shine through, including umami. Altogether, the tea was more balanced, complex and elegant The longer steeps even yielded a musky note that I've previously experience with japanese zairai. This was such a wonderful tea session that I was moved to tears.
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Last edited by LeoFox on Fri Jul 30, 2021 8:09 am, edited 10 times in total.
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LeoFox
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Tue Jul 27, 2021 4:20 pm

The third and most expensive of DaXue JiaDao's Yongxi Huoqing offering is from the core region of YunWuZhua ("Cloud, mist claw"):
viewtopic.php?p=37648#p37648
Maybe no need to comment on the claw like nature of the illustration. But I didn't "get" the red hot coal-like blossom held by the leaves until I felt the inner warmth of the tea some time into the session.
Maybe no need to comment on the claw like nature of the illustration. But I didn't "get" the red hot coal-like blossom held by the leaves until I felt the inner warmth of the tea some time into the session.
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The dry pearls of tea seem to be the largest of the 3 offerings. They give off a similar scent as the others. You can compare the pic to the ones in the previous posts above. They are all about 2.5g sitting on my gaiwan lid.
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Brewed 2.5g in my 85 mL gaiwan. Boiling water of course and starting at 1 min.
You can see how much bigger these leaves are compared to the others. They are also more heterogeneous, even compared to the wild fengkeng.
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If feng keng has warmth and fire
And wild feng keng has refreshing wild fruit
Then the cloud claw has elegance, balance and refined complexity.

What does that mean?

Many of us may have read descriptions by Chinese tea drinkers saying the aroma is not in the air but in the soup. No fragrance but the tea is filled with fragrance.

This tea is like that.

Compared to the other two Huoqing teas from DaXue JiaDao, the gaiwan lid has minimal scent. And only after a few infusions does a subtle scent evolve over the soup.

Instead, most of the sensual qualities are in the tea soup itself, which seems to have at least the following qualities: fresh butteriness, minerality, fresh herbal character, vegetal (specifically celery and not cooked leafy greens), and an interesting sweetness I can't put my finger on. None of these qualities dominate; the butteriness serves as a gentle, soft canvas for the colorful and dynamic expression of the others. There is just a whisper of the fire in the aftertaste, which seems to be chameleonic in terms of flavor, and very lingering - haunting, even! Otherwise, the fire is not present other than a warming feeling that grows..maybe smolders..over time. The astringency is probably the strongest of the three- it is a nice structural astringency.

It is interesting how this tea looks the most wild, but has the greatest sense of refinement and elegance.
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tjkdubya
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Tue Jul 27, 2021 11:54 pm

LeoFox wrote:
Tue Jul 27, 2021 4:19 pm
Below, I link to more detailed information on this tea by the producer, and the enormous efforts that went into its revival:

https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/LfDsSlGptrK_H-BVMakn5w

Translated:
https://mp-weixin-qq-com.translate.goog ... ax,nv,elem
Thank you Leo for taking the time to share. The 2020 April article by the teamaker on the history of Yongxi Huoqing is also worth a read:

https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/WHy4rOVd0dJvr5xYkybbzQ

Translated:
https://mp-weixin-qq-com.translate.goog ... ax,nv,elem
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LeoFox
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Thu Jul 29, 2021 3:07 pm

Updated with another DX JD tea:
viewtopic.php?p=38397#p38397
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tjkdubya
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Fri Jul 30, 2021 4:27 am

LeoFox wrote:
Tue Jul 27, 2021 4:19 pm
The next tea is also a Yongxi Huoqing tea from the core region of FengKeng, as described above but from wild, seed grown trees that have never seen fertilizer. Again, this is offered by DaXue JiaDao:

viewtopic.php?p=37648#p37648
I should clarify. None of the Daxue Jiadao Anhui greens use fertilizer, nor herbicide. The difference between the wild Fengkeng and the rest of the teas is that the latter come from established gardens, albeit old, and get a little bit of land management, like manual weeding,

So I would not attribute any perceived differences between these teas to whether fertilizer (organic or not) is used.

Transforming a previously actively managed garden into 自然农法 style farming takes a number of years to accomplish.
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LeoFox
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Sat Jul 31, 2021 9:35 am

Updated with another DX JD tea:
viewtopic.php?p=38398#p38398
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LeoFox
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Wed Mar 23, 2022 2:24 pm

Revisiting this tea after a year.
viewtopic.php?p=38396#p38396

Seems to have gotten even better



This tea really does well with the high heat. I brewed 5g/135 ml off boiling water starting at 50s using this old pot with thick walls.
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LeoFox
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Thu Mar 23, 2023 10:21 pm

2021 yunwuzhua mentioned above

viewtopic.php?p=38398#p38398

Still rocking after 2 years. In fact - more concentrated minerality.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CqIaZAMs ... MyMTA2M2Y=
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tjkdubya
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Mon Mar 27, 2023 7:57 pm

LeoFox wrote:
Thu Mar 23, 2023 10:21 pm
2021 yunwuzhua mentioned above

viewtopic.php?p=38398#p38398

Still rocking after 2 years. In fact - more concentrated minerality.
Kudos for singlehandedly keeping this thread going! That's great that you're still enjoying the 2021. These YXHQs certainly have longevity and the potential for maturing over the years.
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