The Most Famous Tea In China

A black tea with a distinctive smoky flavor — Zhengshan Xiaozhong Tea.

There are many Chinese varieties of tea that have a distinctive smoky flavor mainly due to the “roasting” or “smoking” step in the processing.

Because this tea is so well known, many imitation versions are available in the market.

The most authentic Zhengshan Xiaozhong Tea is made from small-leaf tea trees in Tongmuguan Village, Wuyishan City, Fujian Province, China, through the traditional tea-making process.

（Raw materials of Zhengshan Xiaozhong tea）

Perhaps you may wonder whether the origin of tea leaves needs to be so meticulous at all.

Yes.

Because the flavor and inner substances of tea leaves are generally determined by the environment in which the tea tree is grown. If the ecological environment around the tea tree is complex, diverse, and environmentally friendly, the tea tree will interact with the different vegetation around it, resulting in a rich variety of flavors and nutrients.

（Tongmuguan Village: birthplace of Zhengshan Xiaozhong Tea）

（Tongmuguan Village： eco-friendly environment）

（Tongmuguan Village： diverse and rich vegetation and landscapes）

In addition, the traditional handcrafted tea-making process also determines the final quality of the tea to a great extent.

Authentic Zhengshan Xiaozhong has extremely high requirements for the production process, as it needs to be handmade from the beginning to the end, so the production time of this tea is also very long. There are many teas with the name “Zhengshan Xiaozhong” in the market, but most of them are not authentic Zhengshan Xiaozhong Tea.

This unique black tea is smoked by using Masson’s pine in a specific wooden building, which is why it will have a special smoky flavor from the Masson’s pine.

The picture below is the wooden building exclusively used for smoking Zhengshan Xiaozhong.

The bottom floor is the roasting floor, the second floor is the buffer floor, and the tea leaves are laid flat on the highest floor.

These wooden buildings are over 400 years old and they are still in use.