A single leaf, a block of Fu Tea, an ancient craft, the distant and enchanting aroma that permeated the air over 600 years ago on a scorching summer day, has given rise to the marvel of “clear jade dew with fragrant seats, dazzling golden flowers shining in the pupils.” That year, it traveled north along the Jing River and westward for thousands of miles to reach Rome, creating the thousand-year-old legend of Fu tea, “knowing full well that camels gallop to the farthest west, its supreme taste shared by all nations.”

Fu tea is known as the “Black Gold of the Silk Road,” its fragrance lingering for hundreds of years. It is a memory of the Silk Road spanning past and present, a symbol of trade in the new era, and a cultural emblem of the ancient capital Xi'an.

Fu tea bricks displayed at the Fu Tea culture Museum

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The Marvel of Fu Tea

Legend has it that during the reign of Emperor Shenzong of the Northern Song Dynasty (1068-1077 AD), a large ship was docked at the Jing River wharf, unloading cargo. A worker accidentally dropped a sack of tea into the water while carrying it ashore. Dock workers immediately fished it out of the river.

It was midsummer when the soaked tea package was salvaged and dried. The tea turned black and sprouted golden flower-like formations. After tasting it, the tea merchants found it unexpectedly rich and delicious. Following years of trial and error, by the early Ming Dynasty, more than 600 years ago, tea makers in Jingyang gradually mastered the craft of producing “golden flower” tea, thus giving birth to the “Black Gold of the Silk Road.”

The golden specks hidden within the tea blocks are the essence of Fu tea. These “yellowish star-shaped spots” appear due to the growth, reproduction, and metabolism of “golden flower fungi” during the second fermentation of dark tea, significantly improving the quality of the dark tea sourced from the south and forming the unique style of Fu tea.

Recently, at the Yuxingzhong Tea Display Area in the Fu Tea Town Museum, amidst the fragrant aroma of tea, Luo Rongli, a national-level intangible cultural heritage inheritor of Fu tea, demonstrated the tea-making process while frying tea leaves and narrating the story of Fu tea's rediscovered craft to the author.

“Without the waters of Jing, there is no steaming; without the heat of summer, there is no making; without the golden flowers, there is no completion; without Jingyang, there is no tradition.” From collecting tea leaves to transforming them into a beverage, the traditional ancient method of production takes five years and involves over twenty steps before the final product is ready.

Luo Rongli has been studying Fu tea techniques for 18 years. His teahouse, “Yuxingzhong Teahouse,” witnessed the heyday of Fu tea in history. In the TV series “That Year the Flowers Were in Full Bloom Under the Moon,” the Fu tea brand “Yulongquan” of the Wu Family East Courtyard is based on “Yuxingzhong.”

“Among over a thousand tea varieties across the country, only Jingyang Fu brick tea grows and reproduces a beneficial fungus, commonly known as the ‘golden flower fungus' of Fu tea. One can say that without the waters of Jing, Fu tea cannot be made; without the climate of Jingyang, Fu tea cannot be made; and without the expertise of Jingyang people, Fu tea cannot be made.” said Luo Rongli.

Luo Rongli, a national-level intangible cultural heritage inheritor of Fu tea, demonstrating the tea-frying technique

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The Name of Fu Tea

Fu tea flourished during the Song Dynasty and reached its peak in the Ming and Qing dynasties, eventually becoming a tribute tea.

Jingyang was an essential center for the processing, production, and transportation of tea along the ancient Silk Road. From the “Tea-Horse Ancient Road” into the snowy highlands; from border trade tea to today's health and wellness delicacy, Fu tea has evolved from a single industry into a comprehensive and innovative key industry, telling more stories in different eras.

During the 600 years since the emergence of the Fu tea production technique, Jingyang became a hub for Fu tea factories, a place where traveling merchants tethered their camels and prepared tea.

At that time in Jingyang, many tea traders gathered in alleys destined for the northwest, with camels often parked by the roadside, hence the name Camel Alley. Surrounding Camel Alley, other alleys like Hemp Alley and Grain Alley also began to cluster, supporting industries related to tea production. These small streets carry a vivid story of Shaanxi merchants and a precious legacy of tea culture.

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, Shaanxi merchants, embodying bravery and courage, traversed vast distances along the “Tea-Horse Ancient Road,” initiating the legendary journeys of Shaanxi merchants. The diverse peoples of our country have created various ways to consume Fu tea, such as the Uyghur Milk tea and aromatic tea, Tibetan butter tea, and Mongolian salty milk tea, all using Fu tea as the base ingredient… At that time, Fu tea was also exported to over forty countries, including Russia.

Fu tea, as the “Tea of Life” on the Silk Road, is ranked alongside silk and porcelain as one of the three major commodities of Silk Road foreign trade.

It carries the development history of China's tea industry, is an important member of Chinese tea culture, and a witness to the economic and cultural exchange along the Silk Road.

Sculptures depicting Shaanxi merchants transporting tea, displayed at the Fu Tea Culture Museum

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The Revival of Fu Tea

Times have changed, but the fragrance of Fu tea remains, though fewer people partake in its enjoyment. Historically, Jingyang and Fu tea thrived and declined together through trade, and they have experienced resurgence due to the Belt and Road Initiative.

In the 1960s, the Fu tea factory closed down, the number of tea merchants dwindled, trade stopped, and the craft of making Jingyang Fu tea also suffered a break in continuity.

In 2006, the Jingwei Fu Tea project was established. With the mission and responsibility to revive Fu tea, it took nearly three years to successfully restore this traditional tea-making technique.

Luo Rongli, who had been working in construction outside his hometown, returned home and devoted himself wholeheartedly to “Yuxingzhong Teahouse.” He believed that only by inheriting the ancestral tea-making techniques and honing his skills could he innovate and ultimately promote this time-honored brand. The calluses on Luo Rongli's hands record the joys and hardships of a tea maker.

Due to inheritance, Fu tea, like an old tree sprouting new branches, has gained renewed vitality.

From a leaf in the mountains to tea in the cups of countless homes. In recent years, leveraging the demonstration effect of Fu Tea Town, Xi'an has promoted the “upgrade and transformation” of the Fu tea industry through innovation, fostering new development momentum in high-quality cluster development, extending and adding value to the industrial chain. Leading enterprises such as Jinghe Fu Tea, Mojun Fu Tea, Jingwei Fu Tea, Jingxin Fu Tea, and Jingshengyu have emerged.

Due to cultivation, the Fu tea industry has grown in scale and strength.

Qiu Huiling, from the south, works at the Fu Tea Town International Trade Company in Xixian New Area. During a visit to Jinghe New City, she was captivated by the profound historical and cultural background of Fu tea and decided to put down roots here. “Currently, we have established Fu tea culture and industry exchange centers and trade transaction centers in Belarus, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan, further spreading Fu tea worldwide and turning it into a ‘friendship tea' connecting Belt and Road countries.” she said.

How to transition from the “Tea-Horse Ancient Road” to the current “Belt and Road”? Qiu Huiling