The picking of spring Tea starts around the beginning of Spring (early February) and ends around Grain Rain (mid to late April). The Longjing tea picked from the Spring Equinox (late March) to Qingming Festival (April 5th or 6th) is known as “Pre-Qingming Longjing Tea.”

There's a popular saying: “The first three days are early, the next three days are treasure, and the following three days are grass.” Pre-Qingming Longjing has a relatively short picking period, high picking standards, and complex production processes, making authentic “Pre-Qingming Longjing” both rare and expensive.

Picking the Best Among Many for Good Tea

“Pre-Qingming is a delicacy, pre-grain rain is premium.” In the categories of Longjing, Pre-Qingming Longjing is one of the finest and most scarce varieties.

Reason 1: Timing is Key

Once spring begins and daytime temperatures rise above 20°C with nighttime temperatures above 10°C, the tea buds for Pre-Qingming Longjing can be harvested. After a winter's rest and nourished by spring rains, the tea leaves in this period are more plump, tender, and rich in vitamins and amino acids.

The first round of tea buds picked will contain more amino acids than those picked later, which is key to achieving the enticing fresh, crisp, tender, and sweet flavor of the first flush of spring tea.

Keyword 2: Patience Required

In March and April, there's often rain in the south. Picking tea is usually done on sunny days when there is ample sunlight, making the tea more fragrant after roasting. On good weather days, tea farmers would wake up at around six or seven in the morning, dress in bug and snake protection gear, and personally pick the tea in the fields.

Finding complete and delicate bud tips in the vast tea fields is both a technical and physical task. Plucking a single bud and leaf or a bud with two leaves, and harvesting the fresh leaves from the tea tree requires patience, as one can experience severe back pain after working all morning without it.

Keyword 3: Proper “Fire Control”

The freshly picked tea leaves cannot be immediately roasted. They need to be spread out outdoors to dry for 6-7 hours, allowing the moisture to evaporate and the leaves to naturally wilt. Then comes another crucial step: roasting the tea.

“Tea never leaves the pot, hands never leave the tea.” For top-quality Pre-Qingming Longjing, 30% depends on the quality of the fresh leaves, while 70% depends on the roasting skills. Traditional hand-roasting produces exquisite flavors; modern machine roasting may seem cold but also requires proper “fire control.”

Each roasting pan has an experienced tea master who uses sight, smell, and hearing to control the temperature and timing, ensuring each batch of Pre-Qingming Longjing reaches the perfect “fire control.”

As Emperor Qianlong wrote: Slow roasting and careful baking follow a sequence, requiring no small amount of effort. Handcrafted Longjing involves complex procedures and longer processing times, testing the wisdom, skill, and patience of the tea artisans.

Proper Water Temperature Does Not Disappoint the Spring Flavor

With good Pre-Qingming Longjing, you also need to master some brewing techniques to do justice to every cup of fine tea.

The leaves of Pre-Qingming Longjing are tender, typically one bud and one leaf or one bud and two leaves. Using water that is too hot or Steeping for too long can affect the fresh and refreshing flavor of Pre-Qingming Longjing. Mastering the ratio of tea leaves to water is a simple formula that allows you to easily brew a great cup of Pre-Qingming Longjing, even if knowledgeable elders visit your home.

The yellow-green tea soup smells of strong chestnut and Orchid aromas; it tastes sweet, mellow, and refreshing. It looks like a full and refreshing spring, and drinking it allows one to feel the aromatic sweetness of spring.

Besides the conventional method of hot brewing, tea enthusiasts always try new and interesting ways to enjoy their tea. Today, we introduce a special way to drink Longjing tea. If you have better tasting methods, feel free to share them with us in the comments section!

Iced Brewing: An Extra Step for an Upgraded Freshness

After hot brewing, slowly pour the hot tea into a cold-brewing cup filled with ice cubes, allowing the tea to fully contact the ice and cool down quickly, amplifying the sweetness of the Longjing tea and providing an icy, refreshing taste.