Classic famous tea comes from Fujian, and the precious black tea is Golden Needle Plum. Golden Needle Plum is a premium variety of Wuyi Mountain's Zhengshan Xiaozhong black tea. To understand it, I carefully read Mr. Zou Xinqiu's authoritative work on world black tea, "Wuyi Zhengshan Xiaozhong Black Tea," by lamplight and was deeply impressed.
In 1610 AD, Wuyi Zhengshan Xiaozhong black tea was already exported to the Netherlands, and by 1640 AD, it reached Britain. The first black tea to enter Western society came from Tongmu Guan in Xingcun Township, Chong'an County (now Wuyishan City). Interestingly, in the British "Tea Dictionary," the entry for Wuyi (BOHEA) notes: Wuyi (BOHEA) tea produced in Wuyi Mountain (WU-1), Fujian Province, China, used for the best Chinese black tea (CHINA BLACK TEA).
In early times, Wuyi tea was the name for Zhengshan Xiaozhong black tea abroad. Many American merchants amassed great fortunes by trading Chinese tea.
The development of the tea trade caused silver to flow continuously into China. It is estimated that about 170 million taels of silver flowed from Europe and America to China during the 18th century. The massive influx of silver into China even led to a period of "expensive copper coins, cheap silver."
Wuyi black tea began to decline during the Republican period, dropping from an export of 260,000 dan in 1855 AD to just 30 dan by 1949, on the eve of liberation. Since then, Wuyi Mountain black tea gradually faded from the scene. Entering the 21st century, with the strong winds of reform and opening up, and after Wuyi Mountain was honored as a dual World Heritage site, exchanges with the world became increasingly frequent. Wuyi Zhengshan Xiaozhong regained its fame. Tea gardens in Tongmu Village have been restored to a historically high level, with about 5,000 mu of tea gardens. Zhengshan Xiaozhong production has reached 4,000 dan, the product has obtained organic tea certification from multiple countries, and it is exported to the United States, Japan, Britain, Germany, and others. Zhengshan Xiaozhong black tea is beginning to restore its original historical status.
After learning about Zhengshan Xiaozhong, my curiosity about Golden Needle Plum grew stronger. During this National Day holiday, accompanied by two tea connoisseurs and guided by a friend from Wuyi Mountain, I finally saw the long-anticipated Golden Needle Plum at Shunfeng Hall at the foot of Dawang Peak.
Judging by its appearance, Golden Needle Plum has slender, tightly rolled strips, interwoven yellow and black, dark with a hint of yellow, slightly downy, and glossy—not much different from top-quality Jin Jun Mei on the market. However, after brewing, Golden Needle Plum's liquor color is more golden and luxurious, its aroma more delicate, clear, harmonious, and elegant. Whether hot or cold, it tastes smooth, mellow, and sweet. Its brewed leaves are bronze-colored, shaped like pine needles, and can be infused 12-13 times consecutively, possessing the distinct characteristics of "clarity, harmony, mellowness, richness, and fragrance." No wonder the Hong Kong composer Qin Dao (real name Lin Yansen, editor-in-chief of Hong Kong's "Oriental Daily," Ph.D. from Xiamen University) likened it to the charm of a princess, the grace of a fairy, like green wine, tempting one to drink more. It is truly a tea treasure for collection and entertaining distinguished guests.
According to Mr. Zu Gengrong, the founder of Golden Needle Plum and a National Senior Tea Taster, both Golden Needle Plum and Jin Jun Mei are black teas, but their production processes differ. Jin Jun Mei is made using single buds of green tea raw material and black tea processing techniques. Golden Needle Plum, however, uses the bud tips ("eyebrow buds") of Dahongpao raw material, black tea processing techniques, and the roasting technology of Wuyi Rock Tea, blended and fused according to the "Zu Ratio."
Golden Needle Plum has exceptionally high requirements for raw materials. To produce good tea, the raw materials must be selected from the tender bud tips of over six high-quality, famous tea cultivars growing in a wild or semi-wild state at altitudes above 1200 meters in the Wuyi Mountain Nature Reserve. Picking depends on the weather and the condition of the trees, at the right time. Producing one kilogram of Golden Needle Plum generally requires 200,000 bud tips, needing 60 tea pickers to work simultaneously for a full day. Its annual production is less than 500 kilograms. Therefore, it is still rarely seen on the market.
The packaging of Golden Needle Plum is unique. It uses high-quality golden Xuan paper (used for calligraphy and painting), packaged into 3x3x2 cm squares, which is both environmentally friendly and anti-counterfeit.
Since ancient times, famous mountains produce famous tea. The unique natural environment of Wuyi Mountain has nurtured well-known tea varieties such as Dahongpao, White Cockscomb, Iron Arhat, Golden Water Turtle, and Zhengshan Xiaozhong. I sincerely hope that Golden Needle Plum, still like a lady in her chamber, can break out of Fujian, go global, spread its fragrance across the seas, and promote the treasure of Chinese tea culture.