The Tea Enthusiast's Honey Tea Secret

Tea enthusiast Xiao Chen, though not a tea fanatic, loves drinking some Tieguanyin in the summer. Previously, while on a business trip, he discovered "Honey Tea" in the homes of some veteran tea farmers in Anxi County. After returning home, he began to imitate their method.

Here's how he does it: First, go to a tea shop to buy aged Tieguanyin tea leaves. Then, find a jar with good sealing properties, such as an aesthetically pleasing porcelain jar. Next, add high-quality honey to the jar. Then, put an appropriate amount of the aged tea leaves into the jar, ensuring the honey covers the tea. Immediately after, seal the jar. When it's time to drink tea, take the tea leaves out of the sealed jar and brew them as you would normally brew Tieguanyin.

According to Xiao Chen, tea made this way still has a honey aroma even after 10 infusions. Furthermore, storage is not a particular concern.

Different Production Methods by Enterprises

It is understood that since last year, a company has been mixing honey, pearl powder, and Anxi Tieguanyin, then subjecting the blend to deep processing and moisture evaporation to produce Honey Tea, which has attracted attention within the industry.

Their method is as follows: First, select tea leaves from the spring and autumn seasons, whether light or robust aroma is acceptable, as the quality of tea from these two seasons is relatively stable and easy to store. For honey, winter honey or spring honey must be chosen because the quality of honey from these seasons is better. Second, clean the tea leaves thoroughly, mix the cleaned tea leaves with honey, and let it sit in a pollution-free environment for 1-2 days. Third, put the tea leaves into a pot and remove the moisture from the honey at a temperature around 100 degrees Celsius. After these steps, the tea can be packaged and sold.

Health Preservation Effects Remain Inconclusive

Currently, opinions within the industry on this type of tea are mixed. Wang Guiqing, General Manager of Xiamen Tea Import & Export Co., Ltd., believes that tea is a natural plant, and this practice may destroy the essential characteristics and components of tea. Whether adverse chemical reactions occur between tea and honey is currently inconclusive. Simultaneously, he points out that sweet substances like honey easily attract ants, etc., so the production process of such tea undoubtedly has very high requirements for the manufacturing environment.

Wu Lijian, Chief Expert of the Famous Doctors and Hospitals Promotion Committee of the China High-Tech Health Industry Committee, believes that, in the short term, both the folk method of drinking honey tea and the enterprise method of producing it have certain effects on protecting the stomach, calming, and aiding sleep. This is because Tieguanyin is slightly cold in nature, and adding honey can reduce this cold property. Also, Tieguanyin contains caffeine, a component with stimulating effects. Adding honey, which contains amino acids that have calming and sleep-aiding properties, will make the tea more mellow when combined. However, these are mainly viewed from short-term effects. As for what long-term consumption might do to the body, further scientific research is needed. Meanwhile, to maintain stable honey quality, storage conditions around 10 degrees Celsius should be chosen to prevent spoilage.