Wang Chang

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Wang Chang, Male, Han, from Qimen, Anhui, is a fifth-batch national representative bearer of Black Tea Processing Craftsmanship (Ⅷ-149). The tradition is documented in Qimen, Anhui. Within the regional tradition and school record of Black Tea Processing Craftsmanship in Qimen, Anhui: All of Qihong's skill rests in the hands of the Qimen area: initial making goes through four steps—withering, rolling, fermentation, and drying—and after the tea is made it passes through sieving, cutting, winnowing, picking, re-firing, and blending to draw the strips tight and fine. The craftsmanship shows most in the fermentation and re-firing steps; off by even a fraction in firing, and the sandy, fruity Qimen aroma cannot be brought out. It is the only black tea among China's Top Ten Famous Teas, designated specifically for hand making by the name of Qimen Gongfu; it was successfully created in the second year of Guangxu, and won a gold award at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in 1915. At present this set of processes lacks successors. Qimen has a long history of tea production, traceable back to the Southern and Northern Dynasties period. In the second year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing dynasty (1876), Qimen black tea (Keemun) was successfully created; once it appeared, it became famous at home and abroad for its extraordinary quality. In 1915, Qihong participated in the 'Panama-Pacific International Exposition' and won a gold award. In 1987, Qihong won a gold award at the '26th World High-Quality Food Selection Conference,' and Qimen was named 'Hometown of Chinese Black Tea' by the relevant state department.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, Han Chinese, born in January 1966 in Qimen County, Anhui Province. He is a national representative bearer of Black Tea Processing Craftsmanship (Keemun Black Tea Processing Craftsmanship), a fifth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. He is a technician in Keemun black tea processing. He learned tea making from his father as a child, entered a township-run tea factory in 1982, and in 1983 trained in black tea processing at the Anhui Qimen Tea Factory under the Chinese black tea masters Chen Jiliang and Min Xuanwen. Building on his command of the essentials of Keemun black tea, he has made technical improvements to the traditional process, creating the premium speciality teas Qihong Huangcha (Keemun Imperial Tea) and Qihong Xiangluo (Keemun Fragrant Snail), and developed the processing technique for first-grade Qihong Huangcha. He actively promotes the processing of Keemun Congou black tea, voluntarily teaching the craft to tea farmers on the company's bases and training a group of professional tea makers. Within the documented technical tradition of Black Tea Processing Craftsmanship in Qimen, Anhui: Qimen black tea, abbreviated as 'Qihong,' is the only black tea among China's Top Ten Famous Teas, named for being produced in Qimen County, Anhui Province. Traditional Qimen black tea is entirely handmade; its quality depends on the workmanship, hence Qihong is also known as 'Qimen Gongfu' (Qimen skill). The Qihong making craft is divided into two major parts, initial making and refining. The initial making includes withering, rolling, fermentation, and drying; the refining includes sieving, cutting, winnowing, picking, re-firing, and blending. The finished Qihong has a black, lustrous color and tight, fine strips with delicate, beautiful tips; when brewed, the liquor is brilliant red and transparent, and the infused leaves are bright red. The most charming aspect of Qihong is its aroma, which tea masters at home and abroad call 'sugar fragrance' or 'apple fragrance,' within which hides an orchid fragrance—fragrant and lasting, honored as the 'Qimen aroma' (Keemun scent), for which Qihong ranks first among the world's high-aroma black teas. In recent years, affected by domestic and international tea market conditions, Qimen black tea's sales have been sluggish, and the traditional handmaking craft also lacks successors. To this end, the Qimen County Party Committee and government have specially formulated a development plan and adopted various effective measures to strive to promote Qihong production, with a view to revitalizing and carrying forward the traditional Qimen black tea-making craft. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Documented Process Records": The Qihong making craft is divided into two major parts, initial making and refining. The initial making includes withering, rolling, fermentation, and drying; the refining includes sieving, cutting, winnowing, picking, re-firing, and blending.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

His products won gold awards on two consecutive occasions at the China (Zhejiang) Intangible Cultural Heritage Expo organized by the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Culture.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage

National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Wang Chang · National Representative Bearer Archive