Dark Tea Processing Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
Changshengchuan is an old-established brand of Hubei; its founder, the He family, migrated from Jiangxi to the Baidun area of Xianning, Hubei, in 1368, devoting themselves to making and trading tea, and has been passed down to the present as the 20th generation. Its products were designated tribute tea by the imperial courts of both the Ming and Qing dynasties, and were also a principal trade good on the Ten-Thousand-Mile Tea Road.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The Changshengchuan green brick-tea making craft is one of the representatives of China's traditional dark-tea making crafts; it originated in Xianning, Hubei, spread to Yichang in Hubei, and radiated to Enshi, Shennongjia, Xiangyang, and other places. Yichang City in Hubei Province lies in the transitional zone from the mountainous west of Hubei to the Jianghan Plain, with crisscrossing ranges within its territory and a subtropical monsoon climate; its soil is fertile, with excellent drainage and aeration, making it highly suitable for tea-plant growth. The Changshengchuan green brick-tea making craft has a long history and a complex process. It requires half-mountain fresh tea leaves grown at altitudes of 600–1,200 meters within southwestern Hubei, which are made into tea bricks through 77 process steps and stamped with the 'Chuan' (川) character trademark. From plucking to packaging it passes through many stages: preliminary processing (15 steps such as plucking and pan-firing), pile-fermentation (19 steps such as sprinkling water, leveling the pile, measuring temperature, and replenishing water), refining (12 steps such as sieving and grading), blending (7 steps such as brewing the liquor and grading), shaping (15 steps such as steaming the tea and compact pressing), and drying-and-packaging (9 steps such as dehumidifying and re-baking), requiring 60–90 days to complete. Among these, traditional processes such as fixation, pile-fermentation, sieving, steaming, shaping, and baking have been handed down through the generations and remain in use to this day. Compared with other dark-tea making crafts, the most distinctive processes of the Changshengchuan green brick-tea making craft are large-pile fermentation and the opening of deep channels within the pile for ventilation, while during fermentation it controls the 'flowering' (growth of the golden mold), producing a brick of high compactness. Its finished tea has a blue-brown color, a red-yellow liquor, and a strong, fragrant taste, with effects such as relieving stagnation and greasiness and reducing fat and controlling sugar. All of these inheritors work on the front lines of tea making and quality control, bearing the responsibility of revitalizing the traditional craft and raising tea quality. In addition, more than 10,000 farm households around Yichang and its vicinity have mastered the Changshengchuan green brick-tea planting and plucking standards. The Changshengchuan green brick-tea making craft has always advocated ecological, green tea-growing methods, using clean energy throughout production, with zero waste discharge and no pollution. Green brick tea made by this craft is a carrier of exchange and fusion between northern and southern ethnic groups and a bond of ethnic unity, and also an important medium for economic and cultural exchange between China and European countries.
Documented Process Record
At present, the main group of inheritors of this craft is concentrated at the Hubei Changshengchuan Green Brick Tea Research Institute, with 10 core inheritors and another 10-plus people who have mastered the craft's core process flow.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The Changshengchuan green brick-tea craft began at Baidun in Xianning, Hubei, moved down the Yangtze to set up a factory at Wujiagang in Yichang, and radiated to Enshi, Shennongjia, and Xiangyang. Having migrated from Jiangxi, the He family had to blend the coarse old leaves gathered along the way with local teas for the brick body to attain a compactness higher than ordinary dark bricks; compared with the fuzhuan bricks produced in Hunan, the Changshengchuan line emphasizes large-pile fermentation, opening deep channels within the pile for ventilation, and controlling the flowering.
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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
At present, the main group of inheritors of this craft is concentrated at the Hubei Changshengchuan Green Brick Tea Research Institute, with 10 core inheritors and another 10-plus people who have mastered the craft's core process flow. The craft's inheritance and development record the tortuous history of the green brick tea's evolution, bear witness to the rise and fall of the Ten-Thousand-Mile Tea Road, and also reveal the transformation of the mountain economies and societies of the south. Carrying forward this item is of great significance for developing the local economy, promoting ethnic unity, and furthering international cultural exchange.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Gan Yuxiang 04-1906
- Li Shengfu 05-2851
- Liu Xingyi 05-2852
- Wei Jiequn 05-2853
- Chen Guofeng
- Jia Genshe
- He Jiangang
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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