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Teatime for tourists
By Ye Jun (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-10-01 16:09
 A tea plantation on the Wuyi Mountains. Photos from Quanjing Some of China's best sightseeing destinations also produce the country's best teas. So take advantage of the Chinese National Day holidays to check out the great sights and sip the teas while you're at it. Autumn is the best time of year for oolong and the pick of the crop is now to be found in East China's Fujian province. Four famous Chinese oolong teas are tieguanyin (Iron Goddess of Mercy), produced in southern Fujian; dahongpao (big red robe) in northern Fujian; fenghuang (phoenix) dancong oolong in Guangdong province, and dongding (top-frozen) oolong in Taiwan. It is the best time of year to visit the Wuyi Mountains, which produce the four most famous northern Fujian oolong teas: dahongpao, also called "rock teas" as they grow on cliffs; baijiguan (white cockscomb); Wuyi rougui (rock teas with cinnamon flavor); and Wuyi shuixian (rock teas with the scent of narcissus flowers). Oolong tea is half fermented and looks dark green. Because they grow on the mountains, northern Fujian oolong teas are known for their floral fragrance and a "rock rhyme". They taste strong, round and have a descending power in the body, which people call "the bone of rocks". The fragrance lingers long in the mouth. The big red robe tea got its name from a story. A Chinese scholar in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) was passing through Fujian when he fell sick with a stomachache. |
