Yongshun Berry Tea [Hunan Yongshun Specialty]

What is Yongshun Berry Tea? Authentic Hunan Yongshun specialty: Yongshun Berry Tea

Summary:Do you want to know what Yongshun Berry Tea is? This article is a detailed introduction toHunan Yongshun specialty - Yongshun Berry Tea. It was compiled and edited by the editorial team of China Specialty Network after reviewing and collecting relevant information about Yongshun Berry Tea. The full text takes about 20 minutes to read, mainly including the basic introduction of Yongshun Berry Tea and its nutritional value? What are the product features of Yongshun Berry Tea? How did the history of Yongshun Berry Tea come about? The production method of Yongshun berry tea, the awards and honors of Yongshun berry tea, and the tasting and eating methods of Yongshun berry tea

Basic Introduction to Yongshun Berry Tea

Berry tea, also known as Xianchi Snake Grape, is a precious perennial vine plant. According to authoritative institutions' testing, Yongshun Berry Tea is rich in 17 essential amino acids and 14 trace elements for the human body, with a crude protein content of 12.8% to 13.8%. Its main functional component, total flavonoids, has a minimum content of 3.5%. The flavonoid substance "dihydromyricetin" in its tender stems and leaves can reach up to 40%. It is known as the "king of flavonoids" in plants and the "blood vessel cleaner" in the medical community. It has good preventive effects on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, reduces "three highs", and has special effects on enhancing human immunity, antioxidation, sobering up and protecting the liver

In recent years, Yongshun County, based on natural advantages and ecological advantages, has taken the berry tea industry as one of the targeted poverty alleviation industries. By adopting the development idea of "four following and four walking" poverty alleviation industry and the development model of "company+base+professional cooperatives+farmers (poor households)", Yongshun County adheres to the guidance of experts and scientific and technological support, flexibly introduces a group of scientific and technological experts, such as Liu Zhonghua, an academician of the CAE Member, establishes 12 expert studios, establishes Liu Zhonghua Yongshun berry tea research and development promotion center, and strives to create the brand of "Yongshun berry tea" with distinctive regional characteristics. As of now, the county has developed a total of 39300 acres of berry tea, with an annual output of over 900 tons and an annual output value of nearly 100 million yuan. Five thousand acre demonstration parks for berry tea have been built in Dongshan Village, Maoba Township, Fengming Village, Runya Township, and more than 20 hundred acre demonstration parks for berry tea in Dafeng Agriculture, Wanmin Township. More than 30 professional cooperative societies for berry tea planting have been cultivated, 15 initial processing plants for berry tea have been established, and one leading tea enterprise has been introduced. We will also hold the Yongshun Berry Tea Culture Festival, which is carried out through the Tea Competition. A series of tea culture activities will be held, including tea viewing, tea tasting, tea fighting, tea evaluation, tea conversation, and tea sales. Academicians and experts will be invited to provide comments and let more people know that berry tea has unique food and medicine dual-use effects. At the same time, Yongshun County vigorously implements the construction of berry tea brands, registering 20 berry tea brand trademarks, creating Yongshun berry tea regional public brands, and certifying 5 berry tea products or green food throughout the county. In 2019, Yongshun Berry Tea was registered as a national geographical indication for agricultural products. In April 2020, "Yongshun Berry Tea" was certified as a national geographical indication

Quality characteristics

Tight and fine strands, white frost covering, clear and pleasant aroma, bright yellow, mellow and sweet, tender and bright yellow

External sensory quality

Yongshun Berry Tea Dried Tea Strips are tight, fine, curly, and even, with white frost covering. The internal aroma is clear, pleasant, and long-lasting, the soup color is yellow, bright, and clear, the taste is mellow and sweet, and the leaf base is tender, yellow, and bright

Internal quality indicators

Yongshun berry tea contains flavonoids ≥ 3.5% and dihydromyricetin ≥ 25%

How does the history of Yongshun berry tea come about

Yongshun Berry Tea has a long history of over a thousand years. According to the historical book "Yongshun County Annals Volume 3", "The General Code for Tribute Tea Sprouts in Lingxi County, Xizhou. During the Tang Dynasty, Xizhou used tea sprouts as tribute, and if wild tea was grown, there were white flowers parasitized by Guanyin." Here, "Guanyin parasitized white flowers" refers to the local berry tea. According to historical records, until the mid Tang Dynasty, the people of Yongshun (Xizhou) used berry tea as a medicine. They harvested the roots, stems, and leaves of wild berry tea in the wild and boiled them into soup to treat diseases such as diarrhea, hemorrhoids, and pharyngitis

The Biography of Huguang Tusi in the History of Ming Dynasty records: "In the ninth year of Hongwu (1376), Yongshun comforted Peng Tianbao and sent his younger brother Xibao and other tribute horses and gifts, but there were discrepancies in clothing and currency, which resulted in a loss every three years. According to research, "Fangwu" includes Yongshun berry tea, indicating that at that time berry tea had become a famous local specialty in Xiangxi and was a tribute brought by the chieftain king to the court

Production method of Yongshun berry tea

Cultivation techniques:

① Land preparation: From October of the current year to March of the following year, select a horizontal zone with a height greater than 50 centimeters above the upper ridge, remove weeds, shrubs, and dead branches, dig trenches along the inner side of the horizontal zone, apply decomposed base fertilizer, deeply plow to the bottom of the soil, and cover the soil with ridges to make beds

② Cultivate mother panicles: Strengthen fertilization management to ensure good growth conditions for mother trees. Do not pick cuttings in autumn, and remove the top center from the top to make the middle and lower parts of the branches turn reddish brown and semi woody as soon as possible, in order to promote rooting of the cuttings. Select strong branches that have semi woody in the current year or the following year as cuttings

③ Cutting into a garden: Cover the high ridges with plastic film and drill holes in a "V" shape at intervals of 30-40 centimeters. Implement double row single plant cutting, with a large row spacing of 1.2-1.5 meters, and cut ≤ 3500 semi woody branches per acre. The best time for cutting is from early March to early April, but it can also be done in autumn. During autumn cutting, cover with plastic film to prevent freezing

④ Fertilization: Apply organic fertilizer or compound fertilizer as base fertilizer during the seedling stage, avoid applying urea, 30-50 kilograms per mu; Starting from the second year, apply 100 kilograms of compound fertilizer annually, divided into two applications. In December, if the leaves have fallen, cover them with soil between two bags; Apply again in May, combined with tillage and weeding

⑤ Plastic surgery, topping, trimming and shaping: When the new vine grows to about 30 centimeters high, remove the center and topping. The second pruning will be carried out in July and August to promote the emergence of new shoots and complete the initial shape. Berry tea is harvested to cultivate its tree shape. Before applying base fertilizer every winter, perform a heavy pruning with a height controlled at around 40 centimeters for easy cleaning and harvesting<⑥ Disease and pest control: Yongshun's unique mountainous terrain and abundant flora and fauna resources, as well as regional ecological balance, effectively prevent the occurrence of disease and pest disasters; Due to its high content of polyphenols and flavonoids, berry tea has natural characteristics of resistance to diseases and pests, making it difficult for diseases and pests to occur and requiring minimal human intervention

⑦ Planting and Planting Change: After 8-10 years of growing and harvesting, the growth momentum of berry tea declines. It is necessary to cut it off with a bag, uproot it, deeply plow the soil, remove residual fine roots, apply organic fertilizer in winter frozen soil, reorganize the garden, and then plant semi woody branches of berry tea again to establish a new berry tea production garden

Product processing:

① Process flow: Fresh leaves are spread, killed, kneaded, wrapped, dried, defrosted, fragrant, packaged, and finished products

② Processing points

(1) Fresh leaf picking: Starting from mid to late April, new shoots that sprout in the same year are picked, with a length of ≤ 10 centimeters, leaving 2-3 compound leaves for subsequent germination. The fresh leaves are required to be tender, green, soft, not squeezed, without mechanical damage, and without other impurities. They should be stored in breathable bamboo baskets

(2) Fresh leaf spreading: It is required to be graded according to the tenderness and moisture content of the fresh leaves and placed in a withering trough for spreading and blowing, with a thickness of about 10 centimeters, until the green grass disappears and the leaf color turns dark

(3) Qingqing: The moderate standard for Qingqing is the appearance of a large amount of white frost on the surface of the tea strip, the yellowing of the leaves, the disappearance of the green grass aroma, the appearance of a pleasant tea aroma, the tea strip being crushed in the hand and the moisture content dropping to about 50%

(4) Rolling: After the green leaves are taken out of the pot, they are placed in a special cloth bag while hot and sealed to avoid loss of flavonoids and polyphenols. Then they are transferred to a rolling machine and rolled under moderate pressure until the tea juice slightly overflows

(5) Loose Bun and Dull Green: After rolling the berry tea, quickly remove the loose bun and transfer it to a special cloth bag for 4-6 hours until the surface of the berry tea is covered with white frost, which is the moderate standard for dulling green

(6) Spread Frost: The berry tea stand is placed on a stainless steel mesh screen and placed in a well ventilated area to naturally shade until 60-70% dry. Afterwards, it can be moved to scatter sunlight in the morning or afternoon to dry until 8-9% dry

(7) Aroma enhancement: Berry tea with silver frost exposed is transferred to a baking machine for aroma enhancement. It is baked at 80 ℃ for 25 minutes, and the tea strips are hand kneaded into powder with a moisture content of ≤ 8%, which is considered dry enough

(8) Finished product packaging: After the dried berry tea stand is cooled, it can be packaged and sealed in a bag, avoiding light and moisture. The packaging material should be clean, odorless, and stored at room temperature

In September 2021, Yongshun Berry Tea won the Silver Award in the China Tourism Specialty Commodity Competition

Tasting and Eating Methods of Yongshun Berry Tea

1. Prepare glass cups

2. Add 2-3g of tea and inject 200-300ml of 100 degree boiling water

3. After soaking for 10 minutes, it can be consumed. It has a unique taste and can be repeatedly brewed three times. Long term consumption can help clear heat, detoxify, and promote beauty and anti-aging. Berry tea is a pure natural health tea with a unique taste and high nutritional value. It has a total flavonoid content of over 6% and a tea polyphenol content of up to 42.5%, which is higher than any other type of tea. It is known as the "king of tea" and has functions such as clearing heat and detoxifying, beauty and anti-aging