Remember that when I was young, if someone in the family had heat stroke and brain fever, bloating and diarrhea, the family would take out the long-cherished aged Tieguanyin or wild Tieguanyin (also called bitter tea) to deal with it, this folk remedies for curing diseases are very common in Anxi, Fujian, they are called Chen Tie, bitter tea. But our focus today is still on Chen Tie.
Aged Tieguanyin and bitter tea are not available in every tea farmer's home, many families do not have it, and when they need to find neighbors to ask for a little emergency, the neighbors are also very generous.
"Tea to cure the disease" is not unreasonable, carefully read the books, you will know that as early as the Qing Dynasty "Min Tea Song" has sung: "Before the rain is good but too new, the fire has not been removed from the lips." Hidden three times the price of crimson, the family shows off the next year. "Anxi has produced tea for more than a thousand years, and since ancient times, tea farmers have treasured old tea and wild tea as medicine." Treating diseases with tea is both a folk remedy and a manifestation of the wisdom of the people.
What is "Chen Tie"?
Chen Tie is "Chen Xiang Type Tie Guanyin", also known as "Aged Tie Guan Yin" (old tea), just like old Pu'er and old white tea, all of which are old teas that have been stored for a long time. Chen Xiang type TieGuanyin is a Tieguanyin product with the characteristics of Chen Xiang quality made by picking up stems, sifting, blending, baking, storage, and other unique processes such as Tieguanyin mao tea as raw materials.
So is Chen Tie as charming as the legend?
During the roasting and aging process, catechins decompose and polymerize and are rich in gallic acid and tea pigments, which not only makes old tea more mature, but also gives old tea unique effects.
Research from first-class universities in Japan and South Korea has shown that gallic acid can effectively reduce inflammation and allergic reactions, and at the same time inhibit the growth of pathogenic bacteria such as E. coli and Helicobacter pylori, in addition to making lung cancer and prostate cancer cells wither, playing an effective anti-tumor effect.
Compared with new tea, the polyphenols, aldehydes and alcohols of old tea are oxidized and converted, which is more suitable for the drinking of the majority of consumer groups. People who drink new tea will be sick to their stomach, excited, and sleepy, and can choose to drink old tea.
But old tea is not magical either. Tea leaves do not belong to medicinal herbs, but are just healthy drinks, and eating more and drinking more is good for health. Aged Tieguanyin is also an old tea, and the basic effects of old tea are all available, such as clearing heat and reducing fire, cooling and dispelling heat, warming the stomach and spleen, eliminating accumulation and swelling, activating blood and lowering lipids.
In the past, when drinking old tea, salt, honey, malt, shenqi, tangerine peel, chrysanthemum, red dates, ginger, etc. were often added, and now some people make old tea into honey tea, ginger tea, bitter melon tea, grapefruit tea, etc., which is not only delicious, but also has certain health and health care effects. (There are also some aged Tieguanyin is secretly made by adding honey and stored for ten years, which is good to store and saves the trouble of adding honey when making tea)
Old tea must have these conditions
Achieve a good brew of Chen Xiang old iron, good raw materials, good technology, good storage, one can not be less.
When it comes to the quality of the aged Tieguanyin, it is inseparable from the three thresholds of raw materials, technology and storage.
The raw material is the basis of aged tea. Good raw materials have the conditions to make good tea, and a good tea can become a fine product after decades of precipitation, so the bottom of the tea itself is the first pass.
This is followed by craftsmanship. The traditional craftsmanship of Tieguanyin is more conducive to aging into aging Tieguanyin. The traditional craftsmanship of Tieguanyin, green leaf red trim, whether it is made green or roasted fire is very in place, if not careful may be mistaken for rock tea. The new process of Tieguanyin is mostly the use of light fermentation and fragrance that are popular on the market now, and even more special methods such as anti-greening and acid dragging are used, which is actually unfavorable for the later transformation.
The third pass, save. Tea storage must choose a dry, cool place, tea with clay pots, iron pots, wooden boxes, etc., do a good job of sealing, light, moisture-proof, storage at room temperature conditions. During the storage process, we must pay attention to the change of temperature and humidity at any time, once the humidity rises, we must immediately open the doors and windows for ventilation or use charcoal to absorb moisture; we must also carry out a pile every once in a while to make the tea breathable and evenly converted.
Aged Tieguanyin, difficult to encounter. There are probably three situations: First, the tea farmers specially stay as old tea to drink. The second is to be forgotten in the corner, the storage conditions are good, and it has been put into old tea for a long time. The third is a small amount of aged tea products specially customized by merchants. Of the three cases, only the third can have a certain amount for consumers to drink. Therefore, it is difficult to meet the aged Tieguanyin; it is even more difficult to meet the best aged Tieguanyin!
Scarce things are expensive! Like calligraphy and paintings, gemstones and other works of art, as well as Pu'er tea, the aged Tieguanyin is also rare.
New tea is available every year, and old tea is a relic of time and space, it is the aging of the years given by nature, and the number of old teas with years is limited, and it is less and less, which can be found. There is no doubt that old tea is priceless because it is scarce, and the older and less, the less it is, the more valuable it is.
So how to brew aged Tieguanyin?
In fact, it is not difficult, similar to the aged Pu'er tea and old white tea we introduced earlier. Brewing aged Tieguanyin can be brewed with a lid bowl, a flowing cup, or a pot to cook, each with its own advantages. Brewing with a lid bowl can highlight the color and fragrance of the aged Tieguanyin; brewing with a flowing cup is more convenient and fast, suitable for office white-collar workers; cooking with a pot, the taste is stronger, and the rhyme is longer.
A good cup of tea is not easy to come by; a brew of old iron is precious; if there is a chance to meet, the west of the old city please treat it well.