We often hear that rock tea production areas are divided into "Zhengyan, Banyan, and Zhoucha". Many people also use this to buy tea. What are the differences? Is it appropriate to select rock tea based on its production area? Let’s take a look at some misunderstandings about Wuyi rock tea production area!
About rock tea producing areas
According to the division of Wuyi Mountain scenic spots, the rock tea production areas can be initially divided into: Wuyi Rock Tea Famous Rock Production Area and Wuyi Rock Tea Danyan Production Area. According to the production area, rock tea can be roughly divided into three levels: Zhengyan, Banyan and Zhoucha. Wuyi Mountain has a unique ecological environment. Only tea produced locally has the unique characteristics of rock tea and can be called Wuyi rock tea.
#1 What are the differences between the three levels of rock tea?
The growing environment of tea leaves will affect the quality of rock tea. For example, in terms of tea green quality, Zhengyan rock tea has the best quality, followed by semi-rock rock tea and finally continental rock tea.
Zhengyan tea refers to tea trees growing in the rocks in the Wuyi Mountain Scenic Area. The tea produced from the tea greens in this area has a high aroma, a rich and mellow tea flavor, and obvious rock charm, which can be regarded as rich and mellow.
Banyan tea is tea trees grown in hills or semi-hilly mountains near scenic areas. The aroma and taste are slightly weaker than that of full rock tea, but it still has the charm of rock.
Chau tea is produced from tea greens grown in plains or fields. Its flavor is much weaker than that of Zhengyan and Banyan teas. It also lacks the charm of rock and is of lower quality.
#2 Zhengyan tea must be very expensive?
Price can only partially indicate the quality of rock tea and can only be used as "one of the" reference factors when purchasing rock tea.
As mentioned just now, the production and quality of rock tea decreases from Zhengyan to Zhoucha. As the name suggests, the price of Zhengyan tea will also be more expensive than half rock tea and Zhoucha. Moreover, the production is scarce, and the price of some Zhengyan Cong is even as high as more than 10,000 yuan per catty, but this is by no means representative of all. Even if ordinary Zhengyan tea is slightly expensive, it is still within a reasonable price range.
However, there are also merchants on the market who sell semi-rock tea or continental tea as true rock tea, so the grade of tea cannot be determined based on price alone. When purchasing rock tea, you should ask to test the tea first to confirm the quality of the tea and whether it meets your taste and requirements before considering purchasing. So when buying tea, finally find a merchant who is willing to let you try the tea.
#3 Only Zhengyan tea tastes good?
As the saying goes, "The top grade is born from stone, the middle grade is from gravel, and the bottom grade is from soil." Anyone who is familiar with rock tea has heard this saying. The quality of Zhengyan tea is indeed as good as that of rock tea and continental tea, but please remember that no matter how good the quality of rock tea is, the tea making process is the soul of the tea.
To put it simply, Zhengyan, Banyan and Zhoucha are just the growth environment of the tea. The tea-making skills of the tea maker are the key to the performance of the tea.
A good tea maker can use skilled craftsmanship to enhance the aroma and flavor of semi-rock tea. The taste is comparable to or even better than that of regular rock tea. This is why we always emphasize that you should try the tea before purchasing. There is no need for real tea drinkers to overly pursue "only drinking Zhengyan". Finding rock tea that suits your taste is the most important thing. After all, what we drink is the tea product, not the production area.
There are various types of Wuyi rock tea. An excellent growing environment is indeed an innate condition for good rock tea. However, please remember that this is not the only criterion for tea selection. The tea maker's careful production can also make the tea taste better. Therefore, when purchasing tea, there is no need to chase the production area too much. You should try your best to try the tea and consider whether the taste of the tea is suitable for you.
Hurry up and try our four newly launched Wuyi rock teas!
[ Click here to participate in the Wuyi Rock Tea Tea Testing Event ]
Suggested reading:
A must read before buying tea! Guide to Buying Rock Tea
Things to do before buying tea! Things you don’t know about tea tasting
