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Keemun Gong Fu
Keemun Gong Fu is widely considered to be one of the finest black teas in the world. It was so highly regarded that the Chinese sometimes referred to it as ‘the prince of tea’, such was the reputation of its exquisite flavour and rich fragrance, along with the fact that it is one of the most valuable black teas produced in China. Although this tea is perhaps not so well known in the West as many Indian black teas, many of us have probably been drinking it without being aware of it, as it is often used in combination with other varieties in English Breakfast Tea blends.
The story of Keemun Gong Fu can be traced back to just one man, a businessman and Civil servant from Keemun county in the the Anhui province in the second half of the nineteenth century. While travelling in Fujian, he observed the black tea production techniques used in that province, and was inspired to try to recreate them in his home town, where only green tea had been cultivated previously. He used local tea bushes, so creating a completely new and unique tea, and the success of the project is testified to by the tea’s popularity today. This popularity is in part down to Yuan Long Hu, who in 1916 cultivated a wild tea crop in Keemun, and transplanted many Keemun bushes to different parts of the province. He visited each plantation regularly to teach producers the techniques developed in his hometown in the 19th century and to ensure that the highest standards were maintained in the production of any crop bearing his town’s name. He also sold the tea throughout the country and beyond, and Keemun Gong Fu began to make a name for itself outside of China for the first time.
The Anhui province where the tea is grown is temperate, with abundant rainfall. The region is home to the famous and stunning Huang Shan mountain range, which shelters the tea producing areas in a moist microcosm of swirling mists and gentle showers. A network of small streams and fresh springs criss-cross web-like throughout the region, which nourishes the soil with a unique complex of minerals, creating an incredibly lush and fertile terroir.
The picking season for the tea begins in spring, and harvests continue periodically for several months, rather than picking the tea all at once. In each successive round of picking, less tea is harvested, and the harvests themselves become less frequent and tend to tail off some time in late summer or early autumn. The tea is prepared by rolling whole tea leaves into thin strips, taking care they do not crumble or break. In fact, it is from this procedure that the tea takes its name, since Gong fu can be translated as ‘careful skill’.
Keemun Gong Fu is ideal as an invigorating breakfast tea, and if feeling particularly English is even appropriate for drinking with milk – although it would never be dreamt of in China!
Yunnan Gold is a newcomer among Chinese black teas, first produced in 1938. But despite its relative infancy, Yunnan Gold has already developed a reputation for opulence – it was a favourite of the young Queen Elizabeth, who was said to proudly display it in a glass cabinet. When it was first introduced, the rare tea could fetch nearly £900 per 500g. Today, although now produced in much larger quantities, it still retains some of that sense of luxury and indulgence.
Yunnan Gold was originally grown specifically for export to Great Britain through Hong Kong, rather than for the Chinese domestic market. Despite this, its popularity was such that it soon began to spread throughout mainland China.
Yunnan Gold
The tea got off to a false start, however, since production was halted by the Civil War that led to the establishment of the People’s Republic, and due to further ensuing unrest it was not recommenced until as late as the nineteen-eighties, at which time the original production techniques were faithfully revived.
The tea is grown in gardens with an altitude of between one-thousand and two thousand metres, which ensures a mild average annual temperature. This means that the tea harvest can begin in spring and continue right until the end of autumn.
The spring crop is always considered to be the finest, the characteristic golden colour is at its most light and delicate and the leaves are plump and tender. During the harsher seasons of summer and autumn, the temperature tends to cause the stems of the leaves to harden and the leaves to become less supple.
The golden tinge of the leaves varies in intensity depending on the region in which the tea is grown as well as the time of year at which it is picked. The crops grown in the west of Yunnan province are known to carry a more orangey-gold colour, whereas those produced in the south of the province tend to be tinged with a purer bright gold.
Yunnan Province, China
The leaves become darker throughout the year, the darkest tea leaves will be those harvested in autumn. The tea from the western region of the province is generally thought to be of highest quality, Yunnan Gold harvested in the south is usually slightly more astringent.
The deep, rich flavour of this tea, with hints of winter spice, can be enjoyed equally in the morning or the afternoon
