Gong Fu Lychee Black Tea

A young monk asked the wise tea master Lao Cha:

– Sifu, I love sweets and fruits. But the doctors told me that I can't have them if I want to take care of my health. What to do? How can I satisfy my cravings yet stay healthy?

– Have some Lychee Red Tea. 

Lychee is a small, sweet fruit found in tropical Asian and Indian climates. To make Lychee black tea, farmers first harvest the tea leaves and store them until the summer. They take both fresh and dried lychee and smoke them over low temperatures for a fair duration of time. They then add Gong Fu black tea leaves during this process to absorb the mellow aroma and full natural sweetness remnants of the adjacent lychee.

The tea garden in which this black tea is growing is in the famous mountains of Fujian Province of China, about 600 meters above sea level. The surrounding camel-hump knolls and thick forestry help regularly supply a unique cloud and mist ecology. That serves to enrich the quality of tea in the region.

The sugary addition of lychee provides some specialty in its pairing with a fermented black counterpart. It can be brewed with lemon or rose for added complexity and transformation. It also makes a great iced tea and is popular in Taiwan for making famous bubble tea drinks.

Lychee tea is truly a specialty tea. It is widely popular in Fujian and Guangdong - two of China's provinces in the South. Legend traces the origin of Gong Fu Lychee black tea back to the Tang dynasty. According to the tale, the famous concubine Yang Gui Fei loved to eat lychee. The Emperor would send a huge fleet to Jiangnan for lychee transportation every year. The ships transported the fruits along with tribute black tea back to the northern capital via the Grand Canal. During the journey, their aromas intertwined. The new invention later spread out to the world, becoming the world's first fruit-scented tea.

In fact, tea merchants invented Gongfu Lychee black tea's modern processing in the 1920-1930s. They used the fruit's pulp and flowers to scent the tea leaves. It was part of an attempt to enter foreign trade markets and provide fruit-scented tea to Americans and Europeans. The result is a tea with a bright red soup color and an intense fragrance that reminds of honey. Its dry tea strips are tight, dark brown in color, with apparent golden hair. The Gongfu lychee black tea has a mellow taste and a sweet, soothing flavor that is long and enduring. The unique pairing makes this specialty tea not only a local best-seller but also a product sought overseas. This tea is a good choice for those with sensitive stomachs.

• Place of Origin: Black Tea - Panxi Town, Fuding, Fujian Province, China | Lychee - Qingyuan, Guandong Province, China
• Altitude: 800m
• Harvest Date: May 2021
• Picking Standard: One bud with two or three leaves
  
• Aroma: Strong lychee aroma
• Taste:  Strong lychee flavor. Smooth, sweet and mellow
• Cultivar:  Fuding Cai Cha