Shui Xian, mellow and thick
October 12, 2023 Author: Xu Maoxing
"It starts with Shui Xian, and it ends with Old Bush. This statement means that the first time you drink Wuyi rock tea, it is easy to get started with Shui Xian tea, and tasting Wuyi rock tea is a correct path to start from Shui Xian.
Shui Xian tea is a "big family". Fujian Shui Xian tea is divided into northern Fujian Shui Xian tea and southern Fujian Shui Xian tea, the former is produced in Wuyishan, Jianyang, Jianou and other counties (cities, districts), the latter in Yongchun, Zhangping County (city), subdivided into Wuyi Shui Xian, Jianyang Shui Xian, Jianou Shui Xian, Yongchun (Minnan) Shui Xian, Zhangping Shui Xian Cake, commonly known as "Shui Xian Five Golden Flower". Among them, Wuyi Shui Xian Tea can be divided into Zhengyan Shui Xian, Banyan Shui Xian, Zhou Tea Shui Xian, Gaoshan Shui Xian and Laoshu Shui Xian, Gaocong Shui Xian, Laocong Shui Xian, etc.
Shui Xian tea was first seen in the Qing Daoguang period, and the tea species originated in Yanyi Mountain Zhuxian Cave in Dahu Village, Xiaohu Township, Jianyang. The 1929 "Jianou County Record" documents: "Checking the Shui Xian tea out of Heyili, Daping Mountain of the Great Lake, the land has Yanyi Mountain, and there is Zhuxian Cave on the mountain. According to Zhang Tianfu's 1939 "Shui Xian Mother Tree Record": "In the first 80 years, in the light of the Qing Dao, there were people surnamed Su from Quanzhou, and the farmers lived in the Great Lake. One day to the opposite bank of Yanyi Mountain, passing through the peach gang Zhuxian cave, see the tree one, the flower white, similar to tea and big, try to make oolong tea method, it is fragrant and luscious, named 'Zhuxian'. The local 'zhu, shui' is the same sound, and gradually became known as 'Shui Xian'. "It can be seen that the history of Shui Xian cultivation is more than 160 years.
Lin Fuquan, a famous tea scholar of the Republic of China, wrote "The Production and Distribution of Wuyi Tea" mentioned that during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, Shui Xian seeds were brought to Wuyi Mountain for planting along with tea workers who planted tea to make tea. Ye Minggao, a tea man from the Republic of China, once went to Wuyi Mountain to investigate Wuyi tea varieties, and in the book "Min Tea" published in 1946, it was recorded that the Shui Xian tea plant introduced from Jianyang Shuiji in 1905 was stored in Shuilian Cave. The answer obtained by relevant data records indicates that the existing century-old bush trees in Wuyi Mountain may be more than 140 years old, and the area of hundred-year-old Shui Xian is mainly in the core mountain field of the scenic area, Huiyuan Ancient Well, Huiyuan Maple Cave, Huiyuan Luxiu, Bamboo Cave, Lotus Peak and Shuilian Cave, and the old cong Shui Xian in the alpine production area is mainly distributed in Wusandi, Zhangshu Village, Zhukeng, Tongmu Village and other places.
Shui Xian tea is a historical famous tea, which became one of the leaders of rock tea in the late Qing Dynasty, and has participated in various tea competitions many times and obtained good results. For example, at the Nanjing Nanyang First Industry Conference in 1910, the Shui Xian tea selected by Jinpu, Quanpu, Tongfangxing and other tea estates won the excellent award, and at the "Panama Universal Commodities Exposition" held in San Francisco in 1915, the Shui Xian tea selected by Jinpu won the first prize. In the famous shops that operated Wuyi tea in southern Fujian at the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the People's Dynasty, the Wuyi Shui Xian species of Quanzhou Zhangquan Garden accounted for 80% of its tea products, the Sanyin Shui Xian of Zhangzhou Lin Qiyuan became a famous brand tea known to all ages, the old Cong Shui Xian of Zhangzhou Lin Jintai became synonymous with Fujian oolong tea, and the Da Yan Shui Xian of Xiamen Fu Quanxin promoted the hot sale of Shui Xian tea in the market at that time.
In 1985, the National Crop Variety Validation Committee recognized Shui Xian tea as a national excellent tea variety, numbered GS13009-1985, ranking first among the 48 "China's national tea plant varieties", and the first of 41 semi-arbor large-leaf tea plants in China.
Shui Xian’s mellowness
Wuyi Shui Xian is one of the main varieties of Wuyi rock tea, clones, small tree type, large leaf species, and late species. Its finished tea strips are fat, dragonfly head, frog legs, flat waist, dark green with precious color, sand grains often appear on the back of the leaf, and the "three-section color" is obvious; the main vein of the leaf base is wide and flat, and there is a saying of "Shui Xian white head". The inner soup is orange-yellow or orange-red clear, the aroma is high and slender, the orchid aroma and rock charm are obvious, and it has the characteristics of refreshing and sweet. The leaf base is thick and soft, and the red edge of the medium and light fire practitioner is revealed.
Wuyi Shui Xian is like a bright pearl in the oolong tea category, and the Shui Xian tea tree has a beautiful appearance. Rock tea industry is known as "fragrance cannot surpass cinnamon, richness cannot surpass Shui Xian", if cinnamon is "emperor", then Shui Xian is "the empress of beauty", full of softness, smooth mouth, mellow aroma, moist and silent. Similar to "a maiden holding a biwa with facial covering" Shui Xian just has some mystery that makes people addicted.
Shui Xian mellowness, first, has a clear sense of sweetness. Its sweetness is not as sweet as sugar water, a bit like licorice soup; its freshness, not like adding MSG, but similar to boiled chicken soup. The second is a strong sense of smoothness, with viscosity and flexibility, which some people liken to eating "extremely fine noodles". Another metaphor is "grainy", like drinking rice soup or soy milk, the mouth seems to have rich chews, the water is delicate, smooth, soft and sweet. Third, the most important thing is to retain a long-lasting taste, and the tea aroma will remain between the cheeks for a long time, or even linger for half a day.
Shui Xian grows in moist and deep ravines, and the soil is rich in minerals. The fragrance of Wuyi Shui Xian is covered by the aura of "mellow", and the aromas include orchid, zongyi leaf, bamboo leaf, moss, woody, floral and fruity and caramel.
Shui Xian thick
The older the Shui Xian tree, the more prominent the thickness of the tea. Shui Xian tea tastes rich, fragrant and soft, like crystal clear jelly, and also like coagulated millet soup. With a sip, countless sweet and mellow feelings of strength burst out in the mouth. Compared with other rock tea varieties, ordinary Shui Xian can only use the tagline "mellow cannot surpass Shui Xian" to woo the crowd. The world says that the most mellow cannot surpass Shui Xian tea, and the real good Shui Xian is mellow and think, not mellow but light. If you don't know what this mellow feels like, come to Wuyi Mountain to taste Shui Xian once, and you will understand.
Shui Xian is considered to be one of the most suitable varieties for storage, and in addition to its medicinal effects, it still has outstanding drinking value. After aging, the flavor substance of Shui Xian tea changes, and tea polyphenols undergo non-enzymatic automatic oxidation, so the content of tea polyphenols and catechins is reduced, which harmonizes the bitterness and astringency of tea soup. Soluble carbohydrates, such as sugar, glucose and some amino acids such as alanine and serine, increase the conversion, so that tea in the aging process of the sweetness obvious. The increase of water-soluble pectin substances in sugars increases the thickness and smoothness of tea soup.
Most people fall in love with rock tea because of "fragrantness", but loyal to rock tea because of "water". Yes, the pleasant aroma of tea immediately captures people, but when the tea soup enters the throat, the full and mellow taste is more powerful, and the charm is long, making people's lips and teeth fragrant, and the bottom of the tongue rings in the spring, and the echo is endless. Therefore, you have been tea for a long time, and drinking Shui Xian is a "wall". The price of Shui Xian is more people-friendly and rational, and the cost performance is higher. Old tea customers do not necessarily like to drink Rou Gui, but they basically all love to drink Shui Xian.
