Green Teas

Liuxi Tea, Aid to Digestion

Liuxi green tea is prized around the city of Guangzhou for its benefits to the digestive system, but is not widely known abroad. It is included here specifically for its health factor.

Users say Liuxi from the spring harvest is exceptionally good for keeping bowel movements regular and for treating constipation and digestive disorders. It is more astringent than ordinary green tea, and believed to be more effective at alleviating discomfort after a heavy meal. The used leaves of the early spring tea are also eaten as an aid to digestion, and in the belief that their sweet aftertaste is soothing to the throat. It has also been credited with dissolving kidney stones.

No scientific conclusions on its healing powers have been reached, but some Hong Kong residents make a special trip to the tea-growing area or Guangzhou (Canton) once a year to lay in a supply of the spring crop.

Grown on mountain terraces on the upper reaches of the Liuxi (Flowing Stream) River in Conghua county north of Guangzhou, this tea is produced from either the large-leaved Yunnan variety or Baimao (White Hair), a local strain. The trees reach a height of about four feet.

The processed leaves are in the form of rough, dark green strips. They produce a light brownish-orange beverage with a sweet aftertaste. For a more flavorful drink or just a change of taste, we recommend mixing leaves of this tea with those of oolong.

In the Chinese medical view, Liuxi alleviates heat, and therefore is in the "cool" category. Users are advised to keep this aspect in mind if it is to be drunk daily in large quantities, and compensate by using less tea per infusion, or eating more nutritious food.

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