Green Teas

Mengding Tea, an Early Prescription

A story about this tea illustrates the very early use of the beverage as a medicine. In the late Western Han dynasty (206 B.C. - A.D. 24) the Buddhist monk Pu Hui planted seven tea trees in a temple garden on Mt. Menghan, which stands on the western edge of Sichuan's Chengdu Plain. Tea from these trees was believed to cure illnesses and prolong life, so was known as Tea of the Immortals (Xian Cha). All other tea from the area was merely referred to as "Number One Under Heaven." Mengding mean "Meng summit." Historical records say that most of the early tea grown in Sichuan came from Mengding.

From the mid-Tang Dynasty to mid-Qing, Mengdian Green was a tribute tea. In early spring the county magistrate would lead the monks and local populace out to pick the choice young buds and leaves from these trees. After processing, the product was rushed to the emperor for use in ceremonial offerings. It became known by the name Main Tribute.

This tea is also known as Thunderclap, from this story: An elderly monk living near one of the tea gardens always felt cold and doctors could find no cure. The manager of the garden came to see him and told him about this Thunderclap tea. At the first thunderclap of the second lunar month (March), he told the monk, go out and pick some tea on the central peak.

One ounce, he said, would cure the illness, two would keep him healthy for the rest of his life, three would change his very bones, four would make him immortal. The monk, able to gather only one ounce, recovered, but did not gain immortality.

Mengding tea used to be produced in very small quantities. Only ninety leaves a year were plucked by the monk who maintained the trees, according to a Qing dynasty source. Now it is more widely grown in the area. The various local products have fanciful names: Sweet Dew (Ganlu), Stone flower (Shiya), Yellow Sprout (Huangya), for the best kinds. There are also Everlasting Spring Silver leaf (Wanchun Yinye) and Rice Sprout (Miya). Stone flower and Yellow Sprout produce a yellowish tea, while that form the others is green.

In order to differentiate these products from those of other places, they are prefixed by the name Mengding. The name means "misty peak," and the three "mosts" for which the mountain is know - rain, mist, and clouds - contribute to this tea's excellence. Some hold it to be Sichuan's best.

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