It’s about Qidan.
He is the nickname of the purebred Big Red Robe, similar to the existence of codes 105 and 304. Qidan is one of the players with the highest participation frequency in the annual tea fight in Mount Wuyi, especially in the Mingcong and Dahongpao groups. In a credible tea fight in Mount Wuyi in 2022, he won the competition tea of Dahongpao Tea King, which is a pure Qidan. From this point of view, his superior variety characteristics are also clear.
But in the market, besides the renowned reputation and auction price of the mother’s Da Hong Pao, the pure breed Qi Dan of Da Hong Pao appears unknown, and even among the five famous brands, he is the most difficult to sell.
Pure Red Robe (Qi Dan) Ye Zhang
In fact, when Qi Dan entered the martial arts world under the name of purebred Da Hong Pao, he always carried a sense of national popularity. However, when the word Da Hong Pao appeared, due to the complexity of his background, it carried a mysterious veil that even articles starting with ten thousand characters seemed difficult to uncover.
Today we will talk about its origin, and more importantly, return to its taste. Is the purebred Dahongpao (Qidan), which shares the same roots and origins as the mother tree Dahongpao, tasty!
No.1 Purebred Big Red Robe Why is it called ‘Qidan’
We know that the ever-changing microclimate environment of Mount Wuyi has created the rich and colorful characteristics of Mount Wuyi vegetable tea. The ancestors of Wuyishan repeatedly selected individual plants from these strange groups of vegetable tea in a direct and poetic way. They picked and processed them separately, compared their quality, selected excellent individual plants, named flowers according to their quality, shape, location, etc., and rated clusters among various flower names.
After more than ten centuries, Mount Wuyi has created more than one thousand famous clusters, which has won Mount Wuyi the reputation of “the kingdom of tea varieties”. Lin Fuquan investigated in 1943 and found that Huiyuan Rock Factory alone has more than 830 famous clusters.
For example, there are species named after the growth environment of tea trees, such as Wujiantian, Lingshangmei, and Half day Harrier; Names based on the shape of tea leaves include: melon seed gold, money, willow branches, etc; Named after the aroma of finished tea, there are cinnamon, white osmanthus, and frankincense.
No Heavenly Mother Tree in Jiulongke
There are different opinions about the naming method of Dahongpao, and the widely circulated one is named after myths and legends; The widely accepted theory among experts now is that the young buds of Dahongpao tea tree are named after their red color.
However, some local tea farmers also told the academic committee that the identification of purebred Dahongpao can also be seen from the old leaves at the bottom of the tree, which present a purple red color like tender leaves, showing a kind of cyclical romantic life from the changes in color.
The Autumn Sprout of Golden Chair Qidan
Because this red color has a beginning and an end, we can understand from the literal meaning that Qidan is actually synonymous with Dahongpao, reflecting the special color of tea leaves.
However, the existence of the nickname “Qidan” carries some resemblance to a stunt double. In a 1943 investigation, Lin Fuquan recorded that “the temple monks picked the Da Hong robe at will because tourists did not take good care of it, so they chose another tea, which is called Qidan, born on the half cliff of Jiulongke.” It sounds like the emperor disguised himself as the fourth prince when he entered the folk, fearing that the person who was too red would be surrounded by bee pupae and wear the disguise.
Later, according to the investigation records in Luo Shengcai’s book “Research on Wuyi Tea Famous Clusters”, the management of Dahongpao by Huangtu Farm and Comprehensive Farm after the founding of New China for nearly half a century has been called Dahongpao, without any miraculous pill.
The most common explanation for the resurgence of Qi Dan in the martial arts world at the end of the century is the emergence of the spliced Da Hong Pao, which was named to distinguish the mother tree Da Hong Pao from the commercial Da Hong Pao.
Some local knowledgeable tea farmers also said that in the early 2000s, based on the operational system of the Provincial Tea Science Institute, seedling cultivation and sales were also a way to generate income. The tea trees for seedling cultivation exist in the nursery in the form of numbers. For example, Huang Guanyin’s number in the nursery is 105, which is commonly referred to as 105 when selling tea seedlings. However, when Dahongpao was pruning and seedling cultivation in the 1960s, it was referred to as “Qidan”. In 2000, when it was promoted by the Provincial Tea Department, the name Qidan was used.
It is said that most of the people who will be called Qidan now are planted in Caodun of Star Village, because the seedlings of Qidan in Caodun of Star Village were sold best at the beginning, so the name of Qidan is mostly used by local tea farmers in Mount Wuyi, and rarely appears in diplomatic occasions as a state guest tea ceremony this year.
One of the four tea gifts displayed at the 2022 China Vietnam Tea Party is Qidan
In 2009, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University conducted a molecular marker analysis using Random Random DNA (Random DNA) and clustered it into a dendrogram using the UPGMA method. This confirmed that the mother plant known as “Qidan” has the same genetic composition as Dahongpao, and is homologous to the second plant in the six clusters of Dahongpao mother trees in Jiulongke. The pure Dahongpao was obtained by asexual propagation and insertion.
No.2 Are there many magic pills planted in Mount Wuyi now?
It is not much more than cinnamon and narcissus, but compared with other traditional clusters in Mount Wuyi, Qidan has a considerable planting area.
Take the traditional five famous clusters as an example. Over the years, we have made a collection of white cockscomb, iron Arhat, water tortoise and Qidan (pure breed Dahongpao). Compared with the difficulty of the former, pure breed Dahongpao is more difficult to find, which makes it difficult to choose.
In the Zhengyan production area, several representative large mountain fields such as Niulankeng, Jinjiaoyi, Matouyan, Huiyuankeng, etc. have a place for miraculous pills. Within the scope of Huiyuankeng alone, we have shared with you the miraculous pills of small mountain fields such as Huiyuan Middle Maple Nest and Tianjia Frame.
Fengshuke Qidan Mountain Field
Qidan has been vigorously promoted for about the same period as cinnamon, or perhaps due to its inherent title of “Tea King”. It is said that in around 2010, Qidan’s green leaves could be sold for 40-50 yuan per kilogram.
But even for the tea king, there is still a certain gap between its planting area and today’s cinnamon, and the most direct reason is the difference in economic benefits they bring.
Niulankeng Qidan Mountain Field
In terms of production, for example, in the Pure Red Robe Collection, we shared the production of the Huiyuan Midfield Qidan. Even if it grows in the same mountain environment and under the same management method, the production of Qidan will be one-third less than that of the cinnamon on the side.
At the same time, compared to cinnamon, Qidan is more strict and dependent on the mountain field. In other words, even with low production, it still needs to occupy a good location. In the eyes of tea farmers, even if you are a tea king, you cannot be unreasonable.
Midfielder Qidan from Huiyuan hiding in the dense forest
From a craftsmanship perspective, one of the five famous congs is often criticized for being difficult to make, and Qidan is no exception.
Just like the mystery of its origin, its leaves also have a confusing quality. Both new and old leaves have a waxy luster, and it is easy to pick old or tender without careful attention. However, even if it is made tender, due to its thick wax layer, it cannot be handled gently just because of its tender appearance.
In short, it requires tea makers to patiently grind it, which means that when faced with impatient masters, its fate is likely to be changed.
No.3 Is Qidan tasty or not
We can discuss whether it tastes good or not from two levels: recognizability and enjoyment.
As for the recognition of Qidan, it is just like its complex background, and no word can directly define it. The most common description of its quality features is “special floral fragrance”. Well, the last time I heard this description was last time.
Seven Years of Pure Red Robe (Qi Dan)
In addition to the unique floral fragrance, there are also some “special” terms about the variety characteristics of Qidan.
For example, Chen Qi of Zhuyuantang said that in his opinion, a bubble of miraculous pills with perfect variety characteristics is “similar to the faint fragrance of osmanthus, but it turns to the faint fragrance of bamboo leaves. After a few bubbles, there will be a kind of taste that is somewhat like the dumplings eaten on Loong Boat Festival. The tea soup is golden and sweet, and the fragrance is quiet and lasting.”
On the other hand, Qidan and Mount Wuyi’s local traditional name clusters have the same sensory performance. They all have a strange taste. Regarding the unique flavor, in the understanding of the academic committee, it is a mixed taste with a subtle bitterness, a wildness that coexists with the surrounding vegetation, and a support for the mountain scenery.
The flavor of Qidan varies in strength among different clusters. A tea farmer told the academic committee that Qidan’s Qidan is considered the strongest among many clusters. “If we put ten clusters of famous tea, Qidan will be the first one I can find
This can be seen from this year’s tea fighting competition that Qidan has certain recognition attributes, but it is not unknown just because of the Qizhong Flavor Learning Committee.
Jiulongke Qidan Soup Color
In a paper on the key presentation substances of rock tea, cinnamon, narcissus, and qidan were selected for comparison. The results showed that qidan is dominated by floral aroma components, supplemented by sweet and fruity aromas. Therefore, the commonly heard saying that well made qidan carries osmanthus fragrance is also reasonable.
In the study, there is a special component of Qidan that cinnamon does not possess. The content of jasmine fragrance and pungent indole in Qidan samples is as high as 1092.88 μ g/kg, which was not detected in cinnamon samples. This may become one of the ways we judge the characteristics of Qidan.
In terms of enjoyment, Dahongpao was approved by Fujian Variety Committee in 2012, and was identified as a provincial improved variety in Fujian Province. This is the only native variety in Mount Wuyi, a variety kingdom, that has obtained a variety certification ID card in addition to cinnamon.
In addition to the official quality endorsement, whether it tastes good or not depends more on subjective color to judge.
2023 Pure Red Robe (Ashfire Edition)
Some people are obsessed with the direct dominance of cinnamon, some love the elegant orchid fragrance of narcissus, but others appreciate the refined and moderate nature of Qidan, like a humble elder or inner self, with infinite patience to speak to you.