Tan Yang Gongfu Production Technique and the Tan Yang Gongfu Tea-Making Process

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Tan Yang Gongfu black tea is the leading variety among Fujian’s three major gongfu black teas and has long been famous in domestic and international tea markets. Its main quality characteristics are: tightly twisted, slender and uniform strips; glossy leaf color and good cleanliness; golden tips; a high, sharp and persistent aroma; a rich, mellow, and refreshing taste with mellow sweetness and a longan-like fragrance; a bright red liquor; and bright red leaves. The production process for “Tan Yang Gongfu” black tea emphasizes preserving these traditional quality characteristics while incorporating technical innovations to upgrade the product, meet market demand for high-grade black tea, and improve enterprise profitability. The main production steps for “Tan Yang Gongfu” black tea include fresh-leaf picking, withering, rolling, fermentation, drying, and finishing. Details are as follows:

Tan Yang Gongfu Production Technique — Tan Yang Gongfu Tea-Making Process

• Fresh-Leaf Picking
  

Pick on sunny days, selecting one bud with one leaf or one bud with two leaves; the Tan Yang cai cultivar is preferred. Fresh leaves should have plump buds and leaves, be free of fish leaves and scales, have no disease or insect damage, no foreign matter, and no mechanical injury. Implement strict batch and cultivar separation and timely processing to maintain leaf freshness.

• Withering
  

The withering room should have good ventilation. The temperature inside the troughs is generally controlled at about 30–35°C, with exact temperature and airflow adjusted according to the leaves’ moisture content; the general principle is “higher at first, then lower.” The withering leaf layer is usually 10–15 cm thick, and leaves are turned every 20–30 minutes to ensure uniform withering. Typical withering time is 4–6 hours. Properly withered leaves are soft to the touch, can be pinched into a clump that does not easily spring apart, young stems do not break when bent, the leaf surface loses gloss and becomes dark green, the raw grassy smell largely disappears leaving a faint fresh aroma, and weight reduction reaches 30–40%.

• Rolling
  

Use a rolling machine; the rolling room should avoid direct sunlight, with a relatively low temperature and slightly higher humidity. Use a light-pressure, long-duration rolling method for about 60 minutes to achieve a strip formation rate of over 85%, a cell breakage rate above 80%, and tea juice exuding without dripping. This produces tight, compact strips and begins to form the product’s characteristic appearance.

• Breaking Up Clumps
  

The main purposes are to disperse leaf clumps and lower leaf temperature so certain active components are not drastically altered by heat, reducing clumping after drying. However, using a de-clumping machine may affect the strip appearance of high-grade tea, so manual de-clumping is preferred in actual “Tan Yang Gongfu” production.

• Fermentation
  

Fermentation is the distinctive stage in processing gongfu black tea; it allows polyphenolic substances in the leaves to fully oxidize, forming the color, aroma, and taste characteristics of black tea. Fermentation actually begins during rolling, so rolling should be done at a relatively low room temperature. Control fermentation temperature at 22–24°C with air humidity generally above 80% and maintain air circulation to ensure adequate oxygen supply for even fermentation. The fermentation process typically lasts 2–3 hours. Properly fermented leaves lose the grassy scent, develop osmanthus and fruity aromas, and most leaves turn a bright copper-red color.

• Drying
  

The goals are to stop further fermentation, evaporate moisture, and meet the requirements for crude tea. Use baking baskets or dryers, following the principle of “high temperature for initial drying, low temperature for finishing.” Set initial drying temperature at 90–100°C for 15–20 minutes with a leaf layer 2–3 cm thick, turning every 5 minutes until about 80% dry; then spread to cool for 1–2 hours. Finish-drying temperature should be 50–60°C for 20–30 minutes with a leaf layer 3–4 cm thick, turning every 10 minutes. After sufficient firing, control finished product moisture to below 7%.

• Finishing
  

Crude tea undergoes finishing processes such as sieving, round sieving, and hand picking to sort strips by thickness and length, remove impurities affecting product cleanliness and color, and eliminate broken leaves, small pieces, and fannings. The result is high-grade “Tan Yang Gongfu” black tea with tight, fine, and uniform strips, good appearance, and excellent cleanliness.