Liu An Tea Tea, Shun Yi Sun Factory - Spring 2005

Liu An tea is a famous tea originating in An Hui Province in China. This region has a long tradition of making post-fermented teas like their neighbors in Yunnan province who make Pu-Erh Tea. The manufacturing process is similar to Pu-Erh tea and Liu An is a much sought after favorite among tea connoisseurs. This Liu An is was picked in the spring of 2005 and is made by Shun Yi Sun, the most popular and well-known manufacturer of Liu An tea. It is already very drinkable, with a light but long-lasting, flowery and fruity fragrance. The taste is rich, smooth and robust with hints of rice and nuts. The natural sweetness comes out instantly after sipping.The fine leaves appear oily and shiny and have an even, dark green color. They are packaged in the traditional woven bamboo basket and wrapped with large bamboo leaves for protection. Like all post-fermented teas, the taste will develop and improve as it ages. An excellent quality tea at an excellent price, this Liu An tea has become very popular at our tea shop due to its drink ability, smoothness and unique and complex taste. For a deeper appreciation of aged Liu An, we recommend trying it alongside our popular 1996 Liu An tea for comparison. More History of Sun Yishun Liu An Sun Yishun was established in 1725 by Sun Qiming, a native of Huizhou, as a tea firm specializing in Liu An Tea. The name combined the family surname “Sun,” the virtue of righteousness (“Yi”), and the wish for smooth prosperity in business (“Shun”). From that time, the production and sale of Lui An Tea began under the Sun Yishun name. By 1932, there were 47 tea firms bearing the name “Liu An Tea” in southern Qimen County, among which Sun Yishun Liu An Tea was the most renowned. Unfortunately, in the late 1930s (around 1938–1939), Wang Qingming, the owner of the Sun Yishun tea firm, was tragically killed by bandits while returning home with payment from tea sales. The firm thus lost its central leadership. Meanwhile, on July 7, 1937, Japan launched a full-scale invasion of China. Major Chinese tea-export ports fell under Japanese control, and many tea-producing regions in Southeast, South, and Central China were occupied. Even tea regions not directly occupied were affected to varying degrees by the war. As a result, Liu An Tea’s transportation and distribution routes were completely cut off. Maritime shipping was disrupted, and trade with the primary Southeast Asian export markets was halted. Under both internal and external pressures, all tea factories closed. Around 1943, the Sun Yishun tea firm officially ceased operations, and the production of Liu An Tea in the Qimen region was interrupted for more than half a century. In 1984, Guan Fenfa of the Overseas Chinese Tea Development Foundation wrote requesting tea and provided the Anhui Provincial Tea Company with a basket of An Tea produced around the 1930s. The following year, the Qimen County Bureau of Agriculture and the county tea company assigned technical officer Zheng Jilong to conduct field investigations in Luxi, the former production area of An Tea. He located Wang Shoukang, a descendant of Sun Yishun, and together with local township enterprise members such as Wang Zhenxiang and Wang Shengping, visited elderly tea makers who had produced An Tea in earlier times. Subsequently, trial production resumed in Luxi, the historic site of Liu An Basket Tea in southern Qimen. In 1988, the revived tea won a Special Grade Award at the provincial Famous and Premium Tea Evaluation Conference. After years of suspension, Liu An Basket Tea reappeared on the market. The inner tickets (neifei) pressed into these teas at that time featured the classic “Eight-Zhong Tea” style. From 1988 to 1990, Mr. Wang Zhenxiang, an inheritor of the Sun Yishun lineage, began harvesting and producing tea in the mountains of Luxi, though the early batches were not yet recognized. In 1991, he once again remade An Tea and finally succeeded. The finished tea received Mr. Guan’s approval and was compared with An Tea from 1928 preserved in Hong Kong. In 1992, the Sun Yishun An Tea Factory was officially established and began formal production, exporting to Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as Malaysia. Tea: Liu An Tea Tea, Shun Yi Sun Factory - Spring 2005 Factory: Shun Yi Sun Tea FactoryWeight Per Basket: 430 - 450 grams Origin: An Hui Province, Types: Post-fermented Harvest Period: 2005