What kind of tea is Laoganhong? A detailed analysis of its tea category
Laoganhong is also called yellow large tea, and it belongs to yellow tea. Its leaves are large, its stems are long, its liquor is heavy in color, and it has a strong old-fire aroma. Its color, aroma, and taste are unique, its nature is not cold, its liquor is orange-yellow and clear, and its aftertaste is sweet, mellow, and long-lasting. It is ordinary and inexpensive, bitter with astringency, and in summer it is most satisfying for clearing heat and quenching thirst.
Based on the shape and color of the tea leaves, people customarily call it “Laoganhong” because the tea stems are thick and yellow in color. When outsiders first arrive in Laiwu, they often hear the phrase “Laiwu Laoganhong” and mistakenly assume that this tea is produced in Laiwu, but in fact this is not so. The reason the people of Laiwu love yellow large tea can probably be traced to the following aspects: first, physiological needs. Laiwu is located in central Shandong, where the climate is dry, especially in summer, so cooling off and quenching thirst naturally become the first major matter in life. Therefore, tea naturally entered people's daily lives.
Laoganhong has a plump appearance with strong stems and thick leaves; the leaves form strips, and the stems and leaves are joined together in a shape resembling a fishhook. The stems and leaves are golden yellow with visible brown, the infused leaves are yellow with prominent brown, and the color is oily and lustrous. The liquor is deep yellow with visible brown, the taste is thick, rich, and mellow, and it has a high, crisp, scorched aroma.
“Mao-hour tea” is a delightful custom that the people of Laiwu take great pleasure in talking about. Mao hour is at five or six o'clock in the early morning. The first thing after getting up is to boil water and brew tea. Of course, there is much particularity about the water as well. Wherever there is spring water, people will spare no effort to trek one or two li to fetch it, all for that authentic taste. When boiling water is poured into the teapot, after steeping briefly, a cup is poured out and then returned to the pot so that the tea liquor is even. At this point, lift the lid of the pot, and steam rises and tea fragrance spreads all around. Sip several cups while hot, and you feel refreshed throughout the body. With tea enthusiasm fully aroused, energy increases greatly. As the saying goes, a few cups of tea in the early morning relax the muscles and invigorate the blood.
The price of Laoganhong is relatively inexpensive, its history is also very long, and it has a certain medicinal value as well. When drunk, the tea color is heavy, the aroma is mellow and rich, and there is also an indescribable flavor. Since ancient times it has been a beverage favored by the people of Laiwu, and it is also a fine gift often brought when visiting relatives and friends.