Autumn Tea Hits the Market and Faces Its Test: Tieguanyin or White Tea, Who Will Win
The ancients said, “Spring tea is bitter, summer tea is astringent; for good drinking, autumn White Dew,” and the “autumn White Dew” mentioned here refers precisely to autumn tea. Right now, the peak picking season is underway, and autumn tea picking in major production areas is proceeding at full pace, preparing the taste of autumn for consumers' palates.
It is understood that because summer tea does not taste very good and is not recognized by the market, many tea companies are not optimistic about its sales prospects. As for the gap in summer tea sales, tea companies mostly choose to fill it with autumn tea, and coupled with the relatively good tea growth this year, tea companies have focused their attention even more on the production and sales of autumn tea.
“The launch of autumn tea is close to the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day, so demand for tea is bound to rise sharply.” Industry insiders said that whether it is the veteran Tieguanyin or the new force white tea, sales during this year's autumn tea picking stage have consistently been viewed favorably by outsiders. Among them, Fujian white tea could be described in past years as a relatively “niche” autumn tea variety, but this year it is in hot demand; even before the autumn tea picking season arrived, as much as 40% of the white tea had already been reserved.
However, experts point out that the impact on tea sales this year will continue. To break through the current market predicament, tea companies should appropriately increase the proportion of mid- and low-grade tea and take a people-friendly route to meet the market “exam.”
Autumn Tea Gains Tea Companies' Attention
It is understood that in the tea industry, spring tea sales are what tea companies value most, while summer and autumn tea are regarded as a “chicken rib” that is tasteless to eat but a pity to throw away. The reason is that summer and autumn tea has high picking costs and low profits. According to industry estimates, taking Guiyang City as an example, at least 80% of the tea leaves in the city are wasted every year during summer and autumn tea.
Relevant data show that a certain county has a tea planting area of 170,000 mu, with 42,000 mu put into production, and 65 tea enterprises, yet only three to five of them pick and use summer and autumn tea. In recent years, due to the broader environment, the tea sales market has not been as good as before, which has led many tea companies to set their sights on summer and autumn tea, especially the production and sales of autumn tea.
“Now, while doing a good job selling famous and high-quality spring tea, more and more tea companies are optimistic about the potential market for autumn tea.” Industry insiders said that especially some tea enterprises that produce relatively little summer tea have already begun preparing to produce autumn tea. According to reports, because summer tea does not taste very good and is not recognized by the market, many tea companies are not optimistic about its sales prospects. As for the gap in summer tea sales, tea companies mostly choose to fill it with autumn tea, and coupled with the relatively good tea growth this year, tea companies have focused their attention even more on the production and sales of autumn tea.
However, although autumn tea has a good harvest, it still faces difficulties in the picking and production stages. Information from several major autumn tea-producing provinces shows that even though the cost of tea-picking labor has risen by more than 10%, it is still very difficult to hire tea pickers this year. In response to this situation, relevant experts from the Ministry of Agriculture pointed out that agricultural departments at all levels in tea regions should further strengthen guidance on tea production, accelerate the organization of research and development for mechanized tea picking, reduce tea-picking labor, lower production costs, and improve economic benefits.
Tieguanyin Is No Longer Favored
⟦NL> When it comes to autumn tea, many people first think of Tieguanyin. For Tieguanyin, autumn tea has the best quality, because the aroma of autumn tea is much more elevated than that of spring tea, and this is exactly what people call Tieguanyin's “autumn fragrance.”
Anxi is China's tea capital, the hometown of Chinese oolong tea, and also the birthplace of Tieguanyin tea. Tieguanyin is the finest of oolong tea, a representative of autumn tea, and the most famous tea variety in Anxi County. At the Third National Tea Industry Economic Seminar held in 2013, the Economic Research Office of the National Tea Industry System released a research report on tea consumption behavior among residents of 12 cities. The report data showed that among all major tea categories nationwide, Anxi Tieguanyin ranked first with a market share of 17.29%; the report also pointed out that Anxi Tieguanyin's such a high market share benefited from “its unique aroma characteristics and successful marketing strategy.”
At this time, Anxi County is just beginning to pick autumn tea, and the quality of the autumn tea is well worth anticipating. However, in the tea consumption market, the market pattern in which Tieguanyin autumn tea once dominated is gradually changing, as the hot sales of black tea, Dahongpao, dark tea and other tea categories have diverted part of the Tieguanyin market.
Wang Qing, executive vice president of the China Tea Marketing Association, previously pointed out in an interview with the media that the hot spots in tea consumption are shifting. The tea consumption field has gone through the oolong tea craze represented by Tieguanyin, the Pu'er craze represented by Pu'er tea, and the currently popular black tea and Anhua dark tea craze; these tea categories have eroded a considerable share of the Tieguanyin market. At the same time, the restrictions on “three public consumptions” have had a considerable impact on the entire gift tea market, especially on some tea companies that mainly focus on high-end gift tea.
It is understood that under the influence of factors such as overcapacity, policy constraints, quality problems and the shifting of tea market hot spots, Tieguanyin autumn tea has no longer been sought after by the market in recent years, and prices have declined somewhat. In 2013, Anxi Tieguanyin output increased, and the purchase price of rough tea fell somewhat. In the retail market, tea of the same quality that could sell for more than 300 yuan per jin in previous years can now sell for only about 260 yuan/jin; tea that sold for 220 yuan per jin now costs only 180 yuan/jin, with the overall price falling by about 15%.
“At present, the processing techniques for Tieguanyin are too chaotic, which is an important reason for the decline of the Tieguanyin market.” Wang Qing believes that, in addition, the lack of unified processing technique standards has caused confusion in Tieguanyin aroma types and large differences in taste, leaving consumers very confused as well. Experts point out that if Tieguanyin wants to break through the current market predicament, tea companies should appropriately increase the proportion of mid- and low-grade tea and take a people-friendly route to meet the market “exam.”
White Tea Rises Abruptly
Compared with the decline of Tieguanyin autumn tea, some autumn tea varieties that were relatively “niche” in past years have become hot commodities. Taking Fujian white tea as an example, even before the autumn tea picking season arrived, as much as 40% of the white tea had already been reserved.
White tea is one of the six major tea categories, harvested twice a year in spring and autumn. It is a lightly fermented tea and gets its name because its finished tea is mostly buds covered with white down, like silver and snow. White tea has the saying “one year it is tea, three years it is medicine, seven years it is treasure” the longer it is stored, not only does it not affect its taste, but it becomes more valuable.
“In past years at this time, autumn tea picking was still far off and there was no movement in the market, but this year 40% of the autumn tea has already been reserved.” Some tea wholesalers said that Fujian white tea, which was “unknown” in previous years, suddenly became a sought-after commodity, and its price rose accordingly, about 50% more expensive than last year.
According to industry insiders, the reason white tea prices are rising is mainly the impact of higher prices for the raw material——tea leaves (freshly picked, unprocessed tea leaves). In addition, in recent years, consumers have become increasingly aware of drinking white tea, which is also one of the reasons white tea autumn tea has become popular.
According to reports, white tea used to be mainly supplied for export to Europe, America, Southeast Asia and other places, but the export situation has not been very good in the past two years, so tea companies have been looking for ways to expand sales in the domestic market. Since 2013, many people in China have begun to know about white tea and drink white tea, and white tea has gradually shown a trend of supply falling short of demand.
◇Consumption Tips
Teaching You How to Choose Autumn Tea
As for how to choose tea leaves, many people are completely in the dark and do not know how to tell the difference. As a last resort, many consumers can only rely on the customary rule that “the more expensive, the better.” In fact, this is not so. Experts say that although price can reflect product quality to a certain extent, it is more related to scarcity; to find a good cup of autumn tea, you still need to learn simple methods of identification. Below, let us take a look at what identification techniques there are.
Autumn Tea Leaves Vary in Size
What is the difference between autumn tea, spring tea and summer tea? Experts say it can be distinguished by “looking at both dry and wet.”
Dry looking mainly judges from the color, aroma and shape of the dry tea. If green tea has a green, moist luster, black tea has a dark, moist luster, the tea leaves are plump, heavy and solid, or there are many white hairs, and the strips of black tea and green tea are tightly twisted, pearl tea granules are round and tight, and the aroma is rich, then it is spring tea; if green tea has a grayish, dull color, black tea has a reddish, moist luster, the tea leaves are light, loose and broad, the tender stems are wide and long, and the strips of black tea and green tea are loose, pearl tea granules are loose and puffy, and the aroma is slightly coarse and old, then it is summer tea; if green tea has a yellow-green color, black tea has a dark red color, the tea leaves vary in size, the leaf blades are light, thin and small, and the aroma is relatively mild, then it is autumn tea.
Wet looking is to brew the tea and conduct a sensory evaluation as a further judgment. If, after brewing, the tea leaves sink quickly, the aroma is strong and lasting, the taste is mellow, the liquor color of green tea shows yellow within green, the liquor color of black tea shows bright golden rings, the brewed leaves are soft and thick, and there are many normal buds and leaves, then it is spring tea; if, after brewing, the tea leaves sink relatively slowly, the aroma is slightly lower, the taste of green tea is not thick enough and slightly astringent, the liquor color is blue-green, the brewed leaves contain copper-green buds and leaves, the taste of black tea is relatively strong but not refreshing enough, the liquor color is dark red, the brewed leaves are relatively red and bright, the brewed leaves are thin and relatively hard, and there are many opposite leaves, then it is summer tea; if, after brewing, the aroma is not high, the taste is flat, the brewed leaves contain copper-green buds and leaves, the leaf blades vary in size, and there are many opposite leaves, then it is autumn tea.
Three Key Tips to Identify Authentic Tieguanyin Autumn Tea
To skillfully distinguish Tieguanyin autumn tea, mainly start from the following three aspects.
The first is color. The color of Tieguanyin autumn tea gradually changes from the fresh green of new tea to a withered gray-yellow, and then from the dark moist luster of new tea to gray-brown.
The second is taste. After oxidation, the water-soluble effective components of the ester substances in Tieguanyin autumn tea leaves decrease, thereby making the tea taste change from mellow and thick to weak and thin, and at the same time, due to reasons such as the oxidation of amino acids in the tea leaves, the fresh and brisk taste of the tea weakens and becomes dull.
The third is aroma. Due to the oxidation and volatilization of aroma substances, Tieguanyin autumn tea no longer becomes as clear and fragrant.
In addition, there are other methods to skillfully identify Tieguanyin autumn tea: 1. Dry tea that is tightly twisted and makes a crisp sound when thrown into a cup is autumn tea: when identifying Tieguanyin autumn tea, take out a small amount of dry tea and throw it into a lidded bowl; if it makes a crisp sound, it is autumn tea. 2. Dry tea that is bright green and glossy is autumn tea: the color and glossiness of dry tea is also one of the more intuitive identification methods. For authentic Anxi Tieguanyin autumn tea, the color of the dry tea should be bright green, so it is not difficult to identify. 3. That with the fragrance of fresh fruit is true autumn tea.