How Jasmine Tea Is Made: The Scenting Process and How Much Does Good Tea Cost per Jin?

Jasmine is not only ornamental but also widely used by people to make scented tea, essential oils and desserts, making it an excellent choice of flower material. It has the effects of dispelling cold pathogens and helping to relieve depression. It is understood that in Leshan, Sichuan, growing jasmine tea brings an output value of 20,000 yuan per mu! So how much does jasmine cost per jin now? What is the market situation like?

I. The Best Time to Pick Jasmine

The best time to pick jasmine is from June to September every year, when villagers pick the flowers to sell for money.

II. How Much Does Jasmine Cost per Jin Now

This year ours is basically 20 yuan per jin; in previous years it was not that good - last year it was basically 15 yuan per jin.

III. What Are the Per-Mu Returns from Growing Jasmine

At present, the jasmine planting area in Qianwei County has reached nearly 100,000 mu, making it the second largest jasmine planting base in the country. Each year it needs 80,000 flower pickers, bringing local income of 160 million yuan. And this is in fact only one link in the jasmine industry chain; the jasmine tea that locals spent 300 years developing is the true crystallization of wisdom.

Bao Yunxiu, technical consultant of Sichuan Chaohua Danlu Mingcha Co., Ltd.: Three generations of our family have produced jasmine tea. Making this jasmine tea is very particular - the jasmine is all organic jasmine from our local Qianwei, so our scented tea drinks with a particularly delicate fragrance and sweetness.

Growing other crops yields only 3,000 to 5,000 yuan per mu, while growing jasmine can reach more than 20,000 yuan per mu. Moreover, growing jasmine is an industry that lets local farmers transfer their labor locally; growing jasmine has achieved higher agricultural efficiency, higher farmer incomes and a greener countryside.

Chen Guangyong, deputy head of the Qianwei County People's Government: At present, the comprehensive output value of the county's jasmine tea industry has reached 2.88 billion yuan. Next, we will continue to rely on our unique jasmine resources to further expand and strengthen the jasmine tea industry, newly developing 5 jasmine tea deep-processing enterprises, bringing the number of processing enterprises to 50. We will continue to expand sales markets in the north and achieve a comprehensive jasmine tea output value of more than 4 billion yuan.

IV. How Jasmine Is Made into Jasmine Tea

Flower buds are the key to making jasmine tea. Because of its flawless white color, jasmine has been favored by people since ancient times. And the rich fragrance of jasmine has also made jasmine tea the "household tea" of choice for many consumers.

1. The Scenting Principle and Procedure of Scented Tea

Scenting principle: The scenting process of scented tea is mainly the process of fresh flowers releasing fragrance and the tea base absorbing it. The fragrance release of fresh jasmine flowers is a biochemical change: mature jasmine, under the action of enzymes, temperature, moisture and oxygen, decomposes aromatic substances and, as its physiology changes and the flower opens, continuously releases fragrance. The tea base absorbing fragrance occurs through physical adsorption; along with absorbing fragrance it also absorbs a large amount of moisture, and due to water permeation, chemical adsorption occurs. Under damp-heat conditions, complex chemical changes take place: the tea liquid gradually turns from green to yellow and bright, and the taste shifts from light and astringent to rich and mellow, forming the distinctive fragrance, color and taste of scented tea.

2. Tea Base Treatment

The tea base for scenting scented tea is made from rough green tea that has been refined (omitted) and blended according to the standard samples for scented tea base grades.

Drying: The tea base for scenting scented tea generally needs drying treatment. Purpose: for high-grade tea bases, to release the stuffy, stale smell; for medium and low-grade tea bases, to reduce the coarse, old taste and stale taste, etc., revealing the normal green tea aroma and helping improve the freshness and purity of the scented tea. The temperature of the dryer should generally not be too high: high-grade tea bases at 100-110°C, medium and low-grade tea bases at 110-120°C. Traditional techniques require the moisture of the tea base after drying to be 4-4.5%; high heat must not be used for drying, as it easily produces a scorched taste and affects the quality of the scented tea.

Cooling: After re-firing, the tea base generally has a relatively high pile temperature of 60-80°C. It must be spread out to cool, and only when the pile temperature is 1-3°C above room temperature can it be scented. Scenting at too high a temperature affects the physiological activity and fragrance release of the jasmine and lowers the quality of the scented tea. The lower the tea base temperature, the better: after scenting and blending, this makes the pile temperature rise more slowly, relatively prolonging the time at a pile temperature of 32-37°C, which helps the fresh flowers release fragrance and the tea base absorb it, improving the quality of the scented tea.

3. Manual Method for Scenting Scented Tea

First spread 1/3-1/5 of the total tea base evenly over a clean scenting floor to a thickness of 10-15cm, then take the fresh flowers according to the tea-to-flower ratio and likewise divide out 1/3-1/5 to scatter evenly over the surface of the tea base, so that one layer of tea alternates with one layer of flowers for 3-5 layers. Then use an iron rake to pull it apart from the cross-section from top to bottom and mix. While mixing the tea base and fresh flowers, carry out "scenting" by the methods of box scenting, bin scenting or block scenting.

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