Help identifying a black tea

Hi --k

Chinese agricultural dept sometime back in the 1970s under the new govt lumped pu'er as black, and most vendors since then have considered in a twists of definitions, pu'er is black tea and black tea is pu'er.

So when the owner told you it is black tea, he might meant pu'er. Since he said true black tea, I assume that he meant it as 'not' Pu'er...the black tea that enjoys almost equal fame as Pu'er amongst chinese immigrants is Liu Bao, dialectally known as Lok Poh.

This black tea has a nutty and sweet taste to it.

But confirm with the owner again the next time you visit.

Danny

In a previous discussion Seb said Áù±¤ LiuBao is from Guangxi and Áù°² LiuAn is from Anhui and both come in basket form. However I got a basket of LiuAn labeled as such that taste sweet and nutty. I have an older unlabeled LiuAn that just taste nutty. The sweet and nutty brews black leaf and the older green leaf. Both look like the same leaf when dry. I would like to find LiuBao also labeled as such.

Jim

samarkand wrote:

Recently got 2000 Liu Bao Beeng Cha from Seb(jingteashop) in cake form.

Jim

Liu Bao is from Guangxi. Liu An is from Anhui, and in the recent years from Guangxi as well.

Liu Bao is processed from tea varietals found in Guangxi, fermented first in loose leaf and then pressed into baskets, sold as loose leaf, or compressed into cakes as Oleg bought his.

Liu Bao comes in 2 disctinct forms, the small leaf and large leaf varietals. Basically the taste is similar. The taste is sweet, nutty with a hint of woodiness.

Liu An is produced in Anhui. Those produced in the city of Liu An is called Liu An Tea, those produced outside of the city area but in Anhui is called An Cha, or An Tea.

The varietals for this tea are from the green tea plants in Anhui.

The tea is processed as green tea, and while it is hot, pressed into baskets, re-steamed and then dried on low heat. This tea is kept for sometime to allow post fermentation before drinking it.

This tea is virtually not known in China, becuase it is another of the accidental tea that turned 'black' from transportation to immigrants overseas - in the old days, the people from Anhui were well known merchants and traders who travelled throughout the country and overseas. The green tea they brought along in baskets fermented and create the unique taste they came to like. Hence Liu An Tea is almost unheard of in China, but the immigrants in Hongkong, Taiwan and south east Asia are familiar with it.

In the recent years Guangxi factories adapted the methods from Anhui and produced their own Liu An tea.

Danny

I would also suggest Liu An ... if you had a chinese supermarket anywhere near you you might easily find some too (with all this admittedly useful and interesting talk about Guangxi etc we wouldn't want you to get the wrong idea - it's not special or rare)

Im Mr Teas

K> Yesterday, I was having my lunch in a Chinese restaurant that had a

Thanks, Danny. From your explanation I assume a LiuAn taste like LiuBao if it came from Guangxi and uses the same varietal. My fermented LiuAn from Anhui and Guangxi don't remind me of fermented Puer in the slightest. I find of them agreeable in a more oxidized sense. In another thread LiuAn seems to go downhill as it ages.

Jim

samarkand wrote:

...

...

$5/500g/basket.

Jim

snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wrote:

Depending on the leaf used, this might happen, though I have not come across it.

Basically, Liu An is a green tea turned black, so it might be expected that it will oxidize and lose its flavours faster.

I forgot to add that Liu Bao is nutty of the betel nut taste, while Liu An is more like soy bean, pea sort of nutty...

Danny

Jim

samarkand wrote:

...

...

You haven't said. What are the color of the LiuBao spent leaves when brewed? My one known LiuAn from Anhui are green. My other LiuAn probably from Guangxi are black. I myself am too nutty to know if there is a difference in like taste besides the sweetness. I need to get some LiuBao and go from there. Besides LiuAn has anybody seen LiuBao in Chinatown?

xièxiè, Jim

samarkand wrote:

Thanks for the input!

I went there again, but, unfortunately, the owner could not fully understand what I was asking. Apparently, the tea is from Taiwan, and by 'true black tea', he meant that it is not red tea.

I'm confused now. Black tea from Taiwan? I thought Taiwan produced mainly Oolong. :P

If the leaves of the Liu An is green, it might be that the tea is still a young buck.

Liu An leaves are dark amber to brown, like a raw aged pu'er.

Liu Bao leaves are similar to that of cooked pu'er, most of the times they don't expand or unfurl.

Danny

xièxiè, Jim

Anything is possible.

:")

Danny

Hmm, but from Taiwan?

from there. Maybe I should start sampling their teas? :)