What was the spring tea before the Ming Dynasty?

"Tea before tomorrow" is the tea picked before Tomb-Sweeping Day.

In China, every15th day of the lunar calendar is a solar term, which is about "fright" on March 5th, "vernal equinox" on March 20th, "Qingming" on April 5th, "Grain Rain" on April 20th and "long summer" on May 5th.

Ancient agricultural production has always been guided by solar terms. So is tea production. Early-developed varieties often germinate at the time of "fright" and "vernal equinox", and tea can be picked before "Qingming".

The quality of Qianming tea is very good because of its tender buds and rich aroma and taste substances. However, before Qingming, the temperature was generally low, the germination was limited, the growth rate was slow, the yield that could meet the picking standard was very small, and things were rare, so the tea before Qingming was more precious.

In ancient times, tribute tea was early and expensive, so spring tea was divided into three types: "tea before society", "tea before fire" and "tea before rain".

Main features:

Tea culture experts said that in Jiangnan tea area, after a long winter, the nutrients in tea trees have been fully accumulated, and the temperature is low in early spring, and the growth rate of tea trees is slow. At this time, the bud quality is better.

The amino acid content of pre-Ming tea is higher than that of late tea, while the bitter tea polyphenols are relatively low. At this time, the tea tastes mellow. Moreover, tea before the Ming Dynasty was less polluted by pesticides, especially early spring tea, which was the best quality of green tea in a year. Therefore, many high-grade teas collected before the Ming Dynasty are especially favored by tea lovers.

Refer to the above content: Baidu Encyclopedia-Qian Ming Tea