安溪铁观音茶的历史文化

安溪种茶始于唐末。当时翰林学士韩有诗曰：“石崖觅芝叟，乡俗采茶歌”。五代时，种铁观音茶逐渐发展，已将茶作为礼品赠送。

开先县令詹敦仁在五代时受龙安岩(今龙门镇溪内村)悟长老惠茶，作此代简：“泼乳浮花满盏倾，余香绕齿袭人清。宿酲未解惊窗午，战退降魔不用兵。”宋代，安溪不论寺观或农家均已产茶了。安溪蓬莱《清水岩志》载：“清水峰高，出云吐雾，寺僧植茶，饱山岚之气，沐日月之精，得烟霞之霭，食之能疗百病。老寮等属人家，清香之味不及也。鬼崆口有宋植二三株，其味尤香，其功益大，饮之不觉两腋风生，倘遇陆羽，得与补茶经焉。”五代越王钱的幕僚黄夷简，在北宋统一中国时，曾称疾退隐安溪别业，其山居诗有：“宿雨一番疏甲嫩，春山几焙茗旗香。”到了明清，安溪茶叶生产有了较大发展，并有了名气。明嘉靖《安溪县志》载：“茶名于清水，又名于圣泉”，“茶，龙涓、崇信(今龙涓、西坪、芦田)出者多”，“茶产常乐，崇善等里(今剑斗、白濑、蓬莱、金谷)货卖甚多”。安溪八景之一“阆岩夕照”的阆苑岩大门，至今尚留有“白茶特产推无价，石笋孤峰别有天”的对联。可见当时茶叶生产已遍及内外安溪。

尤其值得一提的是，在明代，安溪茶农发现与创造了茶树无性繁殖法。明代以前，我国茶树均采用种子直播的有性繁殖法，茶树容易变种。明崇祯十三年（1640年）前后，安溪茶农从茶树枝条压在土壤中能生根发芽得到启发，创造出茶树整株压条繁殖法。因而，安溪成为了中国茶树无性繁殖的发源地。明末清初，安溪茶农又创制了乌龙茶。乌龙茶是介于红茶与绿茶之间的半发酵的特种茶。乌龙茶采制工艺的诞生，是对我国传统制茶工艺的又一重大革新。后来，安溪茶农发现了名茶铁观音。特别的乌龙茶制作工艺、独一无二的铁观音，奠定了安溪作为中国名茶之乡的地位。

                        梅占                                            毛蟹

                         黄旦                                           本山

四茶树良种的宝库

“安溪之山郁嵯峨，其阴长湿生丛茶。”这是明末清初的名士阮锡在《安溪茶歌》中写下的名句。安溪由于优越的地理条件和自然环境，生长着许多野生茶树。1957年，在安溪县蓝田乡福顶山森林中，曾发现一群野生古茶树，其中一棵最大的树高6.3米，胸围18厘米，树幅2.7米。1961年，在安溪县剑斗镇水拔头山森林中发现了许多野生古茶树，其中最大的一棵树高6.5米，胸围58厘米，树幅3.2米。此后，还在安溪西坪、福前、祥华、官桥等乡镇的森林中陆续发现了野生古茶树。经茶叶专家鉴定，这些野生古茶树树龄已有1000～1200年，是研究安溪茶叶与茶文化起源和发展的“活化石”。这些野生古茶树经过安溪茶农长期的驯化、选育，已培育出许多茶树优良品种。目前已收集的茶树品种达54个，其中不少品种是我国茶树名、优、特、稀品种和适制乌龙茶的王牌品种。1984年全国第一批审定通过的30个茶树良种中，安溪县占了6个，即铁观音、黄旦（黄金桂）、本山、毛蟹、梅占、大叶乌龙，被誉为“茶树良种的宝库”。铁观音、黄旦、本山、毛蟹已成为安溪县四大当家良种，亦称为“四大名茶”，其中以铁观音最为著名。

英语翻译

Tea growing in Anxi began in the late Tang Dynasty. Han You, a scholar of the Hanlin Academy at that time, said in a poem: "Shiya looking for Zhisao, the folk song picking tea". In the Five Dynasties, tea planting gradually developed, and tea has been given as a gift. The magistrate of Kaixian County, Zhan Dunren, received the elder Huicha from Longanyan (now Xi'nei Village, Longmen Town) in the Five Dynasties, and wrote this generation's abbreviation: "The pouring milk and floating flowers are full of scents, and the scent lingers around the teeth to clear the people. At noon, no soldiers are required to retreat and surrender demons." In the Song Dynasty, Anxi had already produced tea regardless of temples or farms. Anxi Penglai's "Clear Water Rock Records" contains: "The clear water peak is high, the clouds spit out the fog, the monks plant tea, the breath of the mountains and the haze, the essence of the sun and the moon, the haze of the haze, the food can cure all diseases. Lao Lao, etc. It’s not as fragrant as it is for others. There are two or three Song Zhi at the mouth of Guikong. Its flavour is particularly fragrant, and its merits are great. If you drink it, it will be windy in both arms. If you encounter Lu Yu, you have to use tea tonic." Huang Yijian, the staff of the Five Dynasties Yuewangqian, once said that when China was unified in the Northern Song Dynasty, he said that he would retreat and retreat to Anxi. Has achieved greater development and gained fame. "Anxi County Chronicles" of Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty contained: "Tea is named Qingshui, also known as Shengquan", "Tea, Longjuan, Chongxin (now Longjuan, Xiping, Lutian) have many producers", "Tea production is Changle, Chong There are a lot of goods sold in Shandengli (today Jiandou, Shirai, Penglai, and Jingu)." The gate of Langyuanyan, one of the eight scenic spots in Anxi, "Langyan Sunset", still has a couplet of "white tea specialties are priceless, and stalagmites are unique." It can be seen that the tea production has spread all over Anxi inside and outside at that time.

It is especially worth mentioning that in the Ming Dynasty, Anxi tea farmers discovered and created the asexual reproduction method of tea trees. Before the Ming Dynasty, tea trees in our country used the sexual propagation method of direct seeding, and tea trees were easy to mutate. Around the thirteenth year of Chongzhen in the Ming Dynasty (1640), Anxi tea farmers were inspired by the ability of tea branches to take root and sprout when pressed in the soil, and created a whole-plant layering propagation method for tea trees. As a result, Anxi has become the birthplace of asexual reproduction of Chinese tea trees. At the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, Anxi tea farmers created oolong tea. Oolong tea is a semi-fermented specialty tea between black tea and green tea. The birth of oolong tea production technology is another major innovation to our country's traditional tea production technology. Later, Anxi tea farmers discovered the famous tea Tieguanyin. The special craftsmanship of oolong tea and the unique Tieguanyin have established Anxi as the hometown of famous tea in China.

                        Mei Zhan Hairy Crab

                         Huang Dan Benshan

The treasure house of four tea trees

"Anxi's mountains are full of sacred sacs, and its shade is long and wet and grows thick tea." This is a famous sentence written by Ruan Xi, a celebrity in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, in the "Anxi Tea Song". Due to the superior geographical conditions and natural environment, Anxi has many wild tea trees growing. In 1957, a group of wild ancient tea trees were found in the forest of Fuding Mountain, Lantian Township, Anxi County. The largest tree was 6.3 meters high, 18 cm wide and 2.7 meters wide. In 1961, many wild ancient tea trees were discovered in the forest of Shuibatou Mountain in Jiandou Township, Anxi County. The largest one was 6.5 meters high, 58 cm wide and 3.2 meters wide. Since then, wild ancient tea trees have been discovered in the forests of Anxi Xiping, Fuqian, Xianghua, Guanqiao and other towns. According to the identification of tea experts, these wild ancient tea trees are 1,000 to 1,200 years old and are "living fossils" for the study of the origin and development of Anxi tea and tea culture. These wild ancient tea trees have been domesticated and bred by Anxi tea farmers for a long time, and many excellent varieties of tea trees have been cultivated. At present, 54 tea tree varieties have been collected, many of which are the famous, excellent, special and rare varieties of Chinese tea trees and the ace varieties suitable for making oolong tea. Among the first batch of 30 tea tree varieties approved in 1984, Anxi County accounted for six, namely Tieguanyin, Huangdan (Golden Osmanthus), Benshan, Hairy Crab, Meizhan, and Daye Oolong. They are known as "Tea Trees". A treasure house of fine breeds". Tieguanyin, Huangdan, Benshan, and Hairy Crab have become the four masters of Anxi County, also known as the "Four Famous Teas", among which Tieguanyin is the most famous.