117– Traditional Border Xiaguan Raw Pu-erh Tea Brick – 1990s

117– Traditional Border Xiaguan Raw Pu'erh Tea Brick – 1990s/2000s

Origin: Dali, Yunnan, China

Produced by the famous Xiaguan Tea Factory, located in Dali, Yunnan, this tea brick is part of a unique history linked to the ancient Tea and Horse Road as well as the Southern Silk Road. For generations, Tibetan, Sichuan, Xinjiang, Qinghai, Gansu, and Ningxia populations consumed these bricks as an essential source of nutrition in regions where vegetables were scarce.

An old local proverb perfectly sums up its importance:

"Better three days without meat than one day without tea."

A Historic Mission

Since the Tang dynasty, border tea trade was strictly controlled by the Chinese state and represented a major element of exchange between Han regions and border ethnic minorities.

After the founding of modern China, the Xiaguan tea factory became one of the main manufacturers designated by the government to produce national reserve tea as well as tea intended for Tibetan border regions.

For nearly a century, Xiaguan has perpetuated this mission by producing tea bricks specifically designed for populations living in remote areas.

The Evolution of the Xiaguan Brick

In 1966, during a period of industrial transformation, the old traditional shape called Bao Yan was gradually replaced by a more practical format:

→ easier to transport
→ simpler to package
→ better suited for long journeys by horse or on foot

This is how the famous Xiaguan tea brick as we know it today was born.

In the 1990s, despite China's economic development, these bricks continued to be transported to the most isolated regions, sometimes still by horse or after several days of walking.

Particularity

This traditional Pu'erh brick develops over time a deep liquor with amber red reflections.

Aromatic notes:

• old wood
• light honey
• dried fruits
• vegetal notes typical of old Xiaguan Pu'erh
• slight minerality
• noble aging notes

On the palate:

Soft, thick, and lubricating texture with a pure and persistent finish.

After more than twenty years of aging, the initial astringency gradually disappears, giving way to a rounder and more harmonious infusion.

Preparation

Recommended dosage: 8 to 10g

Rinsing:
2 quick rinses at 100°C

Infusion:
10 to 20 seconds for the first infusions
Increase gradually

Number of infusions:
Many infusions possible

Storage

Store in a dry, ventilated place, away from humidity, light, and strong odors.

Natural aging can continue for several years.

A Tea Steeped in History

This Xiaguan brick is much more than just a tea:

It is a living witness to the history of tea trade in China, exchanges on the Tea and Horse Road, and the fundamental role of tea in Tibetan border regions.

Now rare, it represents a historical piece sought after by lovers of old Pu'erh and collectors.

THE STORY:

The history of Xiaguan tea brick 1/2

Once upon a time, in the Lugou Lake region, on the border of Dian, enter the gathering places of minorities. Ask the Yi elders in the grocery stores if they sell brick tea. The old man will make the brick tea from the tea factory, and tell you with certainty, "This is the best to drink. From youth to this day, paste tea and salt tea cannot do without it. Not drinking it for a day hurts the brain." The pious choice of Tibetan compatriots and the firm recommendations of the elderly are the true picture of the influence of Xiaguan tea in the Tibetan region. Currently, as the only government-designated tea production company for reserve tea and border sales tea in Yunnan Province, the Xiaguan Tea Factory has carried on this special historical mission for nearly a hundred years. Border tea is a special category of tea in the settlements of ethnic minorities in the Gobi, plateaus, grasslands, and other places in Tibet, Sichuan, Xinjiang, Qinghai, Gansu, and Ningxia. Minority compatriots in these regions mainly eat beef and mutton, and the local climate is harsh and vegetables are scarce, so tea has become an important source of essential vitamins and dietary fiber. The production of border tea has a long history and is an important part of the economic and trade history of the Han and border minorities. Since the Tang dynasty, the sale of tea has been controlled by the central government, and specialized institutions were established for exclusive sale. The Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties also established the Tea Horse Department, a functional body for tea trade. After the founding of New China, border sales tea was administered by a plan and classified as a category of national materials to ensure a sufficient supply of tea, a policy that continued until the early 21st century.
There is a wide variety of tea for sale, in addition to Pu'er tea bricks and Niuxin tea, Furia bricks, black bricks, and flower bricks from Hunan, blue and rice bricks from Hubei, Kang bricks, and Golden Pin bricks from Sichuan are also famous. For ethnic minority compatriots in border areas, tea holds an important place: "Better three days without meat than one day without tea." Dali, where the Xiaguan Tea Factory is located, is the crossing point of the ancient "Southern Silk Road" and the ancient "Tea Horse Road." The superior geographical location and special historical factors have determined that the Xiaguan Tea Factory will take on the historical mission of producing frontier bricks.

In December 1966, during the Cultural Revolution, some employees of the Xiaguan Tea Factory believed that the "Baoyan" trademark was feudal, and the shape of the pressed tea was special, which was not conducive to mechanical processing, packaging, and had high costs. After reporting the research of the provincial tea company, the "Bao Flam" was changed to "Unity Card," the "Compact Tea Heart" was changed to "Brick piece type," and then the shape of the compact tea gradually evolved into a brick.
The time came to the 1990s. Although transportation and economy in southern China had undergone considerable development, the transport of border sales tea in the central-west was still difficult. The more poorly transported and difficult areas there were, the greater the need to sell tea to supplement essential daily vitamins. Transporting border tea sometimes required horses or even days of walking to reach the destination.
Due to the gap in the demand for tea from the population in border tea-selling regions, the Xiaguan Tea Factory needs annual reserves of more than 10,000 tons of tea. For the tea factory of that era, Pu'er cake tea was not the focus of their work; these products represented only a very small part of the total production. The priority was to produce the border tea that people in border areas needed.
Since 2000, with the increasing popularity of Pu'er tea in the interior of the mainland each year, the production of tea from the Xiaguan Tea Factory and cake tea has also increased. On the other hand, in traditional tea-consuming regions, due to the increasing number of local migrant workers, local aging has become severely pronounced, and the tea-consuming population has begun to decline. Additionally, traditional butter tea, oil tea, and salt tea are higher in calories, and year-round consumption of water is detrimental to the elderly. As people's living standards improve, and with the development of transportation, the sale of various tea products reaches the border areas, and consumers also have many more choices. Before 2000, the economy of our country's border region was relatively underdeveloped, and border tea sales depended entirely on political subsidies to maintain production, and prices were low. Later, the state removed financial subsidies for tea sales, and many tea companies that were selling tea at a loss began to cease production of border tea. But for the Xiaguan Tea Factory, the production of border tea has been a mission and a social responsibility for years, and it will continue to adhere to it in the future.
Times are developing, transportation is progressing, and the increasing solitude of selling tea bricks reflects the power of the homeland and the increasingly better living conditions for people on the border. In the past, the paths have changed, the old villages have changed their appearance; the only thing that does not change is the fragrance of Xiaguan tea.
The Xiaguan Tea Factory, with Baoyan Cun tea and other border tea products, has taken on a major responsibility and mission in the long river of history. From the past to the present, the Xiaguan Tea Factory has always kept its promise to provide high-quality tea to ethnic minority compatriots in border areas, despite the difficulties, but has never given up. In the days to come, I am convinced that the Xiaguan Tea Factory will continue to transmit this mission, contributing to the development of border tea, so that the scent of Xiaguan tea will bloom forever in the border region.
The article is accompanied by images of tea bricks from the Xiaguan Tea Factory in 2001. After twenty years, the tea soup is no longer sharp, with boiling water, it has an amber red color, the tea is soft, clear and pure, the taste of years radiates its splendor at this moment, the entrance is thick and lubricated, the particular aroma and taste of early Xiaguan Pu'er green tea bloom in the mouth, allowing people to rediscover their sweetness.