The traditional Chinese tea-making techniques successfully joined the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on November 29, 2022, which include the processing techniques of Nanlu Bian Tea and Mengshan Tea from Ya'an City, Sichuan Province.

 

Sichuan province has a long history of tea cultivation, with Ya'an city in particular enjoying considerable fame. There, the average yearly temperature is about 15 degrees, and the constant mist and rain help the nitrogenous compounds in tea leaves form.

 

 

Nanlu Bian Tea is a representative of the dark tea category, with a history of more than 1,300 years. It has to go through 32 making procedures, making it the dark tea variety with the most complicated processing techniques.

 

Mengshan Tea belongs to the green tea category and is named after its main production area — Mengding Mountain in Ya'an. Famed as one of the 10 most famous teas in China, Mengshan Tea also boasts an elaborate making process, mainly including picking, cooling, enzyme inactivation, rolling, trimming and tipping, and baking.