Xiaohusai (小户赛)

Introduction

Xiaohusai (小户赛), an ancient tea region nestled deep within the Gongnong Village Committee (公弄村委会) of Mengku Town (勐库镇), Shuangjiang County (双江县), Yunnan Province (云南省), has recently gained prominence in the Pu-erh (普洱) tea world, particularly for its reputation as “Sai Bingdao” (赛冰岛, rivaling Bingdao). This report aims to conduct an in-depth study of Xiaohusai Pu-erh tea, covering its historical origins, village composition, tea enterprise status, and the underlying reasons for its popularity, with the goal of providing comprehensive and detailed reference for Pu-erh tea enthusiasts and industry researchers.

Xiaohusai not only boasts large tracts of well-preserved ancient tea gardens but also carries a long history of tea cultivation and a unique ethnic culture. Its tea products, with their distinctive taste and aroma, have stood out in the fierce market competition, becoming a dark horse in the Pu-erh tea market. This report will strive to objectively present the true face and development potential of Xiaohusai Pu-erh tea through the collation and analysis of existing data.

I. History and Village Composition of Xiaohusai

Xiaohusai (小户赛) is located in the Gongnong Village Committee (公弄村委会) of Mengku Town (勐库镇), Shuangjiang County (双江县), Yunnan Province (云南省), deep in the western half-mountain region, backed by the majestic Mengku Grand Snow Mountain (勐库大雪山, also known as Bangma Grand Snow Mountain 邦马大雪山). This area not only has large tracts of well-preserved ancient tea gardens but also a long history of tea cultivation. Before the Blang (布朗族) and Lahu (拉祜族) ethnic groups settled here, Xiaohusai and the Gongnong area were inhabited by the Blang people, who are considered one of the earliest ethnic groups to cultivate tea trees in Yunnan, laying a profound foundation for Xiaohusai’s tea culture.

Xiaohusai currently has about 200 households, consisting of three main villages: one Han Chinese (汉族) village and two Lahu ethnic villages. These three villages are arranged in a row on the mountainside of the main peak of Bangma Grand Snow Mountain, with the Han Chinese village about one kilometer away from the two Lahu villages. The Lahu ethnic group constitutes the majority of the population in Xiaohusai, accounting for about 70% of the total households. They mainly reside in Liangzi Village (梁子寨) and Wazi Village (洼子寨). These two villages are very close to each other and possess the largest and oldest ancient tea gardens in the Xiaohusai area.

The history of the Han Chinese village in Xiaohusai is relatively short, only about 100 years old. During the Daoguang (道光) period of the Qing Dynasty (清朝), a Han Chinese named Chen Zhongde (陈忠德) moved with his family from Doufu Village (豆腐寨), which was across the river from Xiaohusai, and built a bamboo shed to live there. Subsequently, other Han Chinese residents with surnames such as Yang (杨), Li (李), and Tang (唐) also moved in, gradually forming the Han Chinese village. The Lahu people called the village where the Han Chinese lived “Yizhai” (以寨), meaning “the innermost village.” Before the Guangxu (光绪) period, the Han Chinese population in Xiaohusai was not large, and the Han Chinese even needed to help the Lahu people cultivate land and build houses, and both sides lived in harmony. Han Chinese residents reclaimed paddy fields on the barren slopes below the village, solving the food problem. Since the Lahu villages already had tea gardens, the Han Chinese residents also desired to have their own tea gardens. They obtained the right to clear land by presenting rice and wine to the Lahu headmen and then cleared a slope near their own village to establish new tea gardens.

Liangzi Village’s (梁子寨) ancient tea garden is one of the best-preserved ancient tea gardens in Mengku (勐库) and even Shuangjiang (双江). The ancient tea trees here generally have a circumference of over 1 meter and a height of over 5 meters, with at least 300 mu (亩, about 20 hectares) of ancient tea trees forming forests. Among them, more than ten ancient tea trees have a circumference exceeding 150 centimeters, with wide canopies and intertwined roots, indicating that they could not have grown to such a size in just two or three hundred years. They were likely planted during the Ming Dynasty (明代) or even earlier. Despite the inconvenient transportation in Xiaohusai, the vastness of its ancient tea gardens is astonishing.

Liangzi Village (梁子寨) is a distinctive ancient tea village, where almost every household has ancient tea trees growing in front of and behind their homes. Lush green ancient tea trees surround rows of houses, making it difficult to distinguish whether the village was built in the tea forest or the tea trees were planted in the village. The Lahu people of Liangzi Village work amidst the aroma of tea during the day and sleep with the scent of tea at night. They fully enjoy the blessings brought by tea, earning income from selling tea year after year.

The large preservation of ancient tea gardens in Xiaohusai is closely related to its inconvenient transportation. The Gungang River (滚岗河) and Chashan River (茶山河) flow down from Bangma Grand Snow Mountain (邦马大雪山), separating the three villages of Xiaohusai from left to right, front to back. All roads leading in and out of Xiaohusai must pass through these two rivers. During the rainy season, the river flow increases, making it difficult for people and livestock to pass. From June to September, the dirt roads become muddy and even cars cannot enter. The obstruction of these two rivers slowed down the renovation of old tea gardens in Xiaohusai, thus preserving its original ecological appearance.

Although the two rivers cause some inconvenience for travel in Xiaohusai, the people of Xiaohusai have a deep affection for them. The river water ensures that Xiaohusai’s paddy fields never dry up, and when it doesn’t rain, the river water is crystal clear and can be drunk directly. The Chashan River (茶山河) originates from the wild tea forest of Bangma Grand Snow Mountain (邦马大雪山), where the world’s tea king tree is located, and the first pure fragrance emitted by that tree blends into the clear stream of the Chashan River.

Another large tea garden in Xiaohusai is located near the Chashan River (茶山河). There is an ancient path about 3 kilometers long from Liangzi Village (梁子寨) to the Chashan River, with tea trees growing on both sides of the path. The tea gardens along this path include those planted after 1958 and during the Republic of China (民国) period. The tea trees planted during the Republic of China period have main trunks as thick as small bowls, but these old tea trees have been dwarfed. From their thick, short stumps, large clusters of tender leaves and buds emerge, each bud firm and fuzzy, making them very appealing. The ancient tea garden in Xiaohusai is so vast that it takes more than three hours to walk through it. The tea garden extends upwards to the primeval forest and downwards to the paddy fields at the foot of the mountain. There are also many old tea trees on the earthen banks along the Chashan River, but they are surrounded by wild trees and vines and cannot be picked.

II. Xiaohusai Tea Manufacturers and Industry Status

The unique quality of Xiaohusai (小户赛) Pu-erh (普洱) tea has attracted numerous tea enterprises and brands. Currently, manufacturers and brands involved in Xiaohusai Pu-erh tea include, but are not limited to:

• Mengdai Tea Factory (勐傣茶厂)
• Qin’ai Tea Factory (沁爱茶厂)
• Shuangjiang Dafuzhai Pollution-Free Tea Factory (双江大富寨无公害茶厂)
• Jinqiao (津乔) (has launched Xiaohusai series products)
• Chengjian Pu-erh Shanpin (程健普洱善品)
• Zhenwu (斟悟)
• Xiaohusai Social Enterprise (XIAOHUSAI TEA) (小户赛社会企业): This is a social enterprise operated by high school students from Shanghai (上海). Its uniqueness lies in its aim to support local tea farmers and fund the education of children in Yunnan (云南) by selling organic Xiaohusai tea. All sales profits of this enterprise are reinvested into Xiaohusai Village or used for research and development, reflecting its sense of social responsibility and sustainable development philosophy.

In terms of tea processing, the Xiaohusai area primarily adopted traditional pure hand-made tea methods before liberation. After liberation, the labor cooperative in Xiaohusai established a primary processing plant to process fresh leaves into black tea. In recent years, with the significant improvement in transportation conditions, Xiaohusai has become more closely connected with the outside world. This has not only attracted more tea merchants and enterprises to purchase tea but also promoted the improvement of local tea processing technology and the modernization of the industry. The rise in tea prices has further stimulated the prosperity of the local tea industry, continuously expanding the popularity and market influence of Xiaohusai tea.

III. Reasons for the Popularity of Xiaohusai Pu-erh Tea

The reason why Xiaohusai (小户赛) Pu-erh (普洱) tea has stood out among many Pu-erh teas and rapidly gained popularity is mainly due to the following core factors:

1. Unique Geographical Environment and Ancient Tea Garden Resources: Xiaohusai (小户赛) is located deep in the western half-mountain region of Mengku (勐库), backed by Bangma Grand Snow Mountain (邦马大雪山), and possesses the largest and best-preserved ancient tea gardens in the Mengku area. Its unique natural environment, including high mountains, clouds, abundant rainfall, and fertile soil, provides excellent conditions for the growth of tea trees. These ancient tea trees are rich in internal substances and have a balanced proportion, giving Xiaohusai Pu-erh tea a unique flavor and excellent quality. Its pristine ecological environment and ancient tea gardens, untouched by modern agriculture, allow Xiaohusai tea to retain its “most original” and “most authentic” taste, making it highly favored by consumers who seek natural tea products.

2. Excellent Quality and Prominent Taste Characteristics: Xiaohusai (小户赛) Pu-erh tea has distinct and recognizable quality characteristics. Its dry tea leaves are fat, with round stems and strong leaves, and a dark green color with visible down. After brewing, the tea soup is light yellow and bright, with a strong honey aroma that is high and persistent, and a lingering aroma at the bottom of the cup. The taste is sweet and mellow, the mouthfeel is smooth, the water path is delicate, the bitterness and astringency dissipate quickly, and the huigan (回甘) and salivation are rapid and strong, leaving a lingering fragrance in the mouth and a comfortable, lasting throat rhyme. These comprehensive excellent taste performances make Xiaohusai tea highly attractive in terms of drinking experience, winning the favor of many tea lovers.

3. Promotion by Improved Transportation and Market Development: For a long time, Xiaohusai (小户赛) was little known due to its inconvenient transportation, which to some extent protected the pristine ecology of its ancient tea gardens but also limited the circulation of its tea and brand building. In recent years, with the improvement of local infrastructure, road conditions have significantly improved, allowing more tea merchants and enterprises to enter the Xiaohusai area for tea purchasing, processing, and promotion. The convenience of transportation has broken the geographical limitations of Xiaohusai tea, enabling it to enter the market more widely and be recognized and accepted by more consumers. At the same time, the active promotion by tea enterprises and media has also played an important role in the popularity of Xiaohusai tea.

In summary, the popularity of Xiaohusai (小户赛) Pu-erh (普洱) tea is the result of the combined effects of its excellent quality, unique geographical environment, similar taste to star tea products, improved transportation, and social responsibility. Its reputation as “Sai Bingdao” (赛冰岛) has further pushed it into the spotlight of the Pu-erh tea market, making it a highly sought-after emerging force.