老枞老樅
Term · Cultivars
lao cong
Literal meaning
old + bush (written with 枞 'fir' in place of 丛 'bush')
Definition#
'Old bush': tea from long-established bushes, most often in 老枞水仙 (Laocong Shuixian). There is no binding age threshold; Chinese sources commonly cite 50+ years, and vendor claims range from about 15 to over 100 years. Old-bush Shuixian is associated with woody, mossy 'cong' character (枞味).
Translation and usage#
| Language | Use | Alternatives & cautions |
|---|---|---|
| English | lao cong tea from old bushes; no fixed age threshold pinyin with a gloss |
Also acceptable
Avoid old tree (as in gushu) Wuyi bushes are pruned shrubs; 'gushu' language belongs to Yunnan arbor trees 100-year-old (without evidence) age claims are unregulated |
| Deutsch | Lao Cong Tee von alten Teebüschen pinyin with a gloss |
Also acceptable
Avoid Lao Shu Teahouse.de labels its Shui Xian 'Lao Shu' (老树 'old tree'), a different, Yunnan-style term |
| Русский | Лао Цун чай со старых кустов pinyin with a gloss |
Also acceptable
Avoid Лао Чун wrong reading of 枞 |
| 简体字 | 老枞 | |
| 繁體字 | 老樅 | Regional usage
|
| 日本語 | 老樅 中国の茶用語を残した説明表記。日本語の慣用読みに置き換えたものではない。 translation |
Also acceptable
|
Common confusions#
- Characters alternate between 老枞 and 老丛 (Jiemian uses 老丛); 枞 is strictly a fir tree but has become the trade spelling.
- TeaDB warns that 'lao cong' is used to up-sell ordinary Shuixian and advises scepticism about age claims.
- German shops sometimes import Yunnan-style 'Lao Shu' (old tree) language.
- The written forms and readings should be distinguished: 老枞 / 老樅 uses cōng, while 老丛 / 老叢 normally uses cóng in Mandarin. The Taiwan Ministry of Education historical dictionary also records cōng as an alternate reading of 叢. This does not establish one pronunciation for every regional tea-trade spelling.