英德市
Yingde
Karst-and-hill city in northern Guangdong, home of Yingde black tea (英红) from large-leaf cultivars bred at the provincial tea station founded here in 1959.
At a glance#
Where it lies#
Tea places nearby, plotted by their coordinates. Only physical positions are shown, no boundaries.
87 places shown Across the view · 460 km
11 places shown Across the view · 112 km
Terroir#
- Soil
- Gardens mostly on gentle hill slopes with deep, fertile soil, pH about 4.5–5.
- Slope and light
- South-subtropical monsoon climate. About 80% of rain falls from April to September, and the relative humidity averages 77%. The rainiest belts get 2,100–2,500 mm (Lixi to Lianjiangkou, and the northern hills of Hengshitang). The landscape is partly karst; the overseas-Chinese tea farms (英红, 英华, 黄陂) are on lower hills.
Cultivation#
- Cultivars grown
- 英红九号 (Yinghong No. 9)Yunnan large-leaf
- Landraces
- Yinghong No. 9 was selected by the Guangdong tea research institute from Yunnan large-leaf material.
- Practice
- Black tea for export began on state and overseas-Chinese tea farms. Today whole-leaf Yinghong No. 9 sits alongside the older broken-grade lines.
Local words#
Market#
- Output
- Exported to over 40 countries and regions, including the UK, Germany and the US (zh-Wikipedia). No reliable tonnage found.
- Prices of teas claiming this origin
- Not researched.
Misnaming to watch for: 'Yinghong No. 9' is a cultivar, not a guarantee of Yingde origin. The 1963 royal-banquet claim is marketing lore.
History#
- 1959Yingde black tea first processed mechanically.
- 1959-01Guangdong Yingde Tea Experiment Station (广东省英德茶叶试验站) founded.
- 1963Claimed: Yingde black tea served at a banquet for Queen Elizabeth II. Weakly sourced (dead citation); zh sources say only 'the 1960s'.
- 1966-01The station is expanded into the Central South Tea Research Institute (中南茶叶研究所).
- 1973Decision to establish the Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences Tea Research Institute, based at Yingde.
- 1986Broken tea No. 2 (碎茶2号) wins a gold award in Paris.
- 2012-05The institute's registered seat moves to Guangzhou; the 1,087-mu Yingde base is kept.
- 2018Yingde black tea making (红茶制作技艺（英德红茶制作技艺）, Ⅷ-97) listed as Guangdong provincial intangible heritage.
Other names and written forms 3#
Chinese variants
- 英红(Yinghong)
Translations and trade names
- Ying De
- YingdehongCommon English rendering of 英德红茶.
Names and ambiguities#
Notes#
Yingde black tea (英德红茶, 'Yinghong') is a national GI product. It is graded in the four classic broken-tea classes: leaf, broken, fannings and dust (叶、片、碎、末). The industry rests on Yunnan large-leaf stock. The tea station founded at Yingde in January 1959 became the Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences Tea Research Institute and bred Yinghong No. 9 (英红九号) from Yunnan large-leaf material, selected in the 1960s. Today Yinghong No. 9 is the flagship name, made as whole-leaf tea with a sweet, often floral aroma. The institute moved its registered seat to Guangzhou in 2012 but kept a 1,087-mu experimental base at Yingde. Yingde black tea making was listed as Guangdong provincial intangible heritage in 2018. The repeated story that the tea was served at a 1963 banquet for Queen Elizabeth II is weakly sourced: English Wikipedia cites a dead link, and zh-Wikipedia says only 'the 1960s'. Treat it as promotional lore.
Listings claiming this origin 1#
Price ranks compare recorded retail offers for the same tea, including offers outside the current delivery filter. Shipping and import charges are excluded.
Prices compared in the selected currency; unknown values appear last.
| Product | Vendor | Price | Per 100 g |
|---|---|---|---|
Yingde Hong Cha
DetailsCompare the details Recorded seller claims; a blank means unrecorded here, not necessarily absent from the seller’s page. Matching production does not establish identical storage or condition.
|
Curious TeaWorldwide |
£12.50 / 50 g | $33.37 £25.00 / 100 g |
Prices recorded on the dates checked. Conversions use ECB rates dated 2026-10-20; original prices appear alongside. Origin, age and cultivar are stated by the vendor.