Pinghe Baiya Qilan

Identity and origin#

Identity. The finished regional tea and the Baiya Qilan cultivar are related but separate records.

Origin. The CNIPA protection requirements specify a defined group of townships and villages in Pinghe and plant material selected from the local Baiya Qilan mother tree. The cultivar name on a tea grown elsewhere does not itself establish the protected Pinghe origin.

Leaf maturity and the orchid impression#

Zhongguo mingchazhi (2000, pp. 393–394) describes harvesting three or four leaves from shoots whose terminal bud has stopped growing and whose upper leaves have begun to open. Its processing account follows the leaf through alternating agitation and rest until the grassy smell recedes and an orchid-like aroma emerges, then fixation, rolling, repeated cloth shaping and drying. The final slow bake develops aroma. This historical description connects Baiya Qilan’s character to both cultivar and skilled handling; it is not a fixed timetable for every modern batch.