(Reporter Jie Xingwei and Correspondent Qiu Fangfang) Reporters learned on December 9th that a type of Yihong Black Tea product, a famous brand of Yichang that dates back to over 100 years ago won the grand prize of the twelfth “Zhongcha (Chinese Teas) Cup”National Premium Teas Appraisal Competition held several days ago.

　　Ever since its establishment in 2016, the member institutions of Yichang Black Tea Standard Association have made great efforts for a constant promotion of the standardization of Yichang black tea. This year, Yichang Academy of Agricultural Science collaborated with the related institutions to engage in the application and upgrading of the black tea processing technology on the basis of the standards proposed by the Standard Association and remarkable achievements have previously been made. The innovation subsequent to the implementation of the standards has successively been recognized by the national authoritative rating agencies, which demonstrates the progressively maturing technology of tea processing as well as the vital role of the standard in upgrading of Y the tea products.

　　The prize suggests a good start for the standardized production of high-class Yihong tea and a deserved evaluation of this public brand, which will promote the strategic advance of the development of Yichang tea industry.

　　It is known that “Zhongcha (Chinese Teas) Cup” National Premium Teas Appraisal Competition is the most authoritative national teas appraisal with strict rules, to guide the production of national premium teas to standardization, cleanness, mechanization and sustainable development, and it enjoys the longest history and the highest credibility among the appraisals of the same sort. The award-winning product of Yihong tea is produced by the Tea Research Institute of Yichang Academy of Agricultural Science on the basis of the standards proposed by Yichang Black Tea Association, characterized by “orange soup, mellow taste and fruity odor”. “Yihong Tea” was recorded to have first been produced in the mid-19th century, with a history of more than one hundred years, as a typical type of traditional Congou teas with distinctive geographical features that shared as popular as Keemun black tea and Yunnan black tea. Yichang, as the birthplace of Yihong Black Tea, has been attaching great importance to transforming the advantages of ecological environment and high quality of Yihong black tea into its competitive force in the market to improve its brand value and influence for integrated and further development of Yihong black tea. Wang Youhai, Dean of Yichang Academy of Agricultural Science said Yichang Black Tea Standard Association would continuously strive for constant innovative achievements and promotion of the standardized production of Yichang tea production with powerful technical support for establishment of the public brand of Yichang teas.