18 Imperial Dragon Well Tea Trees
The 18 Imperial Dragon Well Tea Trees are located in Hangzhou in China’s Zhejiang Province. The trees produce Dragon Well Tea and are a national treasure due to their history and age. They are the centerpiece of a tea park filled with tea trees, ancient relics, and tea pavilions.
The ancient tea trees date back to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and get their fame from Emperor Qianlong. It is said that he traveled to Hangzhou during his reign on a tour of the country. He enjoyed the local tea and wanted to pick some himself. While picking tea from those 18 trees, he got a message that his mother was very ill and he needed to rush back to Beijing. He put the tea he had picked in his sleeve and rushed back. When he got back to Beijing, his mother was instantly fine. While they were chatting, she smelled a fragrance coming from his sleeve and he removed the leaves he had forgotten he had. They had been pressed flat and dried completely by his body heat. His mother brewed them and truly enjoyed the tea’s flavor and aroma. The Emperor asked for it to be sent annually as tribute to The Forbidden City. The tea leaves, to this day, are flat to represent the tea pressed in the emperor’s sleeve.
The 18 Imperial Dragon Well Tea Trees’ tea park is a haven for tea lovers. The park is filled with a variety of tea houses and pavilions in different sizes and traditional architectural designs. The area is back by a mountain covered with tea trees. It is a fantastic place to learn more about the history of Dragon Well Tea, while relaxing in nature’s beauty and sipping Chinese Tea.
