Nguyên nhân trà đen Trung Quốc khan hiếm

trà đen nổi tiếng của Trung Quốc ngày càng khó tìm, và trong thời gian ngắn vẫn sẽ tiếp tục  khan  hiếm. 

-----

Recently, the British broadcaster (phát thanh viên) and columnist Adrian Chiles wrote about his challenges sourcing one of his favorite teas: the distinctive (khác biệt), not always pleasingly smoky brew known as lapsang souchong (một loại trà đen). After being unable to find it on grocery (tạp hóa) store shelves, Chiles is gifted a box of Twinings’ “Distinctively Smoky” tea, which the brand claims was “inspired by lapsang souchong.”

Unsurprisingly, the imitator (bản bắt chước) proves disappointing, and Chiles is left to bemoan (than thở) the “supply problems” that have cost him a beloved beverage (thức uống) — or at least, forced him to consider buying the leaves in loose form. What he may not realize is that the shortage goes beyond pandemic-era (thời kỳ đại dịch) bugaboos (vấn đề) like snarled (lộn xộn) supply chains or soaring (tăng) labor (nhân công) costs: Authentic lapsang souchong is on the verge of extinction.

Even by the standards (tiêu chuẩn) of tea, the origins of lapsang souchong are murky (u ám) at best. In the village of Tongmu, located deep in the mountains of southeast China’s Fujian province and where the best lapsang souchong teas are produced, locals chalk it up (ghi lại) to an accident of history. In the mid-17th century, as the Ming dynasty was collapsing, a group of soldiers supposedly stopped in the village during the tea-harvesting (thu hoạch) season. Seizing a tea-processing facility (cơ sở vật chất), they drove the workers out and made beds for themselves out of the leaves they found scattered over the ground. The next day, after the soldiers left, the workers returned to find the tea dried out and blackened (hóa đen) by the soldiers’ body heat.

...Separating fact from fiction in that account isn’t easy, but in at least one sense it rings true: lapsang souchong has always been more popular abroad than in China. The differing tastes of tea drinkers in China and overseas led to the creation of distinct varieties of lapsang souchong, catering to different markets. The version enjoyed abroad emphasizes the tea’s smoky flavors (hương vị), with many producers opting to (lựa chọn) smoke it twice.

source: Sixth Tone,