Gay Tea Region

(Baonghean) - Now, Gay tea (Cao Son - Anh Son) has become a specialty of Nghe An. But to take root and sprout to give life its rich sweet and bitter taste, the tea tree of this land has also gone through many ups and downs...

The elders of the tea land also do not remember how Cao Son land became associated with tea, or whether tea came to this barren hilly land to contribute a bit of hometown love to those who have gone far away and still yearn for it. They only know that in Cao Son now there are still many tea gardens up to 40 - 50 years old, and the tea trees have now become the pride of the people of the hilly land.

Tea hills in Cao Son commune (Anh Son).

In the past, the four communes of Cao Son, Tao Son, Linh Son, Lang Son were originally new economic zones, people from all over the district came here to settle down on the barren hilly land, almost without human footprints. Growing rice at that time was a "gamble" with the sky because the climate, water sources... were all difficult. The Cao Son people also tried many ways to make a living, there were many forests and mountains, but "Eating from the forest makes one's eyes water", that was not a long-term direction. Anh Son land was originally tea land, so the Cao Son people at that time searched for tea varieties to plant on their land. Tea could only be grown by the only way of making a hole (punching holes to plant seeds). The hilly land was endlessly barren, with only wild plants crowded together. One had to go very far, through fields, through deserts for half a day to find a place to cut down trees, and dig a hoe into the hilly soil, creating sparks to make grooves for the weak tea seeds to be born.

Growing tea is so hard that there is a saying: “Don’t marry a gay man/ Eat two meals at night, no meals during the day”. Every year, the tree only needs to be weeded, dug trenches, and fertilized twice. When the time comes, people will make a root ball (remove ineffective branches) for the tree. In the third year, from the time the seeds are sown, the tea can be harvested regularly. The tea tree is also very capricious, forcing the harvester to only use their hands to break the branches, not to use a sickle or knife, as if the tree doesn’t want to be hurt, only the hands of the caretaker can separate the branches and leaves from the mother tea tree.

The taste of Gay tea is fragrant and sweet, the leaves of Gay tea are also different. Each leaf is big, shiny, very crispy and easy to break. The land does not disappoint the people, the tea tree grows in this land, suitable for the valley, the weather, so it has created a very different and unique flavor, only Gay tea has. Leaving Cao Son land, the taste of tea has changed. Like the Xa Doai orange tree, only in that land, the orange is so fragrant and sweet. The tree seems to have a predestined relationship with people, or is it thanks to people's love that the tree repays?

Nowadays, Cao Son often has a large fleet of trucks transporting tea to remote areas. Tea just picked from the branches, not yet dry of sap, is loaded onto carts to go everywhere. According to the old people in Cao Son, in the past, tea trees were brought to Dong Ben, onto merchants' boats going down to Sa Nam (Nam Dan), then following the Lam River further. The name Gay tea originated from the old days, Cao Son tea was often brought to Gay market (in Linh Son land) to sell because there was a boat dock there, making it easy to transport and trade. Consumers only focus on Gay tea and seem to forget Cao Son land, the land that has endured the sun and rain to make that famous tea.

Tea harvest.

To have a pot of delicious Gay tea, first of all, people choose thick and lush tea leaves (not too old and not too young). The water used to cook the tea is usually rainwater or water from a well with gravel, then the water will be sweet. Cooking the tea usually uses a pot or a clay pot. The tea must be put in properly, not crushed, but also not left intact because the tea leaves take a long time to soak, but must be gently crushed, and yellow leaves and rotten leaves must be picked off. The firewood used to cook the tea must be the kind that does not fade the flavor of the tea, such as eucalyptus, xoan dau, bamboo... Green tea water is like a sincere, gentle friend that is very close to every family here. Every day is the same, fresh green tea water greets the new day to many people before going to the fields.

Looking at the tea hills and tea gardens stretching out in the golden sunlight at the end of the day, I suddenly thought that the Cao Son tea tree has given life its bitterness and fragrance, offering life the quintessence of a tree's life. Now the tea tree wants someone to name it, to define that silent sacrifice.

Cong Manh