Pingshui Pearl Tea, one of the "famous Chinese cultural teas", is produced in Pingshui Town, Keqiao District, the only "Hometown of Chinese Pearl Tea". According to research, pearl tea originated in the Song Dynasty, became popular in the Ming Dynasty, became a tribute tea for the imperial court in the early Qing Dynasty and began to be exported in large quantities. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Pingshui had become a distribution center for tea processing and trade. After Ningbo, Shanghai and other ports were opened to trade in the 23rd year of Daoguang in the Qing Dynasty (1842), Pingshui Town became the processing center and main distribution center of pearl tea in my country. "Pingshui Pearl Tea" also became famous from this period. Tea merchants at home and abroad all knew about China's Pingshui Pearl Tea. It became the most famous tea and one of the earliest exported teas in my country at that time, and was known as the "green pearl". In the second year of Xuantong (1910), the "Wannianqing Brand" Pingshui Pearl Tea was "praised" by the Nanyang Industrial Exposition. Today, the export volume of roasted pearl tea in Keqiao District accounts for 3/5 of the total pearl tea export volume in China, which is close to 30% of the total green tea export volume in China. It is the largest export agricultural product in Keqiao District and is sold in more than 40 countries and regions, playing a positive role in spreading Chinese tea culture. Pearl tea is also called round tea. Because it is produced in Pingshui area, it is also called Pingchaoqing, Pinglu, etc. Pearl tea originated from Rizhu tea. During the Tang and Song dynasties, tea was mainly made into pressed cakes and round tea by steaming and grinding. The tribute tea before the Song Dynasty was called "dragon cake", "phoenix cake", "ground paste", etc. In the Song Dynasty, loose tea (also known as grass tea) made by the stir-fried green tea method became popular, and the most representative tea was the sun-cast tea produced in the sun-cast ridge of Pingshui Town. Lu You wrote in the poem "Tea Testing in Anguoyuan" that "Sun-cast tea is Yue tea, not round or cake, but stir-fried green, called goshawk claw, and it is a kind of tea that is brewed in a pinch"; Ouyang Xiu of the Northern Song Dynasty wrote in "Return to the Fields" that "grass tea is popular in Liangzhe (Eastern Zhejiang and Western Zhejiang), and among the products in Liangzhe, sun-cast tea is the best". Sun-cast tea is hook-shaped, like a semicircle. Influenced by the dragon and phoenix round tea of the former imperial palace, it gradually rolled into a round shape due to heavy kneading and pressure during the long development process, thus forming a new type of tea, pearl tea. Therefore, Pingshui is the origin of pearl tea. Pingshui pearl tea has a round and tight appearance, a green and moist color, and a heavy body, just like a dark green pearl. After brewing with boiling water, the pearl tea is released and unfolded, which is very interesting. The tea soup is fragrant and strong, and it can be brewed for a long time. The frying of Pingshui pearl tea needs to go through primary processing and refining secondary processing, and the key process is primary processing. The frying method is very particular, and it has to go through three processes: killing green, rolling, and drying. The drying process can be divided into four process projects: "frying two greens", "frying three greens", "frying in pairs", and "frying in a big pot". In the past, it took more than 10 hours to fry a pot of pearl tea by hand, and the labor intensity was very high, so there is a saying that "a pound of tea makes you sweat on your heels, and a season of tea makes you thin." The finished pearl tea falls on the plate with a sound, which can be called a unique green tea. In July 2012, it was included in the fourth batch of Zhejiang Province's intangible cultural heritage list. Information source: Shaoxing Cultural Center Information source: Shaoxing Cultural Center