---
title: "Nánshān báimáo chá"
url: https://thetea.app/article/nanshan-baimao-cha
lang: en
updated: 2026-10-01
source: THE TEA — encyclopedia of Chinese tea (https://thetea.app)
---
# Nánshān báimáo chá (南山白毛茶)

*Nánshān báimáo chá* (南山白毛茶) is a green tea of Nanshan Mountain in the county-level city of Hengzhou (横州市, formerly Hengxian County, 横县) of the city of Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The name means “white-haired tea of Nanshan” and refers to the down on the buds of the local bush, not to the white class: the technology in the protection document is green. Since 2009 it has been a geographical indication product for the whole county.

**1. Classification and Origin:**

* **Type:** Green tea (绿茶, *lǜchá*). The class is derived from the technology in the protection document: spreading, fixation, rolling, drying — without the withering of white tea, the sealed yellowing of yellow tea, or oxidation. The words “green tea” do not appear in the document; reference descriptions assign the tea to green teas.
* **Category:** Famous tea of Guangxi; geographical indication product (2009).
* **Origin:** China, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (广西, *Guǎngxī*), the city of Nanning (南宁, *Nánníng*), the county-level city of Hengzhou (横州, *Héngzhōu*). The demonstration zone of the gardens, according to reference data, is in Nayang Town (那阳镇).
* **Protection zone:** According to the announcement — the entire administrative territory of Hengxian County within its boundaries at the time of protection.
* **Geographic coordinates:** Hengzhou — about 22.7° N and 109.3° E.

**2. History and Cultural Significance:**

* **History:**
    * **Legend.** According to legend, the Ming emperor Jianwen (建文帝), hiding from pursuit, came to the Yingtian Temple (应天寺) on Nanshan Mountain and planted there seven bushes of white-haired tea that he had brought with him. Hence the tea's second name — “圣种” (*shèngzhǒng*), “sacred seed”.
    * **1810.** A reference book on geographical indications writes that in the 15th year of Jiaqing (嘉庆) of the Qing dynasty Nanshan Baimao Cha was included among the 24 famous teas of the country.
    * **1915.** In the same book: at the exposition in honor of the opening of the Panama Canal the tea received a second-class silver award. The same reference book also names a silver medal of the “Panama Exposition” of 1822 (2nd year of Daoguang, 道光) — a century before the canal; the tea's reputation as one of the first Chinese prize-winners at international exhibitions also rests on it. I consider this date an error of the source.
    * **1933.** According to the same reference book, the government of Guangxi Province presented the tea with a plaque inscribed “品胜武夷” — “surpasses Wuyi in quality”.
    * **2006.** According to a report by the Guangxi patent office (2012), a tea company was founded in the county, the mark “圣种” was registered, and the red tea “圣种红茶” was made from Nanshan Baimao raw material; the planting area is given there as 340 ha.
    * **2009.** The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ), by announcement No. 68 of July 9, 2009, placed Nanshan Baimao Cha under protection as a geographical indication product.
    * **2016.** According to reference data, 1000 mu of organic gardens were laid out in the demonstration zone of Nayang Town, of which 510 mu passed certification.
* **Name:** “Nanshan” (南山) means “Southern Mountain”, the place of the tea; “baimao” (白毛) means “white down”; “cha” (茶) means tea.
* **Cultural significance:** Reference works repeat old praise: *Guangxi Tongjian* (广西通鉴) compares the downy leaf to snow and silver needles and notes an aroma of lotus and honey, while *Yuexi Zhiwu Jiyao* (粤西植物纪要) places this tea above Longjing in color and taste. The temple from the legend is named Yingtian Shoufo Temple (应天寿佛寺) in the description of a local company.

**3. Botanical Description and Raw Material:**

* **Variety:** The protection document names the cultivated variety with a single word — “白毛茶” (*báimáochá*), the local white-haired bush. According to a reference description, it is a medium-leaf variety with sturdy buds and dense down (中叶种品种，芽壮毫密). Another reference description calls the population a small tree (小[乔木](https://thetea.app/article/qiaomuguanmu)) of the medium-leaf type, heterogeneous because of long seed propagation, and its pubescence medium, not dense; the buds break at the end of February — beginning of March.
* **Propagation:** According to the document — pure-variety cuttings or seedlings (扦插苗或实生苗).
* **Harvest time:** According to the document — spring and autumn.
* **Harvest standard:** According to the document, for the top grade (特级) a single bud is picked; for the first grade — no less than 90% “bud and leaf” and no more than 10% “bud and two leaves”. Reference retellings are softer: for the top grade — a bud with a barely unfolded leaf or a bud with a leaf.

**4. Terroir and Cultivation Features:**

* **Nanshan Mountain:** Reference descriptions place the gardens by the Nanshan Temple and the main peak of the mountain, at an altitude of 800–1000 m, with an average annual temperature of about 20 °C and more than 1500 mm of precipitation a year; there is much rain, and clouds and fogs are frequent.
* **Growing altitude:** According to the document, the gardens are no lower than 200 m, and the harvest is in the 200–600 m belt; this does not agree with the reference 800–1000 m.
* **Soils:** According to the document — loose, with a large share of gravel and sand (含沙砾多), at least 39 cm thick, with pH 4.0–6.5 and organic matter of at least 1.5%; good drainage and irrigation are needed.
* **Agricultural practice according to the document:** Planting density — 45,000–70,000 plants per hectare; planting in spring or autumn; organic fertilizers — no less than 1500 kg per mu, mineral fertilizers — no more than 50 kg per mu.

**5. Production Technology:**

The protection document sets only the sequence of stages and one number:

1.  **Spreading the fresh leaf (摊青, *tānqīng*):** At least three hours.
2.  **Fixation (杀青, *shāqīng*):** Heating stops oxidation.
3.  **Rolling (揉捻, *róuniǎn*).**
4.  **First drying (毛火, *máohuǒ*) and final drying (足火, *zúhuǒ*).**
5.  **Raw tea (毛茶, *máochá*) and refining (精制, *jīngzhì*):** Sorting and finishing of the made tea.

Reference descriptions convey the traditional hand method as follows: fixation in a wok, cooling with a fan, light rolling by hand; pan-firing and rolling alternate, repeated three times, and the final drying is done over a slow fire in a basket above charcoal.

**6. Organoleptic Characteristics:**

The description below gives the requirements of the protection document.

* **Dry leaf appearance:** Tight, slightly curled twists with down (紧结微卷，有毫); the color is green, fairly oily (绿尚润).
* **Dry leaf aroma:** No separate description in the document.
* **Liquor aroma:** Clean and lasting, with a note of lotus (清香持久带有荷花香).
* **Taste:** Rich, sweetish and mellow, fairly brisk (浓厚甘醇尚爽).
* **Liquor color:** Green-yellow, fairly bright (绿黄尚明亮).
* **Spent leaves (wet leaves):** Tender and even, light green (嫩匀、绿明).

Popular descriptions call the leaf silvery white with green showing through (银白透绿), and in the aroma add to the lotus an “egg and milk” note (蛋奶香); this is not in the document.

**7. Chemical Composition:**

Minimum physicochemical indicators from the protection document:

| Indicator | Requirement |
| :--- | :--- |
| Amino acids | no less than 4.0% |
| Tea polyphenols | no less than 25.0% |
| Caffeine | no less than 3.5% |
| Total catechins | no less than 14.0% |

In addition, the document notes a high pectin content (果胶质含量高) without giving a figure. These are norms for tea under the mark, not an analysis of a batch.

**8. Health Properties:**

There are no verified data on the effects of this particular tea.

**9. Brewing:**

Class practice for green tea.

* **Water temperature:** 80–85 °C.
* **Tea amount:** 3 g per 150 ml.
* **Teaware:** A glass tumbler, in which the downy leaf is visible, or a white gaiwan.
* **Process:**
    1. Warm the teaware.
    2. Put in the tea and pour the water down the side.
    3. First infusion — after 40–60 seconds.
    4. Drink, leaving part of the liquor, and top up with water.
    5. Two or three repeat infusions.

**10. Storage:**

Class practice. In airtight packaging, in a refrigerator at 0–5 °C, away from light, moisture and odors. Best drunk within a year.

**11. Price and Counterfeits:**

Price data are not found in the sources consulted.

* **How to avoid counterfeits:**
    * Look for the geographical indication product mark: the right to it is announced by the state authority after verification in the county and the autonomous region.
    * Check that the producer is from Hengzhou.
    * Appearance according to the document: tight, slightly curled twists with down, a green-yellow liquor, a note of lotus.
    * “白毛茶” in the name is a common word: there are white-haired teas in other places too.

**12. Interesting Facts:**

* Not only green tea is made from the same raw material: according to a reference description, plants selected from the population are also suitable for red tea, with a glutinous rice aroma (糯米香). A local company, according to the Guangxi Department of Agriculture, also releases under the “圣种” brand a red tea, a “岩茶”, Liubao ([六堡茶](https://thetea.app/article/liu-bao-cha)) and a jasmine maojian. The protection document describes only the green technology.
* The main rule of hand processing, according to the reference book, is not to knock off the white down during pan-firing (保持不脱白毛).

**13. Comparison with Other White-Haired and Guangxi Teas:**

* **Hengxian Molihua Cha ([横县茉莉花茶](https://thetea.app/article/hengxian-molihua-cha)):** A jasmine tea of the same county; Nanshan Baimao Cha is a pure green tea without scenting.
* **Renhua Baimao Cha ([仁化白毛茶](https://thetea.app/article/renhua-baimao-cha)):** A Guangdong white-haired population for red and green tea.
* **Lechang Bai Mao Cha ([乐昌白毛茶](https://thetea.app/article/lechang-bai-maocha)):** A Guangdong green tea from a local white-haired bush.
* **Rucheng Bai Mao Cha ([汝城白毛茶](https://thetea.app/article/rucheng-baimaocha)):** A Hunan tea from a local large-leaf resource, produced in several classes.
* **Lingyun Bai Cha ([凌云白茶](https://thetea.app/article/lingyun-baicha)):** A Guangxi white tea from white-haired raw material of Lingyun County.

**In Conclusion:**

*Nánshān báimáo chá* is a green tea of Hengzhou whose name easily passes it off as white. The 2009 document describes it strictly: a single bud for the top grade, harvest at 200–600 m, downy twists, a green-yellow liquor with a note of lotus. Around it are the legend of the “sacred seed” and awards, one of which is dated to the impossible year 1822.