---
title: "Sōngxī lǜchá"
url: https://thetea.app/article/songxi-lucha
lang: en
updated: 2026-10-01
source: THE TEA — encyclopedia of Chinese tea (https://thetea.app)
---
# Sōngxī lǜchá (松溪绿茶)

*Sōngxī lǜchá* (松溪绿茶) is a green tea of Songxi County (松溪县) in Nanping prefecture-level city in the north of Fujian Province, at the southern foot of the Wuyi Mountains and in the upper reaches of the Minjiang River. According to the geographical indications portal, the county's tea brands began precisely with green tea: the certification mark “松溪绿茶” was registered on May 28, 2009, the red and white brands appeared later, and in 2020 the name was included in the first list of the agreement between China and the European Union on geographical indications. Under one name the mark unites four leaf forms — bud, flat, curled and strip-shaped.

**1. Classification and Origin:**

* **Type:** Green tea (绿茶, *lǜchá*). The class is stated in the name of the mark itself — “松溪绿茶;SONG XI GREEN TEA” — and in the specification submitted to the European Union.
* **Category:** Fujian green tea with a geographical indication mark.
* **Origin:** China, Fujian Province (福建, *Fújiàn*), Nanping prefecture-level city (南平, *Nánpíng*), Songxi County (松溪县, *Sōngxī xiàn*).
* **Zone:** The specification for the European Union names nine townships and towns of the county: Songyuan (松源镇), Weitian (渭田镇), Zhengdun (郑墩镇), Hedong (河东乡), Jiuxian (旧县乡), Xidong (溪东乡), Huaqiao, Zudun (祖墩乡) and Chaping (茶平乡).
* **Protection regime:** Geographical indication certification mark of the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) No. 6534378; goods — tea. According to the provincial list as of June 30, 2026, the holder is the Songxi County Tea Industry Development Center (松溪县茶业发展中心), and the registration is in force; the Ministry of Commerce names 松溪县茶叶管理总站, the county's main tea management station, as the applicant. In the European Union the name has protected geographical indication (PGI) status, file number PGI-CN-2691.
* **Geographic coordinates:** According to the specification — between 27°24' and 27°51' N and between 118°33' and 118°55' E.

**2. History and Cultural Significance:**

* **History:**
    * **Old tea route.** *Fujian Ribao* (2022) writes that in ancient times Songxi was the main waterway of “北茶入闽” — tea that went from the north into Fujian; the newspaper gives no dates.
    * **From the 1960s.** According to the county tea development center (*Tea Weekly*, 2023), the main products of Songxi were in turn green, jasmine and red tea.
    * **1980s.** The yield and quality of Songxi tea rose to among the best in the province, and the county was nicknamed “茶叶状元县” (*cháyè zhuàngyuán xiàn*), “the top county for tea”. According to *Fujian Ribao* (2022), the saying “in the south, Anxi; in the north, Songxi” (南有安溪、北有松溪) appeared at the same time. This refers to the county's tea in general.
    * **2009.** On May 28 the certification mark “松溪绿茶”, No. 6534378, was registered. The geographical indications portal (2020) calls it the first national mark of this kind in Fujian for green tea.
    * **2018–2019.** According to the same portal, the brand value was estimated at 2.262 billion yuan in 2018 and 2.537 billion yuan in 2019. The portal also mentions the title “well-known trademark of China”; I have not seen the decision itself.
    * **2020.** According to the portal (August), “松溪绿茶” was included in the first list of the China–EU agreement together with 27 more Chinese teas; at the Ministry of Commerce it is eleventh in the tea section of Annex III. The same portal writes that the group standard “地理标志证明商标 松溪绿茶” has also passed expert review; the portal does not give the year.
* **Name:** “Songxi” (松溪) is the name of the county: 松 means “pine”, 溪 means “stream”. “*Lǜchá*” (绿茶) means “green tea”.
* **Cultural significance:** The county has three marks for tea of three classes; according to the provincial list, the green was registered in 2009, the red in 2013, the white in 2022. The portal (2020) writes that the county grew the red and white brands already “on the basis” of the success of the green.

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

* **Variety / Cultivar:** The sources do not name varieties for the green tea. The county's main local variety is 九龙大白茶 (*jiǔlóng dàbáichá*); *Fujian Ribao* (2022) writes that in the past it was used mostly for green and red tea. Whether it goes into tea under the mark today is not stated.
* **Raw material:** According to the geographical indications reference site, the fresh leaf stays tender for a long time (持嫩性好) and is rich in internal substances (内含物丰富). The bud form, according to the specification, consists of single buds.
* **Harvest standard and timing:** Exact requirements are not found in the sources consulted.

**4. Terroir and Cultivation Features:**

* **Region:** The upper reaches of the Minjiang at the southern foot of the Wuyi Mountains. The specification speaks of highlands but does not give altitudes.
* **Climate:** Subtropical monsoon. The mean annual accumulated temperature is 6250 °C, the accumulated active temperature above 10 °C is 5542 °C, mean annual precipitation is 1753 mm, mean humidity is about 80%. The specification gives the mean temperature as a monthly mean — 18 °C.
* **Soils:** Mainly red soils with pH 4.5–5.5 and an organic matter content of 1–3%. The soil layer is deep, on average more than a meter.
* **Forest and light:** Forest cover is 75.7%; mountains, clouds and fog give diffused light, which, according to the specification, keeps the leaf tender longer.
* **Scale:** According to *Tea Weekly* (2023), the county's tea gardens cover 82,000 mu, and the largest tea area is Chaping Township; the share of green tea is not given.

**5. Production Technology:**

Neither the specification nor other sources consulted describe the technology of “松溪绿茶”. The four leaf forms imply different shaping techniques, but which ones is not stated.

Below is the general scheme of green tea, not a description of this particular tea:

1.  **Spreading of fresh leaf (摊放, *tānfàng*):** The leaf is spread in a thin layer so that it gives up some of its moisture.
2.  **Fixation (杀青, *shāqīng*):** Heating stops oxidation and preserves the green color.
3.  **Shaping:** Rolling (揉捻, *róuniǎn*) for twisted forms; for the flat and bud forms — other techniques.
4.  **Drying (干燥, *gānzào*).**

**6. Organoleptic Characteristics:**

The general features are given according to the specification for the European Union and the geographical indications reference site.

* **Dry leaf appearance:** Graceful in shape, green and lustrous (外形秀美，色泽绿润). The four forms are described below.
* **Dry leaf aroma:** A separate description is not found in the sources consulted.
* **Liquor aroma:** High, brisk and lasting (香气高爽持久).
* **Taste:** Rich, full-bodied (滋味浓厚); the tea withstands several infusions (耐冲泡).
* **Liquor color:** Yellow-green, bright (汤色黄绿明亮).
* **Spent leaves (wet leaves):** Fleshy and tender (叶底肥嫩); according to the specification, the leaf unfolds well after brewing.

The four forms according to the specification (English text, my rendering):

* **Bud:** Single buds keep their natural shape, plump and straight, silvery-white with green. The aroma is fresh and fragrant, the liquor apricot-green, the taste fresh and sweet, the spent leaves full, green and bright.
* **Flat (扁形):** Flat, straight, smooth, even leaf, silvery-gray with green showing through. The taste is rich, the liquor bright, the spent leaves even, green and bright.
* **Curled (曲形):** Curled leaf, silvery with green showing through. The aroma is long, the liquor yellow-green and bright, the taste fresh; the buds in the spent leaves open like a “flower” and are tender green.
* **Strip-shaped (条形):** Tight, straight strands, green. A chestnut aroma, a clear liquor, a fresh taste, the spent leaves green and bright, the buds even.

**7. Chemical Composition:**

Physicochemical indicators are not found in the sources consulted. The geographical indications reference site writes, without figures, that the fresh leaf contains many polyphenols, amino acids and aromatic substances, and that the ratio of polyphenols to amino acids is low (酚氨比低).

**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 or a white gaiwan.
* **Process:**
    1. Warm the teaware.
    2. Add the tea and pour the water down the side.
    3. First infusion — after 40–60 seconds.
    4. Drink, leaving part of the liquor.
    5. Top up with water.
    6. 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 certification mark “松溪绿茶” No. 6534378; in the European Union — the protected geographical indication symbol.
    * Check that the producer is from Songxi County; control, according to the specification, is carried out by the county tea quality inspection center.
    * Compare the appearance with the stated form; the general description of the mark calls the liquor yellow-green and bright, while in the bud form it is apricot-green.

**12. Interesting Facts:**

* One mark protects four different leaf forms, and the specification describes each separately.
* For the strip-shaped form the specification notes a chestnut aroma — a feature the other three do not have.
* *Fujian Ribao* (2025) writes about a company founded in the county in 2013 and engaged mainly in exporting green tea: it sells it to more than 20 African countries, among them Mali and Algeria. Whether this tea is sold under the mark “松溪绿茶”, the newspaper does not report.

**13. Comparison with Other Teas of Songxi and Fujian:**

* **Songxi Hongcha ([松溪红茶](https://thetea.app/article/songxi-hongcha)):** A red tea of the same county under a separate mark.
* **Songxi Jiulong Dabaicha ([松溪九龙大白茶](https://thetea.app/article/songxi-jiulong-dabaicha)):** A white tea of the county from the local variety 九龙大白茶.
* **Wuping Lucha ([武平绿茶](https://thetea.app/article/wuping-lucha)):** A green tea of western Fujian, also in several forms under one mark.
* **Youxi Lucha ([尤溪绿茶](https://thetea.app/article/youxi-lucha)):** A Fujian green tea of Sanming prefecture-level city.

**In Conclusion:**

*Sōngxī lǜchá* is a green tea of the upper Minjiang, grown on red soils, among fogs and mountains three-quarters covered with forest. The county's tea brands began with it, and it was one of the first Chinese teas to receive protection in the European Union. Four forms coexist under one name — from silvery buds to tight strands with a chestnut aroma — and the general description of the mark gives a bright yellow-green liquor and a rich taste.