The Wuyi rock tea (Da Hong Pao) making technique was named to China's first national list of intangible cultural heritage in 2006 (item VIII-63), and in 2022 became part of UNESCO's inscription of traditional tea processing in China. At Kings Tea (Qingshenge) it is practised under chief tea maker Liu Dexi, whom the Wuyishan Municipal People's Government named a representative inheritor of the technique on 20 March 2015.
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Liu Dexi has been factory director and chief tea maker at Kings Tea since February 2005. He decides when each batch is shaken, fired and roasted, and he leads the tasting table where batches are graded.
On 20 March 2015, the Wuyishan Municipal People's Government named six people as the second batch of representative inheritors of the Wuyi rock tea (Da Hong Pao) making technique (decision Wu Zheng Zong [2015] No. 34). Liu Dexi is one of them. It is a municipal recognition: the city that is home to Wuyi rock tea naming the people it trusts to carry the craft on.
Representative inheritors are expected to practise the technique, train others in it and help record it.
Every photograph below was taken at Kings Tea in August 2025. The order follows the work itself.
Fresh leaf is spread thin on round bamboo trays and moved between sun and shade until it softens and gives up some of its water. Too much sun scorches it; too little leaves it grassy. The tea maker judges by touch and smell.
The stage that defines Wuyi rock tea. Over many hours the leaf is tossed on bamboo trays and left to rest, again and again. The leaf edges bruise and slowly oxidise while the centre stays green, and the scent shifts from grassy to floral.
Tea makers here say 看天做青，看青做青 — read the weather, read the leaf. There is no fixed recipe.
High heat stops oxidation at the moment the tea maker chooses, fixing the aroma that the shaking has built. The leaf comes off hot, steaming and soft.
While still warm, the leaf is rolled under pressure to break its cells and twist it into the long dark strips typical of Wuyi rock tea. Rolling decides how readily the tea gives up its flavour in the cup.
The dried leaf is roasted in woven bamboo baskets set over charcoal banked under ash. The heat is gentle and slow, the baskets are turned and checked by hand, and a tea may be roasted again after a rest.
Roasting shapes the depth, sweetness and keeping quality of the tea. It is the step most producers have moved to electric ovens; we keep it on charcoal.
Every batch is cupped side by side — dry leaf, aroma, liquor and spent leaf — before it is graded, blended or sent back for more roasting. The tasting table is where the tea maker's judgement is checked by the whole team.
“The Wuyi way of roasting is truly the first under heaven.”
武夷焙法，实甲天下Liang Zhangju 梁章钜, Guitian Suoji (Qing dynasty). Translation ours.
Both can make good tea. They are not the same craft. Read the full guide
| Charcoal roasting 炭焙 | Electric roasting 电焙 | |
|---|---|---|
| Heat source | Charcoal banked under ash in a roasting pit | Electric oven or roasting cabinet |
| Control | By hand and experience: banking the ash, turning the baskets, judging by smell | By thermostat and timer |
| Time | Slow. The traditional long final roast (炖火) is described at around 85 °C for about seven hours3 | Usually quicker |
| Skill required | High; part of the heritage technique | Lower; easier to repeat at scale |
| At Kings Tea | Used for our Wuyi rock tea | — |
Wuyishan holds tea competitions every year. These results are from our company records.
| Date | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|
| Jun 2005 | Five-star International Tea King (Wuyi famous bush) | China International Star-rated Tea King Contest, Xiamen |
| Jul 2006 | Gold award, Rou Gui | Wuyishan Zhengyan Cup Tea King Contest |
| Jul 2007 | Champion, Rou Gui and Shui Xian | Wuyishan folk tea competition (Yuyuan Cup) |
| Jun 2008 | Special Prize, Rou Gui | Wuyishan spring tea competition |
| Nov 2008 | Special Gold award, Da Hong Pao | China (Guangzhou) International Tea Expo |
| Dec 2012 | Champion, Rou Gui | Cross-Strait folk tea competition |
| Sep 2014 | Champion, Rou Gui | Wuyishan Tea King Contest |
For the 2026 Special Prize for our Da Hong Pao blend, see the entry record.
Yes. The Wuyi rock tea (Da Hong Pao) making technique was named to China's first national list of intangible cultural heritage in 2006 (item VIII-63). In 2022 it was among the techniques inscribed by UNESCO as "Traditional tea processing techniques and associated social practices in China".
Liu Dexi (刘德喜) is the factory director and chief tea maker at Kings Tea, a post he has held since February 2005. On 20 March 2015 the Wuyishan Municipal People's Government named him one of six second-batch representative inheritors of the Wuyi rock tea (Da Hong Pao) making technique (Wu Zheng Zong [2015] No. 34). This is a municipal recognition, not a national one.
Roasting over a bed of ash-covered charcoal is the step that gives Wuyi rock tea much of its depth. The heat is low and slow, adjusted by hand, and a tea may be roasted more than once. Many producers now use electric ovens, which are quicker and easier to control. Read the comparison.
We do not claim that every step is done by hand. Hand skill and judgement matter most at the stages that decide the tea — withering, shaking, firing and roasting. The photographs on this page show our team at each stage in August 2025. Ask us how a particular tea or lot was made.
Tell us which teas you are looking for and where you are based. We will suggest what to taste and share the certificates and reports that apply to it.