Golden Melon Tribute Tea: Pu'er Shaped Like a Melon
Of all the shapes pu'er takes, golden melon tribute tea has the most "imperial" air: a plump, round body, ribs pressed into the surface like a melon, and a little stem on top. Its story begins with the tribute pu'er of the Qing dynasty.
What Is Golden Melon Tribute Tea?
Golden melon tribute tea (jingua gongcha) is compressed pu'er pressed into the shape of a pumpkin, a type of round ball tea (tuancha). The name has two layers of meaning:
- Shaped like a melon: round, ribbed, with a stem.
- Turns golden: traditionally made from tender buds, its surface takes on a golden sheen after many years in storage, hence "golden melon."
After Pu'er Prefecture was established in the seventh year of the Yongzheng reign (1729), pu'er began to be sent to the imperial court as tribute. Ruan Fu's Notes on Pu'er Tea from the Qing dynasty records that tribute tea included ball teas of different weights: five jin, three jin, one jin, four liang, and one liang five qian. The melon-shaped ball tea is the signature form of this kind of tribute tea. For the history of tribute tea, see Tribute Pu'er: The Wanshou Longtuan, Nü'er Tea, and Pu'er at Court.
Why Tender Buds?
Tribute tea called for the best material, and tender buds were considered the most precious part of the plant at the time:
- Appearance: bud tea is fine and downy, and the pressed melon surface comes out smooth and handsome.
- Stickiness: tender buds are sticky after steaming and press easily into a smooth, round melon shape.
- Color change: tea with many buds tends to turn golden on the surface after years of storage.
The golden melon teas on the market today use everything from bud tea to ordinary one-bud-two-or-three-leaf material, in both raw and ripe, and not all of them use only tender buds. A label of "golden melon tribute tea" mostly refers to the shape, not a guarantee of tribute-grade material.
Golden Melons and "Human-Head Tribute Tea"
The Palace Museum in Beijing holds a group of pu'er ball teas left from the Qing court. Among them, the large, round golden melon ball teas are often called "human-head tribute tea" (rentou gongcha) in the tea world because their size and shape resemble a human head. So human-head tribute tea can be thought of as the large version of golden melon tribute tea; they're the same kind of shape.
Another famous ball tea in the Palace Museum's collection is the "Wanshou Longtuan" (Longevity Dragon Ball), which was brought from the Palace Museum back to Pu'er for exhibition in 2007, a major event in the pu'er world that year. These ball teas, over a century old, are no longer for drinking; they're precious cultural relics.
How Big Are Golden Melons?
Modern golden melon teas come in many sizes:
| Size | Typical use |
|---|---|
| 100–250 g | Small melons, for gifts and tasting |
| 500 g | Common medium melons |
| 1–2.5 kg | Large melons, for collecting and display |
| 5 kg and up | Commemorative pieces, a shop's showpiece |
Large golden melons are often presented in bamboo baskets or brocade boxes as festive and collectible gifts.
How to Use a Golden Melon
Golden melons are tightly pressed and round, so prying them takes more work than a cake:
- Start at the base or near the stem: the base is flatter and gaps are easier to find.
- Insert the tea needle along the ribs: the grooves between the ribs are natural gaps, and prying along them causes less crumbling.
- A little at a time: the center of a golden melon is thick, so don't force off big chunks.
- If you want to keep its looks: if it's a collectible, you can leave it unopened for now; when you want to drink it, dig from the base and keep the top intact.
Brew the pried tea according to whether it's raw or ripe: 90–95°C for raw, 100°C for ripe, with the first few infusions a little longer so the compressed tea can open.
Are Golden Melons Good for Storage?
Golden melons are large with a thick center, so in storage the center and surface change at different rates, and the change is relatively slow. Store a whole melon somewhere clean, ventilated, dark, and odor-free, and protect it from damp. For an overview of shapes, see Cakes, Bricks, Tuocha, Dragon Pearls, and Loose Tea: The Shapes of Pu'er.
Storing and Displaying a Golden Melon
Golden melons are often displayed in a living room or tea room. If so, keep a few things in mind: avoid direct sunlight and air conditioning vents to avoid big temperature swings; don't put it near the kitchen or fragrances, where it could absorb odors; and if it's kept under a sealed glass dome, open it now and then to air it out so it doesn't develop stuffy smells. If you plan to drink a large golden melon gradually, wrap the opened part in cotton paper and store it like any other pu'er, in a clean cardboard box or tea canister.
Where the Ribs Come From
The ribs on a golden melon's surface are shaped during kneading and pressing: steamed tea is put in a cloth bag and kneaded into a ball, grooves are pressed into the surface with fine cord or a mold, and the ball is shaped to look like a melon. The stem on top is pinched or pressed on separately. On every handmade golden melon, the depth of the ribs and the roundness differ a little, which is why it's admired as a piece of handcraft.
FAQ
What is golden melon tribute tea? Pu'er ball tea pressed into a pumpkin shape, tracing back to the tribute ball teas of Pu'er Prefecture in the Qing dynasty.
Why were tender buds used? Tribute tea called for the best material, and tender buds are sticky, look refined, and turn golden on the surface with storage. Modern golden melons don't necessarily use only tender buds.
How is "human-head tribute tea" related to golden melons? The large golden melon ball teas in the Palace Museum are often called human-head tribute tea because their size and shape resemble a human head.
How do you pry a golden melon? Insert a tea needle at the base or into the grooves between the ribs, and pry off a small piece at a time.