Registration Period: October 8 — November 10, 2022
Sample Submission Period: November 1 — November 14, 2022
Categories Accepted: Green tea, yellow tea, oolong tea, black tea, white tea, dark tea, Pu-erh tea, reprocessed tea, tea products, specialty teas and more
Sample Evaluation: Late November 2022
Awards Ceremony: December 8, 2022 (tentative)
Awards Venue: On-site at the 2022 China (Shenzhen) International Autumn Tea Industry Expo
Farewell to the splendor of summer flowers; we move gradually into the ripeness of autumn.
The 12th “China Tea Cup” International Dingcheng Tea King Competition — the autumn season officially begins!
Excellence never stops, and the contest of kings has no end. On the highest stage, be crowned king and let your glory shine. If you missed the spring season, do not miss it again.
1. The “China Tea Cup” International Dingcheng Tea King Competition
Founded in 1994 by the China Tea Science Society, the “China Tea Cup” is China’s oldest and most credible tea evaluation brand, hailed as the “Oscars of the Chinese tea world.”
The Dingcheng Tea King Competition, built with the full strength of the Huajuchen platform, is the tea industry’s most professional, high-standard benchmark event, covering all tea categories and all tea-producing regions, with influence radiating across the country.
The “China Tea Cup” Dingcheng Tea King Competition, technically overseen by the China Tea Science Society, has been held for 11 consecutive years, with influence reaching 71 counties and cities across 17 tea-producing provinces and regions nationwide.
2. Spring Season Review — Two Academicians Led the Awards
On August 27, the awards ceremony of the 12th “China Tea Cup” International Dingcheng Tea King Competition spring season was grandly held on-site at the 26th Shenzhen Spring Tea Expo. Chen Zongmao, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and researcher at the Tea Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and Liu Zhonghua, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Director of the Academic Committee of Hunan Agricultural University, professor and doctoral supervisor, led the awards presentation, witnessing together with leaders of provincial and municipal governments, tea enterprise representatives and guests the glorious moment of the Tea King’s coronation.
The spring season of the 12th “China Tea Cup” International Dingcheng Tea King Competition officially launched on March 29. Covering the six major tea categories and radiating across 17 tea-producing provinces and regions nationwide, it attracted more than 320 enterprises to register and collected over 600 tea samples for evaluation. The scale reached a new high, up 114% from previous years, with black tea and green tea standing out in particular, accounting for about 55% of the total samples received.
3. The Autumn Season Sets Sail Anew
An industry benchmark that never stops moving forward!
The autumn season will continue to uphold the principles of “fairness, impartiality, science and rigor,” building an industry benchmark event to the highest standards!
Strong Endorsement from Authoritative Institutions
This year’s Tea King Competition receives technical guidance from the China Tea Science Society and quality inspection oversight from authoritative testing institutions. The National Tea Museum of China, the Tea Research Institute of the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the Tea Research Institute of the Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the Tea Research Institute of the Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the Shenzhen Tea Culture Promotion Association and Shenzhen Huajuchen International Convention & Exhibition Group Co., Ltd. jointly lead the way, forming a powerful combination of authoritative tea industry institutions that guarantees the authority and credibility of this competition.
A Professional and Seasoned Evaluation Team
The evaluation panel will be drawn from the expert pool of the China Tea Science Society, composed of 9 to 11 authoritative tea experts from across the country, each specializing in different tea categories, conducting evaluations in accordance with the national standard GB/T 23776-2018 “Methodology for Sensory Evaluation of Tea.”
Multi-Dimensional, Wide-Reaching Publicity
1. Official media coverage: The China Tea Science Society, Tea Review All-Media and others will follow and report on the entire event, with joint distribution through tea-producing region government publicity platforms, the tea industry media alliance and tea trade association platforms.
2. Full-channel coverage: The competition will receive joint coverage across all channels, with interviews arranged on-site at the Tea Expo; the awards ceremony will be livestreamed in full and jointly distributed across multiple official platforms.
Covering All Tea Categories, Serving All Tea-Producing Regions
The competition will cover all tea categories, including the six major tea categories, Pu-erh tea, reprocessed tea, tea products and specialty teas, radiating to tea-producing regions across the country and attracting regional public brands from various areas to participate and exchange ideas, providing a broad platform for promoting interaction and cooperation between producing regions and for showcasing outstanding tea enterprise brands and their tea products.
Brand Reach and Business Connections
1. Award-winning teas will have the opportunity to be collected by the National Tea Museum of China.
2. The awards ceremony will be held on-site at the global tea industry bellwether — the 2022 China (Shenzhen) International Autumn Tea Industry Expo — with display and tasting of the award-winning teas.
3. Award-winning teas will also have the opportunity to follow Huajuchen’s national joint exhibition tour, being displayed and tasted at major exhibitions across the country. With the power of the Huajuchen Tea Expo platform, this helps tea enterprises open up markets and go nationwide.
4. Participation Guidelines
Event Schedule
Registration Period: October 8 — November 10, 2022
Sample Submission Period: November 1 — November 14, 2022 (To ensure orderly sample collection, please mail your tea samples within the designated period; the date of receipt by the organizing committee shall prevail.)
Categories Accepted: Green tea, yellow tea, oolong tea, black tea, white tea, dark tea, Pu-erh tea, reprocessed tea, tea products, specialty teas and more
Sample Evaluation: Late November 2022
Awards Ceremony: Tentatively December 8, 2022, at the 2022 China (Shenzhen) International Autumn Tea Industry Expo
Competition Rules
Scoring Criteria
1. Pesticide residue testing: Specialized testing provided by authoritative testing institutions, in accordance with “GB 2763-2021 National Food Safety Standard — Maximum Residue Limits for Pesticides in Food,” covering 25 testing indicators in total; dark tea additionally includes fluorine and lead, for a total of 27 indicators.
2. Expert evaluation: All competition evaluation experts are drawn from the expert pool of the China Tea Science Society and conduct evaluations in accordance with the national standard GB/T 23776-2018 “Methodology for Sensory Evaluation of Tea.” Scores are given across five factors — appearance, liquor color, aroma, taste and infused leaves — with the average score of the panel for that group taken as the final score.
Award Categories
Tea King Award (open to enterprises that have won the Special Gold Award of the “China Tea Cup” Dingcheng Tea King Competition for 3 consecutive years, or the Special Gold Award for 2 years plus the Gold Award for 1 year; the participating enterprise name and tea sample name must remain identical across all 3 years), Special Gold Award, Gold Award, Silver Award
How to Participate
Registration Fee: RMB 3,800 per tea sample submitted for evaluation.
Important Notes
1. After successful payment, please save a screenshot of the payment and upload it. Please complete payment before November 10, 2022.
2. Payment Information
Account Name: Shenzhen Huajuchen International Convention & Exhibition Group Co., Ltd.
Bank Account: 41008900040076450
Bank: Agricultural Bank of China, Shenzhen Guomao Sub-branch
Sample Submission
1. Remarks Information
When mailing, please mark the package “China Tea Cup” Tea King Competition, and write the company name, tea sample name, contact person and contact information on paper to be mailed together with the tea sample. The tea category and sample name must be clearly marked on the outer packaging of each tea sample for verification (please submit the registration form before mailing your sample).
2. Sample Submission Guidelines
Each tea sample submitted for evaluation requires 3 portions (250g each, 750g in total): two portions for testing and evaluation, and one portion for display. Samples will not be returned after the competition. Please mail them to the designated address before November 14, 2022.
3. Sample Receiving Address
Address: Shenzhen Huajuchen, West Side, 2nd Floor, Natatorium, Sports Center, Yu’an West Road, Bao’an District, Shenzhen
Recipient: Gong Yinghong
Phone: 18259931733
The war drums beat and the bugles sound!
The competition has begun; heroes vie for the crown!
The throne of the Tea King awaits your challenge!
Organizing Bodies
Technical Guidance Unit: China Tea Science Society
Organizers: Tea Research Institute of the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Tea Research Institute of the Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Tea Research Institute of the Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen Tea Culture Promotion Association, Shenzhen Huajuchen International Convention & Exhibition Group Co., Ltd.
Co-organizers: Australian Tea Association, Danish Tea Association, Tea Research Association of India, French agricultural products evaluation agency AVPA, French tea publication “Thé”
Supporting Units: UK Tea Association, Tea Association of India, Japan China Tea Association, Australian International Tea Association, Tea Review World, Tea Joy All-Media, Haochacang Warehousing
Testing Unit: Shenzhen Zhongjianlian Testing Co., Ltd.
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Author: Lam Sam (LamSam), the Old Tea Head
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