Home to the original oolong tea and its fair share of tea legends, the Wuyi mountains house some of the world’s most sought after oolong teas . Although there are many types of tea grown in the Wuyi mountains (notably Lapsang Souchong/Jin Jun Mei), it is most famous for its oolong teas. Due to the mountainous area that the tea is grown, Wuyi Oolongs are frequently referred to as yancha or rock/cliff oolong tea. This terroir and Wuyi oolong’s firing/processing methods contribute to the very distinctive taste of Wuyi yancha (this is sometimes referred to as yanyun. (more…)
Category: Tea Learning
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Eco-Cha, Featured Vendor
The vendor profile for Eco-Cha is a part of our Taiwanese Tea Vendor Series, covering a number of Taiwanese-tea specialized vendors that sell to the west.
Along with Origin Tea and Taiwan Tea Crafts, Eco-Cha is a newcomer to the growing population of western-facing Taiwanese tea vendors. The faces behind it are neither fresh nor newcomers to selling tea. Formed by a pair of foreign expatriates with strong-ties to Taiwan and three Taiwanese natives, this is an experienced group with deep ties to tea, especially in central Taiwan. With the name Eco-Cha, their most obvious difference between other Taiwanese based vendors is their ecological/green focus. Interestingly this name carries a totally different but fitting second meaning in Chinese, A Sip of Tea. Eco-cha.com itself is littered with an impressive amount of information on the flavor, garden, harvest, elevation, and detailed notes on the origins of their teas. This forthcoming approach is a key aspect for a new venture with core values of sustainability and transparency. (more…)
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All About (Taiwanese) Baozhong
Like Dong-Ding (and unlike high-mountain tea) Baozhong has a long, history in Taiwan. Baozhong (or Pouchong) literally means “wrapped kind” and refers to the way the tea was traditionally packaged in paper. Grown at a measly 400-800 meters elevation in Northern Taiwan, Baozhong is a low-elevation tea (typically from Wenshan or Pinglin). It is also not rolled, an important distinction from the majority of Taiwanese oolongs. Even though it is marketed and consumed to the western market as a Taiwanese tea, Baozhong is originally a mainland tea and is still produced in Fujian, China. The history of Baozhong is very similar to Tieguanyin and Fo Shou; All three are originally from China and were brought over to Taiwan in the late 19th century. Each of these teas has evolved and changed separately in Taiwan and are now very different from their Chinese cousins. (more…)
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Teamasters, Featured Vendor
The vendor profile for Teamasters is a part of our Taiwanese Tea Vendor Series, covering a number of Taiwanese-tea specialized vendors that sell to the west.
Based in Taiwan, a French ex-patriate Stephane Erler founded and runs Teamasters. Now one of the oldest online vendors and tea bloggers Teamasters was originally conceived as a tea blog in 2004. Stephane has been steadily consistent throughout the years in creating new content (his output now totals over 1,500 blog posts!). The Teamasters blog has been immensely helpful in my own personal tea education as well as the creation of this site! Now Stephane in addition to his day-job as a western-facing vendor is regularly invited to events around the globe to speak about tea topics and Taiwanese oolongs. (more…)
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Tea from Taiwan, Featured Vendor
The vendor profile for Tea from Taiwan is a part of our Taiwanese Tea Vendor Series, covering a number of Taiwanese-tea specialized vendors that sell to the west.
Tea from Taiwan was one of the first vendors based in Taiwan that sold to the west. Founded by Ross MacIver in the early 2000s, Tea from Taiwan launched their current website in 2005 and has continued to be a reliable and consistent source of Taiwanese oolongs to an English-speaking audience (as well as an information source!). Tea from Taiwan currently features 17 different Taiwanese teas (originally seven), with 12 of their offerings falling into high-elevation territory (>1000 meters elevation). Looking back at older versions of their web store, Ross has consistently promoted transparency in the form of harvest date and elevation for their teas (when I inquired about Tea from Taiwan’s cultivars and elevations, Ross was prompt and forthcoming in his reply). This is a wonderful thing for tea vendors to provide and has improved considerably in recent years. It’s also very commonly overlooked by newcomers to the online tea world or people simply looking for the “best deals” in the intimidating world of premium tea purchasing. (more…)
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Lincang Lancang 2008 Sheng Pu’erh [Episode 27]
In episode 27, James & Denny are again joined by Glen and Lamu from Crimson Lotus Tea. This is a more open-ended podcast and we talk about both the tea as well as just pu’erh tea in general, how to get started with pu’erh, storage in North America, and some of the offerings that Crimson Lotus will be offering. Lincang Lancang 2008 Raw Pu’erh.
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Origin Tea, Featured Vendor
The vendor profile for Origin Tea is a part of our Taiwanese Tea Vendor Series, covering a number of Taiwanese-tea specialized vendors that sell to the west. Much to my dismay, Origin Tea has since closed.
Origin Tea’s ‘About Section’ states their purpose clearly:
At Origin Tea we have one goal: To make high quality teas available worldwide at reasonable prices..
An easy statement to make, but a far more difficult one to backup (especially given Origin’s premium high-mountain specialty). Based in Taiwan, Origin Tea is owned and run by Tony. Origin Tea opened up shop in late 2012, using Taiwan’s 2012 Winter Harvest as their initial selection. (more…)
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Taiwanese Oolong (& Black) Cultivars & TRES
The words cultivar and varietal are often used interchangeably (and incorrectly) around in the tea community. On this particular topic there is a ton of directly conflicting information and incorrect statements even amongst reputable sources. Knowing cultivars may seem ultra-technical and seem like impractical knowledge but it can be very useful (most importantly helping out in purchasing, understanding, and appreciating good tea). This article will examine all these issues, specifically in regards to Taiwanese teas. What is the difference between a cultivar and varietal? What constitutes a varietal? What about a cultivar? (more…)
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Taiwanese Tea Vendor Guide
There are a number of vendors in the western world that offer Taiwanese Oolongs. Prices vary dramatically vendor to vendor and tea to tea (cheap, expensive) and there are even Taiwanese tea forgeries (i.e. grown in China/Thailand, harvested in a Taiwanese style and marketed as Formosa/Gaoshan Oolong). Navigating the online vendor landscape can be a difficult and often costly endeavor. This section will simply try to help you get what you pay! This article was originally intended to be part of the Taiwanese Oolong Compendium but it quickly became obvious it should be its own separate article. For those interested in a more data-driven approach to the price and finding the best deal for Taiwanese Gaoshan, check out the price of high-mountain oolong. (more…)
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The Price of High-Mountain Tea
Buying tea and shopping for deals can be confusing. The landscape of vendors is intimidating and oftentimes a simple purchase at the cheapest price can be a mistake. Complicating matters, there are no consistent quantity standards and varying shipping policies only add to the already-considerable confusion. This article will attempt to illuminate many of these issues, while specifically analyzing Gaoshan (Taiwanese) high-mountain tea by examining how tea prices vary mountain to mountain and vendor to vendor. High-mountain oolong in particular tends to command the most-demanding price/oz and oftentimes what may seem like a deal is not really a deal at all. Check out our vendor guide for a vendor by vendor breakdown of Taiwanese gaoshan specialists. Please note that high-mountain tea (>1000 meters) excludes many popular Taiwanese teas like Dong Ding, Tieguanyin, Oriental Beauty, and Baozhong (all grown at lower elevations). (more…)