Tost day 5
Day 5 we stopped at a few familiar places on way toward Lishan.
Monday 9/18
Pack for 2 nights out;
Emei Tea manufactory in Hsinchu
Leave to Taichung, then Lishan
Visit teahouse and tea farm
Emei Tea in Hsinchu is a place I’ve visited before and was happy to return to. It’s known for Oriental Beauty. We didn’t get to see inside the manufactory this time, but we did see the garden and, of course, taste some tea.
We tried three grades of Oriental Beauty. All were Chin Shin Da Pan cultivar harvested in summer 2023.
The next three were Jade Oolong, Qing Xin cultivar, harvested 2023 at 1500m.
We met up with Jonny Tu later that day. He owns Hwa Gung Tea and would be showing us the manufactory in Lishan the next day. First we visited Hwa Gung’s older historical teahouse in Fengyaun district, Taichung. Jonny’s mother hosted us and made tea while we had lunch.
After lunch we went to the main store, also in Fengyaun district, Taichung.
This was another intensive evaluation cupping session. We cupped the teas paired as opposites rather than light to dark.
The first teas were brewed 6 grams, 150ml water at 190°F for 2 minutes. They were brewed three times with the third done with boiling water.
Formosa Bonita, Qing Xin cultivar, Lishan. Heavy oxidation (80%). Harvested Spring 2023.
Wenshan Boazhong, Qing Xin cultivar, Pinlin. Harvested Spring 2023.
The second teas were brewed 6 grams, 150ml water at 194°F-203°F for 3 minutes, also brewed three times.
Mountain Jade, Qing Xin cultivar, Lishan. Light oxidation (20-25%) with no roast. Harvested late Spring 2023 .
Chun Oolong, Qing Xin cultivar, Lishan. Heavy oxidation (75%) with medium roast. Harvested late Spring 2023.
Oriental Beauty, Chin Shin Da Pan cultivar, Beipu (Hsinchu). Heavy oxidation with no roast. Harvested Summer 2023. Brewed 6 grams, 150ml water at 203°F for two minutes, brewed three times.
Classic Tung Ting, Jin Xuan cultivar, Lugu (Nantou). Medium-heavy oxidation with medium roast. Harvested Spring 2023. Brewed 6 grams, 150ml water at 203°F for three minutes, brewed three times.
The last cupping was a special aged oolong brewed 6 grams, 150ml water at 194°F for two minutes.
2011 Amber Beauty (Vintage), Qing Xin cultivar, Lishan. Medium-heavy oxidation with medium-heavy roast.
We had short food break to help settle all the oolong we drunk before the long trip up Lishan to our airbnb.
On the way up, we stopped at the highest parking lot in Taiwan and did some star gazing. It was so dark you could actually see a little of the milky way! The airbnb was spacious and comfortable. The host kindly made us chicken and ginger soup to warm up as the night was quite cold in the mountains. A stark contrast to how hot and humid the rest of Taiwan was but a welcome change.
Lishan, and more specifically, Hwa Gung has been on my list of places I wanted to visit the most for years, and I was so gratefully to finally have the opportunity to do so.
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