Above is the plot of tea from which we procured our share of spring 2023 Alishan High Mountain Oolong Tea. We visited the farm on the first day of their harvest of Qing Xin Oolong, following their harvest of Jin Xuan the week before. When we saw the husband and wife team walking up and down the rows of tea trees, instructing the pickers where to pick and where not to pick (because the new leaf growth was still immature), our appreciation of this tea source was reinforced. Those white bits on top of the tea trees are crumpled paper to designate where NOT to pick!

This couple has been our overall favorite source of Alishan tea for several years now, although we sometimes alternate with another source of great renown across the valley from them. We are so grateful and proud to represent both of these exemplary tea producers from the most internationally recognized tea producing region on Taiwan. This couple is most closely aligned with Eco-Cha's premise of sustainability in their farming and tea production practice. We are excited to put their Oolong Tea back on our menu this spring!

These leaves were picked in the morning, spread out in the sunshine, shuffled repeatedly, brought indoors, and allowed to wilt slowly for many hours. There are then tumbled thoroughly and allowed to set one last time before the tumble heating phase to fix the leaves at a particular degree of oxidation. THIS is the art of Oolong Tea making!

Oolong Tea making in general is truly underrated in terms of the relative complexity of its processing compared to Green Tea, Black Tea, or any other tea type. It's the partial oxidation factor, and how it's achieved effectively. This is what puts Taiwan at the top as a producer of world-class Oolong Tea.  We digress, but it's only because our passion for the living tea culture here on Taiwan has been rekindled with the first batch of spring 2023 High Mountain Oolong sourced and on the shelf!

Watch our tasting video where we compare last winter's batch of Alishan High Mountain Oolong from our alternate source with this spring's batch that is currently available.

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