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Taiwan's history of tea making goes back to the 1600's when the Portuguese first started exploring the island and discovered indigenous growing tea plants. This indigenous Taiwan mountain tea can still be found today growing wild in the mountain regions of central Taiwan. Andy recounts experiencing this tea for the first time.

This post was originally shared with our friends at TChing, they have a great tea blog, check them out. 

As people interested in premium teas, we have all been exposed to the term “artisan” being used in many contexts. This begs the question as to what actually defines a tea as being artisan. This post is meant to begin a conversation, with follow ups on how this issue is being addressed within the industry here in Taiwan.

Reflecting on this question, I was inspired to call on a friend with passionate conviction on the topic. I first visited Mr. Lin in his tea factory and home - a traditional 3-sided house on Dong Ding Mountain - some 20 years ago. One of three brothers who inherited the tea farm, he became the representative of their tradition by moving off the mountain and raising his family in the city. He has been a professional tea judge at the Lu Gu Farmers’ Association Tea Competition for many years, and has been continually involved in the education and representation of tea culture in Taiwan. He is passionate about his inheritance of the Dong Ding Oolong tradition, as well as highly informed of the trends in Taiwan’s tea industry - both past and present.

In two words, his essential definition of artisan tea is all about “handmade” and “oxidation” - which in this case are one in the same process. The leaves need to be shuffled by hand repeatedly over several hours throughout the oxidation process. These terms immediately led into other factors such as how much tea can be harvested and processed at once using traditional methods, and who is employing these deep and complex procedures, and the discussion ensued. Of course, this is the response from a Traditional Dong Ding Oolong Tea artisan - so we are referring here only to what defines “Artisan Oolong Tea”. Our conversation touched on many factors, but his answer centered on processing methods - which prompted the recollection of my early visits to tea country.

My first experiences of tea being harvested and processed was in this context of Dong Ding Oolong production. I stood and watched, and sometimes lent a hand as the freshly harvested leaves began arriving at mid-morning into early-afternoon, to be spread out for solar oxidation, which began the long process that went late into the night of indoor oxidation, followed by heating, rolling and drying.

At that time, all I saw in the factories I visited were the traditional woven bamboo trays that were filled by hand with freshly wilted leaves exuding a heady yet truly refreshing aroma in racks about 200cm high mounted on wheels. A small forest of racks filled small spaces in which they were rearranged systematically amidst frequent shuffling of the leaves in their  trays by hand, combined with tumble rolling in a large woven bamboo horizontal cylinder.. The timing of the shuffling by hand and tumbling was largely determined by examining (touching, smelling, and seeing) the state of the leaves and how far along in the wilting and oxidizing process they were. 

Some factories had two or three tumbling cylinders accommodating relatively large harvests - which then were maybe 600 台斤 茶青 or nearly 700 pounds of freshly harvested leaf - which produces about 175 pounds of tea. That was a large harvest on the farms I was familiar with at that time, but that’s only because my first contact was with Traditional Dong Ding Oolong artisans whose tea factories were typically built into their homes. 

This is the context and small-scale production level that my friend referred to in response to my question. It is his firm conviction that artisan oolong tea is comprised of hands-on contact with the leaves as they are processed. The frequent shuffling of the leaves by hand is an essential aspect of proper oxidation.  According to him, without this process, it is not artisan tea. Beyond oxidation, there are other steps in the processing of oolong that have been mechanized or simply eliminated - such as rolling methods and post production roasting - that are essential in the making of Traditional Dong Ding Oolong.

Hands-on contact with the leaves is far more than a labor intensive processing method. It is based on an experienced understanding of the overall conditions that each harvest entails - beginning with the growing season, the weather at harvest time, and the state of the leaves as they are processed. 

This understanding of the leaves prompts the artisan to adjust the processing methods according to the current conditions. The freshly picked leaves are also brewed and tasted at different stages in the processing which determines the timing and extent of each step. 

Traditional tea making is an integrated process determined by expertise that is gained over years and generations of careful observation and trial and error learning. This is why it cannot be done by standardized procedures employed by hired labor. It requires a living apprenticeship that transmits understanding and skill.

Take a walk with us through the Nantou County Global Tea Expo. This is Taiwan tea culture coming together for 3 weeks of sharing. 

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Enjoy! 

A very enjoyable tea.  I really like this company:  Eco-Cha.  The packaging is beautiful, and the tea is of excellent quality!

A whiff of leather and tobacco, very pleasant. 

The first sip is bold, with roasted nutty flavours and a fantastic mouthfeel 

Andy wrote a very interesting piece on the indigenous tea plant in Taiwan. We've shared it first with our friends at Tea for Me Please, head over there to have a read about a 100 year old tea tree in central Taiwan! 

Taiwan Mountain Tea - The Indigenous Plant

 

Name & Mission 

Eco-Cha is pronounced the same way in English and Chinese and carries meaning in both languages. Eco-Cha in Chinese means 'A Sip of Tea'. 

Created out of our dedication to artisan tea culture and the realization of how small, family-run farms in Taiwan are progressively employing eco-friendly methods of tea cultivation, this name is testimony of our commitment to the preservation of traditional artisan tea production and the promotion of sustainable agriculture in the tea industry.

No matter which language or culture Eco-Cha is spoken or heard in, it carries meaning. In English 'Eco-Cha' represents our commitment to sustainably produced teas and the artisan tea industry in Taiwan. In Chinese it is a reminder to stop, breathe, take a sip of tea and be in the present moment. 

Name & Language 

The English pronunciation of Eco-Cha is almost the same as the Chinese pronunciation of 一口茶. The only difference being that Chinese is a tonal language, and must be spoken with certain intonation. 

• 一 (Yi) means 'One' and is pronounced like the 'ee' in 'bee' 

• 口 (Kou) means 'Mouth' and is pronounced like the 'co' in 'co-op'

• 茶 (Cha) means 'Tea' and is pronounced like the 'Cha' in the dance 'Cha-Cha' 

When Chinese words are combined in a phrase, they often take on a different meaning from individual words. 一口 means 'One Sip' while 茶 means 'Tea'.

一口茶 means 'A Sip of Tea'. 

Name & Personal Connection  

When Andy initially shared this idea for the English name Eco-Cha with his tea mentor and friend Tony Lin, Tony instantly responded by uttering the words written in Tony's own brushwork above, the Chinese words for 一口茶 or "A Sip of Tea". Andy spoke the words in English, Tony heard them in Chinese. This profound simplicity resonated deeply, and Andy was at once convinced that it was meant to be. 

On my second Sunday afternoon motorcycle ride out the to the Nantou Global Tea Expo, I rode directly up the steep slope of Tiger Mountain behind the main event to the Champion Tea Tasting venue. Since the tea tasting would still be happening for another couple of hours, I decided to walk over to the nearby outdoor Tea and Music venue to have a look. Just after I got there, Tony Lin showed up. He is the organizer of the Expo, who also happens to be my adopted big brother and tea mentor.

At the Tea and Music event, guests can sign up for either a morning or afternoon session where live musical performances accompany an outdoor tea party. I arrived just in time for the afternoon session and got one of the last remaining available seats. Moments later - Tony sat down at the last empty seat beside me. It was a nice coincidence that Tony just happened to show up at the same time and place as I did for a relaxing tea session hosted by a teacher of tea art and culture. It was the kind of meeting that couldn't have been planned, given Tony's demands in managing such an event.

We sat, enjoying the tea brewed and served in teaware that was fired in a traditional wood-burning kiln. This produces a natural coloration and glaze caused by the wood ash fusing to the ceramic at extremely high temperatures. This type of ceramic is considered to be conducive to curing the teapot and cups so that they will improve with use and age to brew an optimal pot of tea. The tea was provided by the Lu Gu Farmers' Association, and is my favorite of all tea types, Dong Ding Oolong - medium roasted to produce a balanced yet complex flavor and composition.  So we sat, drank tea, enjoyed the soft breeze under the shade of a palm thatched roof and listened to the pieces of music being introduced and performed on traditional Chinese instruments. Overall, the setting and production captured the profound simplicity of Taiwan Tea culture. I told Tony that I wanted to attend a tea tasting afterward, and he said that he had been wanting to go too, but wasn’t in the mood for obligatory schmoozing with all the tea professionals there. So I said that he could go with me and and he agreed.

The young tea judge was surprised by the presence of the event producer and his foreign guest. He did a fine job nevertheless, but his nervousness prompted him to resort to his local Taiwanese dialect in giving the presentation. Tony was inevitably swept away into a conversation with a few older colleagues and barely got to taste the teas, just as he feared.

I was excited about this tasting because I had been told that there would be a few changes in the lineup of teas from the previous week. Instead of the Bi Luo Chun Green Tea from Northern Taiwan, there was a Bao Zhong Oolong - which I definitely preferred. It's fragrance was fresh and herbaceous and the flavor was light yet balanced and smooth with very mild astringency. The second new tea on the lighter/greener end of the spectrum was a Lu Ye Oolong from South-Eastern Taiwan in Taidong County. This is a relatively rare type of Oolong in Taiwan that is produced very green, with minimal oxidation. It has a very delicate quality of being cultivated by the seashore - similar to some Japanese teas. It is subtle and smooth and balanced with a refreshing green character. The third new selection was a Jin Xuan Oolong from Chia Yi County that was processed in the fashion of a High Mountain Oolong. This lightly oxidized, unroasted tea stood in contrast to the other two Jin Xuan selections from Nantou County that were more akin to a Dong Ding Oolong. Overall, it was yet another very educational and privileged experience to taste ten of the world's highest quality teas at one tasting - such a generous gift from the Nantou County Government.  

We've got a guest post up on TChing,

Grab a cup of Oolong and enjoy this walk through the exhibition hall at the 2013 Nantou Global Tea Expo. 

This is a short video of the the main exhibition hall at the 2013 Nantou County Global Tea Expo (Oct 2013).

It was an amazingly friendly atmosphere where tea lovers stop to talk, taste, and learn about teas from all over Taiwan. Tea lovers, merchants, farmers, shop owners, and tourists all attend. Tea artisans and farmers from tea growing regions all over Taiwan brew up their teas all day for anyone to sit down and try, and take home.

 

"Eco-Cha’s version has a stronger wintergreen note than other versions that I’ve tried, so if you like mint, give this tea a try."