Friday, April 03, 2015

Dream job: Watching tea grow

It has been a busy week of driving and exploring Taiwan's high mountain tea plantations. I'm bringing back lots of pictures, news and tea that I'll share in the coming weeks. (A Jinxuan Oolong is already available, but we need more patience for Qingxin Oolongs). I also found my dream job: watching tea grow in Chang Shu Hu from the above chair. The view on the plantations and surrounding mountains is simply fabulous. Unfortunately, the job's description doesn't stop there. It also includes very tough work in the fields and in the workshop :(
So, if this was your dream job, too, I propose you just watch or remember these pictures as you taste some High mountain Oolong from Alishan! It's a mix of greens and blue.
Happy Easter!

7 comments:

wils1981 said...

Stephane, Thanks for the great blog.

Could you give some advice on using a glass tea cup with a filter to brew teas? These cups are common in China, I see people using them everyday, but my experiments with them have been inconsistent. This is the type of cup I mean: http://image.dhgate.com/albu_763482744_00/1.0x0.jpg

TeaMasters said...

Wils,

Glass isn't the best material to brew tea. The cup you show is a way to drink tea in a convenient way. The leaves continue to brew inside. In China, I believe people use it for green tea and the rule is to use very few leaves. The other trick is to choose leaves that don't turn bitter or astringent too quickly. And lastly, use good water!

wils1981 said...

Thanks for the advice :)

Marilyn Miller said...

Beautiful Alishan! How I would love that job of watching the tea grow from that chair also.

Unknown said...

I have a question concerning material brewing taiwan gaoshan cha. I have a 160ml zini lixing teapot from the 1980s or 1990s. It is high fired and very smooth surface with little black dots in the inside and outside. I was wondering if gaoshan cha could be brewed in it. From visting many shops and general knowledge most people that drink taiwan high mountain use zhuni to bring out higher notes and thicker texture.

TeaMasters said...

Kenneth,

The best way to know is to try for yourself! A high fired pot would be a good fit. And while top quality zhuni is the best fit, in my opinion, a good quality zini teapot might do a better job than an average zhuni.

Unknown said...

Thanks Stephane! Also thanks for sharing your tea adventures with us!