what is "alpine tea"? At present, there is no disagreement on the definition of altitude, but in terms of altitude, although some manufacturers start from 8 meters or 14 meters above sea level, in general, tea grown in tea gardens above 1 meters above sea level is still the mainstream. As for the current height of tea planting in Taiwan Province, the upper limit is 26 meters above sea level. However, the term "Alpine Camellia" is often applied to high-quality tea produced in high mountains, but the place of origin is not well-known, or a few producing areas are less than 1 meters above sea level, but are located in highland valleys and full of alpine atmosphere. Therefore, "Alpine Camellia" does not refer to the tea produced in a certain place, but is only a conceptual term relative to "Pingdi Tea", but it is an indisputable fact that good tea is produced in high mountains.
Why do high mountains produce good tea
God has endowed Taiwan Province with a natural environment for growing alpine tea, which can be described as "unique". Within the island's area of about 36, square kilometers, the area beyond the 1-meter contour line accounts for about 68.7%, and the mountainous area above the 5-meter contour line accounts for about 45.2%. It is really "high mountains" everywhere. The alpine tea gardens in Taiwan Province are mostly reclaimed from the old forest land and bamboo forest land. They are rich in soil fertility and contain a lot of organic matter, which is suitable for the development of tea trees. If it is an area with abundant sunshine and average rainfall, it is the best place to plant tea.
tea produced in high mountains has the following two advantages. First, it is because the alpine climate is cold, the fog covers in the morning and evening, and the average sunshine is short, which leads to the decrease of bitter components such as catechins in tea bud leaves, and then increases the components that contribute to the sweetness such as theanine acid and soluble nitrogen. Second, it is because of the large temperature difference between day and night and the long-term cloud cover in the afternoon that the growth of tea trees tends to be slow, which makes tea leaves have the advantages of soft buds, thick mesophyll and high pectin content.
The original name of Longan Village is "Longan Forest". In the old days, there were many mountain longans and dense forests, so it was called Longan Forest.
Although tea seeds produced in high mountains have the above advantages, there are still some difficulties in making tea in high mountains. Firstly, the high labor cost of planting and making tea; Moreover, the camellia cyanine must be made on the spot, and the frequent foggy environment in the afternoon often affects the success rate of post-processing tea. Therefore, the top good tea can only be seen by God's face.
On the whole, both "Alishan Zhulu Tea" and "Lishan Tea" can actually be classified as a kind of alpine tea, which symbolizes that high mountains produce good tea, which is indeed a well-known fact. The charm of alpine tea lies in its lingering aroma and intriguing sweet taste after brewing. After drinking a cup, it has its own feeling of harmony between man and nature, which is the main reason why it is difficult for Pingdi tea to compete with alpine tea.
The tea garden is located under Hongye Primary School in Renai Township, Nantou County. Generally speaking, although Alpine Camellia is widely loved by all walks of life, for producers, the conditions for making top-quality tea are actually quite strict, because it must be made locally.
The producing area of alpine tea in Taiwan
The mountains in Taiwan Province are widely distributed, and there are also many places to produce alpine tea, but it is still dominated by emerging tea areas with an altitude of 1, ~ 1,4 meters in Chiayi County and Nantou County.
(1) Chiayi County
When we mention Chiayi County, we will naturally think of many nouns with equal signs, such as the Alishan forest train winding in the mountains, or the Shenmu tree that has retired after its success, or the mouth-watering lunch box on the Lake of Rise, and so on, and then show the richness of natural resources in Chiayi County. At present, it is also an important producing area of high mountain tea in Taiwan Province, and the planting areas are mainly Meishan, Zhuqi, Fanlu and Alishan.
Meishan township is not only an important producing area of citrus, Liu Ding and hemp bamboo shoots in southern Taiwan Province, but also the oolong and alpine tea in Jin Xuan, which cover half of Chiayi county. Meishan township is divided into 18 villages, 9% of which belong to mountainous areas. Tea gardens are mainly distributed in Taiping, Longan (the end of longan forest), Dianzai, Zhangshu Lake, Bihu, Taixing, Ruili, Ruifeng, Taihe and Taixing villages in Meishan township. At present, the total area of tea gardens is about 1, hectares, and the altitude is between 9 and 1,4 meters. Line 162A of County Road is an important route to visit the tea gardens in the township. From Taiping to Ruili, you can see tea gardens all over the mountains and valleys as long as you are in the village area.
It is worth mentioning that Longyan Village in Meishan Township (about 12m above sea level) is the origin of Taiwan's alpine tea. The tea trees planted here are mainly Qingxin Oolong. Although the reputation is not as loud as it used to be, the scale of the tea garden is still very spectacular. As for Zhuqi Township, Fanlu Township and Alishan Township, most of the tea-producing villages are located next to the 18-line highway (Alishan Highway), such as the mountain tribes of Laitou, Gap Top, Shantou, Guanghua, Shizhuo, Crossroads, Dabang, Lijia and Fengshan. The teas produced in these villages are commonly known as "Alishan Tea", but there are also teas named "Alishan Zhulu Tea" or "Alishan Yulu Tea". In particular, "Alishan Zhulu Tea" is the most famous, which can be described as the "green gold" of Zhuqi villagers, and this tea is produced on the stone table. In Shizhuo Tea Area of Zhuqi Township, the tea plantation covers an area of about 4 hectares, distributed at an altitude of about 1,2-1,4 meters, and concentrated along Peizai Tonglin Road. The main planting variety is Qingxin Oolong. Because of its rich aroma and mellow taste, the tea is widely loved by tea drinkers.
(2) Nantou County
Nantou County, located in the heart of Taiwan Province, is the only county and city in Taiwan Province that is not coastal. Surrounded by mountains, the territory is hilly, and the climate changes day and night, which is suitable for the growth of tea. The towns and villages that mainly produce alpine tea are Zhushan Town, Renai Township, Shuili Township and Xinyi Township.
Located in the tea garden next to Da 'anlin Road, Zhushan Township, Nantou County, the white pole in the picture is an automatic sprinkler. After decades of development, the tea gardens in Zhushan Town range from streams to high mountains, which makes it the largest tea planting area with the highest altitude difference in a single administrative region of Taiwan.
tea garden located in Da 'an, Zhushan. Because most areas producing alpine tea in Taiwan Province are developed along the existing local industrial roads, it is better to drive a vehicle with a high chassis and four-wheel drive if you want to visit. As for accommodation, it is not a problem because local tea farmers also run homestays.
Jin Xuan tea garden located in the quiet tea area. Renai Township is the fourth largest tea-producing area in Nantou County, followed by Mingjian Township, Zhushan Township and Lugu Township. In 1991, the annual output of tea in Nantou County was 11,1 metric tons, and the harvest area was 8,75 hectares. In Renai Township, the annual output of tea was 771 metric tons, and the harvest area was 847 hectares, accounting for about 6.9% of Nantou County.
Zhushan Town is the earliest developed place in Nantou County. Since ancient times, Zhushan Town has been the hub of entering the land and connecting with Houshan Mountain, and it has the nickname of "the first city in front of the mountain". Since 198s, Zhushan Town has planted a large number of tea trees in Zhaojingshan area. At present, the tea gardens in this town are located in Zhaojingshan, Houpu, Sheliao, Ruizhu, Da 'an, Ruanan, Liutengping, Shanpingding, Shanlinxi, Yanping, Yanshan, Yangtouwan and Longfeng Gorge. As for the areas producing high mountain tea in this township, Shanlinxi and Da 'anshan are the main areas, especially "Shanlinxi Tea".
Renai Township is located in the center of Taiwan Province, northeast of Nantou County. The territory is divided into 15 villages and 66 tribes. The economic cultivation of tea in this township was first introduced by Tianren Enterprise in the late 196s, and began to be popularized in Wushe, Gaofeng and other areas. So far, the cultivation area has reached more than 8 hectares, with an annual output of more than 68 metric tons, making it the fourth largest tea-producing area in Nantou County. From Wushe to Qingjing Farm, tea shops, tea factories and homestays can be seen everywhere, and green tea trees are like contours, even beside the 14 th line of provincial highway and platform and the 14 th line of platform. The tea garden here, because it is located in the deep part of the central mountain range, has low temperature and large temperature difference all year round, which keeps the high mountain tea seeds of excellent quality.
Qingjing Farm Tea Garden is an alpine demonstration tea garden that should be opened in 1976. Covering an area of 6 hectares, it is planted with Qingxin Oolong and Jin Xuan Tea, which is named "Cebu Tea" because it is often foggy and lingering for a long time.
the stone table tea area in Zhonghe village. Tea gardens in Zhuqi Township are located in Zhonghe Village, Guanghua Village Village, Renshou Village and Jinshi Village.
The tea tree of Qingxin Wulong is the longest cultivated and most widely distributed variety in Taiwan Province. At present, the market situation, in terms of a single variety, is only slightly inferior to that of Zhengyun Tieguanyin.
In addition, due to the vast territory and sparsely populated area, the tea producing areas here are extremely scattered, so although most of them are called "Alpine Camellia", there are still many famous teas, such as Tianwu Tea (Wushe), Tianlu Tea (Lushan), Cebu Tea (Qingjing Farm Tea Garden), Biluxi Tea, Wudun Tea (Red Fragrance) and Dongyan Camellia (Dongyan Camellia). As for the tea-producing villages in Renai Township, there are places such as Jiujiu, Wujie, Datong Mountain, Beidongyan Mountain, Aowanda, Hongxiang, Calm, Wushe, Chunyang, Lushan, Cuifeng, Cuiluan and Qingjing, and the tea varieties of Qingxin Oolong and Jin Xuan (Taicha No.27) are the main ones.
The old name of Shuili Township is Shuili Pit, and the elevation of the whole township is above 25 meters. Mingtan Reservoir, located in this township, is still the largest pumped-storage hydropower plant in Taiwan Province, which shows that the local water resources are abundant. In Shuili Township, alpine tea was also planted in 198s. At present, tea-producing villages are concentrated in Junkeng, Xinshan and Shang 'an. The tea products produced here are the most famous, such as "Yushan Tea" and "Shengfeng Tea".
It is planted in Qingxin Oolong Tea Garden near Tianchi, Heping Township, with an altitude of about 2,5 meters. When I visited, most of the autumn tea at the foot of the mountain had been harvested, but it was still in full of green and had not been picked. It can be seen that the tea planted in this environment grew slowly.
Xinyi township is the second largest township in Taiwan, and it has a beautiful nickname-"hometown of childhood". Every early spring, when plum blossoms are in full bloom all over the mountain, it always attracts many foreigners to stop here to enjoy the colorful scenery of flowers and snow. Xinyi township, like Shuili township, began to cultivate tea gardens around the 198s, so it also belongs to the emerging alpine tea area. The local areas where tea gardens are planted include Sanjia, Luona, Tongfu, Shenmu, Shalixian and Tataga, and they are called "Yushan Alpine Tea" and sold to the outside world. There are also teas named "Shalixian Tea" and "Tatajia Tea".
(3) Other counties and cities
In addition, Fushoushan Farm in Heping Township, Taichung County, li mountain and Dayuling, which are located in Hualien County, are all tea areas with the highest altitude in Taiwan, and of course, the price of tea is also extraordinary and noble.
The alpine tea garden is located next to Da 'anlin Road, Zhushan Township, Nantou County. Although the tea areas here are scattered, the planting area of each single tea garden is extremely vast.
In recent years, although the area producing alpine tea in Taiwan Province has a slightly decreasing trend, it is still widely loved by the public like alpine fruits and vegetables. In fact, most of the areas producing high mountain tea in Taiwan Province have the advantages of developing into sightseeing tea areas, such as Longan Linwei in Meishan Township, Ruili in Zhuqi Township, Stone Table and Shantou, and Quiet and Red Fragrance in Renai Township, all of which have amazing tea garden scenery, which is worth driving to. Having said that, however, it still needs everyone's attention and favor, just like the problem of soil and water conservation, it needs our more careful maintenance and attention. Therefore, if you have the opportunity, you must go to Taiwan's alpine tea area for a walk, which is definitely worth the fare.
The village in the picture is Shantou, which is located beside Alishan Highway. At present, oolong tea and Jin Xuan tea are the main varieties of alpine tea produced in Taiwan Province. In order to be different from Pingdi tea, or to facilitate the marketing, local tea merchants usually put "Gaoshan" before the word "tea species" to show the difference, such as "Gaoshan Oolong Tea" or "Gaoshan Jin Xuan Tea", but if they only call it "Gaoshan Tea", they almost exclusively refer to the tea made from Qingxin Oolong Tea species.
Taiwanese alpine tea produced by Tangquan Tea
At present, oolong tea and Jin Xuan tea are the main varieties of alpine tea produced in Taiwan Province. In order to be different from Pingdi tea, or to facilitate the marketing, local tea merchants usually put "Gaoshan" before the word "tea species" to show the difference, such as "Gaoshan Oolong Tea" or "Gaoshan Jin Xuan Tea", but if they only call it "Gaoshan Tea", they almost exclusively refer to the tea made from Qingxin Oolong Tea species.
oolong tea is the earliest tea made in Taiwan Province, which can be said to be the ancestor of Taiwanese tea and the most famous tea in Taiwan Province in the world. In China, according to the fermentation degree of tea and the color of tea soup, it can be divided into six categories: green tea, white tea, yellow tea, green tea, black tea and black tea. The commonly known oolong tea is green tea.
European and American countries are divided according to the degree of fermentation. Those that are not fermented are called green tea, those that are fully fermented are called black tea, and those that are semi-fermented in the middle are regarded as oolong tea. But no matter what countries, the term Oolong tea should refer to semi-fermented tea made according to a certain practice, not to a specific tea variety. But in Taiwan Province, what locals call "oolong tea" is not only semi-fermented tea, but also tea made from oolong varieties. More famous teas will be added with local names, such as "Frozen Top Oolong Tea" and "Yushan Oolong Tea" which are familiar to the public. Most of the teas grown in Taiwan Province are oolong varieties, especially high-grade teas. Therefore, over time, the proper term "oolong tea" was replaced by "oolong tea".
the situation of autumn tea harvesting by tea farmers in Shantou tea-growing area. Bitou Land belongs to Gongtian Village, Fanlu Township, Chiayi County, with an altitude of about 1,2 meters. In addition, according to the introduction of Taiwanese tea by the tea authorities in Taiwan Province, it is divided into two categories according to the tea production methods: packaged tea and oolong tea, and oolong tea refers to the re-fermented Baihao oolong. But now the name "Oolong Tea" stands for many meanings in Taiwan Province, which is not as strict as that in China. With the split between the two sides and the progress of tea-making technology in Taiwan Province, it is gradually very different from China, and even many new varieties are produced. In addition, there are many emerging tea-producing areas in Taiwan Province in recent years. In order to promote their local tea, many places will be named in their own way. So it is also oolong tea, and its naming method is more diversified.
Therefore, from the viewpoint of Taiwan Province people, when we talk about oolong tea, we must refer to the tea made from oolong varieties. The fermentation degree is 15%~25%, the shape is hemispherical or spherical, the tea soup is golden yellow or light brown, the fragrance is slightly sweet-scented osmanthus or light honey, the taste is mellow and the sweetness is good.
Because there are so many producing areas of Alpine Camellia in Taiwan, the quality control and production procedures vary from place to place, which often leads to buyers' ignorance.