tea and ecology in taiwan

Mon, 24 May 2010 17:23:30 -0800

Naturally grown tea in central Taiwan

A trend noticed in Taiwan is the attention being directed toward wild, organic and "naturally grown" teas. Farmers experiment by searching for truly wild teas to process, as well as using organic or no fertilizers when growing teas.

Organic certification is said to be reasonably inexpensive, so the excuse that certification is too expensive is invalid in Taiwan. One farmer even said if anything, it costs too little to certify teas as organic, and people get away with looser standards for certification than is optimal.

"Naturally grown" teas comprise teas that are not only grown without pesticides, but those grown without fertilizers, and left to grow with and among whatever other plants that might crop up in the tea garden. I saw this happening in Mao Kong, Dong Ding, Da Yu Ling, Fu Shou Shan, and lower areas of Lishan--areas where one finds Ti Kuan Yin, Dong Ding, high mountain, and black teas from Taiwan.

This is an interesting and heartening trend that deserves attention. When teas are left to grow "naturally", crop yields decline, but the quality of the teas, and more importantly, the quality of the soil, increases. This also makes healthier tea for the consumer. Without chemical pesticides or fertilizers, you get the full benefits of the leaf, and the soil from which it is grown is allowed to regenerate.

There is growing concern in Taiwan that many high mountain teas are harming the environment because the large quantity of chemical herbicides and pesticides used on many of these teas runs down the mountain and into the public drinking water supply. Some Taiwanese people even boycott such teas (primarily the high mountain teas) in opposition to the environmental hazards posed by the production of these teas.

As consumers, we can make a difference by asking questions of our tea shop and tea house owners as to the production methods used on the teas they sell. Many merchants carry teas that have been processed chemically, and while no one intends to throw stones-- particularly at those who are providing quality teas-- it is time for all of us to consider the impact of our buying habits and choices, and to make our best effort to support sustainable growing and processing methods.

The "one planet" mindset helps us to consider how our choices effect people across the world who pay the consequences of consumer choices elsewhere and who gain or lose their land and their health because of our choices.

Video on naturally grown teas coming very soon!
]]>

fu shou shan

Fri, 21 May 2010 05:14:00 -0800

Fu Shou Shan Farm

The tea harvest came about two weeks early in Taiwan this year, which meant that in Dong Ding and other parts of Taiwan, the harvest we viewed was the summer harvest, which constitutes anything that comes after the first plucking of leaves in spring. In Fu Shou Shan and Da Yu Ling, which are at higher altitudes and therefore the last places to be harvested in this season, the spring harvest was just about to arrive....

What is so special about Fu Shou Shan? While it is right near Lishan, Fu Shou Shan tea is grown naturally, which means the tea has few (if any) chemicals, and no pesticides. We can see this through the lovely weeds, grasses, flowers and other plants that grow around the tea bushes in Fu Shou Shan, as compared to tea bushes in Lishan where the grass and other plants are literally scorched away by pesticides and herbicides. We saw these chemicals being transported by pully up and down the Lishan range.

You can taste this for yourself when you sample teas from different farms. Teas grown without chemicals tend to be less bold in flavor but possessing rounder more balanced tones and incredible mouth feel. Chemicals show up in the back and back sides of the mouth and linger long past the floral notes, leaving one wondering about the real health benefits of tea.

The rub? Fu Shou Shan tea is difficult to obtain. A small number of wholesalers have these teas, which are in very high demand in China and not very available elsewhere.

Fu Shou Shan farm continues on for miles and is part of a protected mountain area in Taiwan. The land is captivating, with a softness that is in contrast to the rugged mountain landscape in much of the surrounding range.

After planting my feet on this farm, I knew why I always preferred the taste of Fu Shou Shan tea to that of Lishan or even the coveted Da Yu Ling....the land of Fu Shou Shan is spectacularly beautiful. Look for vidoes coming soon!

]]>

tea houses in mao kong

Wed, 12 May 2010 16:12:06 -0800

After taking a day to acclimate, I headed up to Mao Kong in Southeastern Taipei. The number S10 bus took me up the winding mountain to some of the most beautiful tea houses I've seen. Stunning temples dot hillsides with several arteries of hiking trails for those who want to earn their tea and dim sum.

A couple of favorites for different reasons include Shang Yang Tea house, which served one of the best Jin Xuan's I've ever seen or tried. Dark emerald green tea glistened in the yixing pot. After a 13-hour flight and the rigors of engaging in a new culture, this was a most welcomed tidbit from the heavens.

Yang Syu Yang tearoom is spectacular for it's decor and views. The tea is not superb, but the views, and even the gold-leaf wallpaper make up for whatever is lacking in the leaf. This tea house features an indoor koi pond, with stepping stones over a bridge to a number of private rooms with carved doors and windows that overlook Taipei, temples, and the lush tropical flora of Taiwan.

For those who don't mind heights, a gondola will take visitors up (or down) the mountain, offering panoramic views of Taipei and the tea houses and temples tossed across the landscape like so many jewels flung from the hands of ancient gods.

Tea Oil Noodles at Shang Yang Tea House in Mao Kong/Taipei

Food is served at the tea houses as well, and at a fraction of the cost of the tea. I enjoyed "Tea Oil Noodles" at Yang Shang Tea House and the dumplings at Yang Syu Yang. Just a couple of dollars will buy some amazing home made dim sum.

I couldn't manage to tear myself away, and as night descended, decided to brave the gondola the trip down the mountain rather than wait an hour for the bus (which had just come and gone). Bravery has its rewards: the views were stunning with Taipei 101, one of the tallest buildings in the world, glittering in the distance.

Coasting through the dark, starry sky, you can hear cicadas chirping along the side of the mountain and the dark sky means one isn't completely aware of the gondola's altitude. More coming soon, including a few videos.

]]>

tea chef cooks with puerh tea

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 15:14:56 -0800

Asparagus with puerh mushroom sauce

Chef and tea book author Robert Wemischner was sent some Bon Teavant puerh teas, including the Bamboo Fragrance Puerh from The Phoenix Collection, which was Robert's favorite. Here is a wonderful seasonal recipe from Robert Wemischner made specially for the Bon Teavant audience for a spring morel mushroom sauce to grace a bed of roasted asparaus. I couldn't find morels, so I substituted shitake mushrooms (above) with good effect.

Enjoy this short podcast interview on cooking with puerh tea with Robert Wemischner:

Click here to listen:

Download

TEA POACHED MUSHROOMS:

4 ounces fresh morels or other wild mushrooms of your choice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the poaching liquid:
1 t. puerh tea (Recommend Phoenix Collection Lot 17 or Bamboo Fragrance Puerh).
1 c. vegetable stock (homemade, or boxed, available in aseptic packages; look for lower sodium varieties, if available)

1 c. heavy cream

Wash the morels carefully in three changes of lukewarm water to remove sand and grit. Cut them in half lengthwise and rinse again to be sure that you have removed all sand and grit. Dry well on paper towels, salt and pepper lightly and set aside.

Make the poaching liquid as follows: In a small saucepan bring the broth and the tea to a boil. Immediately remove from the heat and allow the liquid to stand in the saucepan for about 3 minutes, or until the tea flavor and aroma are clearly evident. (Taste frequently to avoid over steeping the tea which will lead to a tannic, bitter broth-if you use the Bamboo Fragrance Puerh, you will want to remove the tea quickly -in about 30-45 seconds). Then pour the liquid through a fine sieve, pressing hard on the tea, reserving the liquid, and discarding the spent tea leaves. (The leaves may be used as fertilizer or compost for your vegetable garden).

In a heavy saute pan, melt the butter. Add the cleaned mushrooms, cut in half, and saute over high heat for about 1 minute to brown lightly , turning them carefully to brown the other side. Add the tea-broth liquid and cook until the liquid reduces by half. Then add the cream and continue cooking until the liquid coats a spoon lightly. Serve immediately, seasoning with a bit more salt and freshly ground black pepper, if needed. Serve over toasted brioche, roasted asparagus or steamed wild rice.

]]>

tea picnic season

Mon, 19 Apr 2010 20:57:33 -0800

Rita & Arnas sipping a winter baozhong together by Cascade Falls

In Tang dynasty China as well as in Victorian England, taking tea outside was de rigeur, as well as a marvelous way to share some ebullient times and fine teas with great friends and colleagues. Japanese tea ceremony also celebrates the natural world, but even the most austere and engaging tea room is no match for Mother Nature.

We have all seen images of those romantic days when folks joined together to sing, laugh, recite poetry, make music, and share philosophies by soft flowing streams and blue mirror lakes, all the while sipping tea.

Spring called up these images, and conspired with memories of last October's Wuwo tea ceremony to get excited about creating an outdoor tea. So on a sunny Saturday afternoon, friends Rita Stanikunaite and Arnas Palaima joined me for the first tea picnic of the season in my hometown in N. California, where streams, waterfalls and redwoods converge to create the ideal tea picnic site. The natural tapestry of wild flowers, towering trees, flashing streams, and rich flowing waterfalls spurred by spring rains made the perfect backdrop to an amazing tea gathering.

Here are some tips for you to consider in creating your own tea picnic or outdoor tea gathering:

Bring a thermos of filtered, water which is boiled just before leaving for your hike or picnic. Use a large thermos--you'll need it to rinse cups & heat teaware besides just brewing tea.. (Sometimes more IS more.)
Bring a tea that requires cooler brewing temperatures--often green, white and delicate oolongs work best. For our picnic, we chose a winter baozhong from Teance, and it was spectacular! Now that spring teas are newly arrived, you may want to celebrate the event by choosing new spring teas.
Bring teaware: gaiwan or yixing teapot, cups for each person, serving vessel, and cup coasters. It is fun to bring special tea ware reserved for special occasions. Pack it carefully or use a tea travel set.
Bring a nice mat, blanket, or pretty piece of fabric to sit on and create the space.
Find a place that inspires you with its beauty, and light, and which is not heavily visited. It is especially inspiring to have tea by a body of water--stream, waterfall, pond, lake, etc.
Bring some delicately flavored snacks. ( I brought a lightly sweetened polenta honey cake and fresh organic anjou pears for color and delicate taste.
Bring friends, a date, a colleague, or your family. Or just head out on the trail on your own. It's all good!

We can slow down and enjoy the seasons and its teas.

]]>

tea brewing for the connoisseur

Wed, 14 Apr 2010 11:06:47 -0800

A number of tea masters and merchants recommend brewing techniques as guidelines, and in the same breath say, "But these are just signposts. You have to know the tea."

By learning the nuances of one tea, you pick up the secrets of others. This is the art of the tea connoisseur.

For example, J-Tea's Mi Xiang oolong, smells a little bitter after the rinse, and when brewed for 60 seconds, the tea exhibits a harsh edge and an almost dry mouth feel. When brewed for 20 seconds, however, it's a really fine, smooth tea with complexity, character, and even a wry sweetness. Where did the bitterness go? It seems to have been swallowed by the black hole created by the absent 40 seconds.

The same goes for the Bamboo Fragrance Puerh from The Phoenix Collection and a number of other teas that I now recognize as a category when I smell them....the sharp, bitter smell, mingled with other notes like sweetness and smokiness signal a tea that requires a short brewing time. Brew it for only 10-20 seconds and you might not taste any bitterness at all.

This works for Phoenix oolongs, green puerhs, and other teas like J-Tea's Mi Xiang. So in getting to know the Mi Xiang by spending real time with it, I learned something about a certain quality in tea and what it's telling me about its brewing requirements.

From there, brewing variables increase: you can experiment with different tea ware or water, leaf quantity, and higher or lower water temperature. Each tea will sing more sweetly or wail a little louder with each slight change.

What are you learning from tea? Let me hear about your tea adventures....
]]>

yixing tea thermos

Mon, 05 Apr 2010 16:51:02 -0800

I never in a million years thought I'd be writing about a Starbucks product on Bon Teavant. But you know the old adage, "Never say never." I will decline from divulging the means through which I discovered the new Starbucks yixing clay-lined tea thermos, but I will tell you it is a bit of fun to watch the thermos change color as the hot tea fills this newest and most unexpected of tea vessels from a most unlikely source.

Here's the long and short of it: This is a small-ish (12 oz.) thermos, lined with yixing clay. The screw cap cup is lined with plastic, and so does not make the ideal tea cup. The lip of the thermos is lined with metal, and you do taste the metal when you try to sip tea from the thermos. As the taste of metal can ruin the tea, you might be inclined to use this only to transport tea if you are a huge yixing fan. Then again, such a person might just bring his own teapot with him.

The color and design of the thermos transform when the thermos is filled with hot liquid, and likewise, changes back when the thermos is cooled. Perhaps this might alert you that the tea has cooled.

I thought this was unique and ingenious and it made me laugh to think that some people will be dedicating particular thermoses to particular teas. "This is my Wuyi Starbucks tea thermos, and this is my Puerh Starbucks thermos over here...."

I am sure someone in the tea industry will be able to come up with a thermos even more appealing to the tea fan than this one, perhaps with a bamboo or ceramic cup that figures into the design of the thermos. But we do have to send a nod to Starbucks for creating it. You will find it displayed near Tazo Teas, and priced at $16.95.

In the meantime, you didn't hear about it here.

]]>

rethinking the steep

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 11:19:29 -0800

This morning I did a sampling of 2006 Rice Pollen Green Puerh from Pure Puer Tea. Using very hot water for the first couple of infusions for a minute or more produced a very bitter, almost undrinkable tea. But the lovely, smokey aroma wafting off the lid of the gaiwan suggested that I had erred, and there was something good to be found in this tea.

According to Roy Fong in his book, The Great Teas of China, "Younger, less fermented puerh can easily become bitter, so try about 2 tsp in medium-hot water with a 1-3 minute steep time." I've noticed that Roy likes his tea "thick" (heavily infused), so even the 1-3 minute steep time might still be too long for some teas for another palate.

So I started completely over with a new serving of leaves, and this time brewed only one teaspoon in 185-190ºF water for only 5-10 seconds (similar to brewing specs at Pure Puer Tea). Nice!

I had a very similar experience with David Hoffman's Bamboo Fragrance Puerh, which when steeped for 90 seconds was undrinkable. Taking it down several notches made the magic happen. Brewed in 195ºF water for about 15 seconds created a really fine and unique brew, offering a kind of smokey, exotic taste that made me feel as if I were sitting by an open fire with the tribe that had picked and processed the tea.

So, the next time you find an "undrinkable" tea, try steeping it very differently. Hotter or cooler water, more or less leaf, different tea ware, or a change in steeping duration (or a combination of some of these variables) can make all the difference.

Then again, some teas ARE undrinkable. In such a case, toss it in the garden, and find a new tea.

]]>

morning tea ritual

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 11:05:49 -0800

You can create a morning tea ritual that will change the way you view your life, improve your attitude, and help you to manage your time and resources. The time for mental rest and contemplation and the relief of awareness, presence and focus is provided by the tea ritual. The 20th century nap is best had awake with a cup of tea in this 21st century. This "waking nap" affords the body and mind some rest and at the same time, an opportunity to be inspired.

Taking time out of your day, or even starting your day with a tea ritual helps you to relax, refresh, and also clarify where you are in your work and relationships, and to consider whether your thoughts and actions are likely to help you create a life that is fulfilling.

To get started, sit comfortably on the floor or at a table, preferably near a window where the light and the view are inspiring or relaxing. Select your tea and tea ware. (If you drink matcha, using a traditional Japanese tea bowl and whisk are great sources of ritual; if you like Chinese tea, go for the gaiwan or a yixing teapot; if you like British style tea, choose your favorite tea pot and tea cup). The comfort comes quickly as the tea and tea ware are laid out, the water is heated, and the tealeaves await their fate.

Regardless of the tea ware you use, the feeling of ritual is the vital element. It is a time to let go of the concerns of the day (or of the years), and focus your awareness on the water, the leaf, and the "choreography" of the practice of making good tea, including paying attention to the sound of the kettle to get the tea water to the right temperature, observing or smelling the leaves as they steep, and considering the optimal time for the pour.

Then steep yourself in the comfort of the tea, enjoying its fragrance and taste, as well as the beauty of the liquor. The immediacy of the steam as well as the fragrance of the tea and the ribbon of water saturating the unfurling tea leaves will comfort you to your roots, as the day gradually progresses into a little puzzle of perfection.

As you sip your tea, you will find your mind wandering in certain directions. You might remember some things you had wanted to accomplish that day or think about a loved one who might need extra attention (perhaps even yourself). Having note paper or a note book nearby can be a great help. You'll find that when you write something down, you are relieved of its burden. The item is acknowledged, and you can move on, let go, rest, and bring yourself back to the enjoyment of your solo tea party as well as to the stillness and quiet that help to balance the mind and emotions.

The best part of this process is that you don't actually have to think about anything. What you need to be aware of will naturally come to you when your relax your mind and body, and focus your awareness on nothing more than water, leaves, fragrance, taste, and timing.

If you do this everyday, you will notice a difference in the quality of your enjoyment of life and your awareness of what can change and what is there to appreciate. As well, you will have remembered the things you often forget about, those important details where both angels and devils lurk.

Let me hear back from you. What is your tea ritual and how does it make you feel?

]]>

the great teas of china

Mon, 15 Mar 2010 09:35:59 -0800

In Roy Fong's new book, The Great Teas of China, Roy shares his 30+ years of knowledge and experience with tea, and distills it into a slim volume that is direct, concise, and elegantly written. You would be hard pressed to find a better book with which to begin your tea adventures, and it will serve for years to come as a reference guide.

In broad, clean strokes, Roy shares information about each of the ten teas he features, including its history, lore, processing techniques, and region of origin (including a map). He also provides color-correct and proportional images of the teas before steeping and as a liquor in the cup, so readers have a good reference for selecting and brewing each tea.

All the elements of this book come together to teach tea. Roy takes this opportunity to reach out to anyone who cares to learn a lot about tea. With this book, you have a tea master's training in your hands, and someone to whom you can turn with questions.

Each time you scan this book, you will learn something new or be reminded of a different facet of the relationship between tea, its origins, and the tea drinker. You will feel as though you were being tutored by Roy directly, and hearing his tea stories first hand, as if walking through China together as he teaches you the most important things he has learned about each tea, and how he learned it.

Very simply, Roy is a great tea man. If you want to be trained by a master, this is your book.

]]>