【Taste of China】The "encounter" between insects and leaves Taiwan's oriental beauty tea fragrance on both sides of the strait

Beijing, 3 Mar (ZXS) -- The "Encounter" Between Insects and Leaves Taiwan's Oriental Beauty Tea Fragrance on both sides of the strait

Authors: Chen Jianxin, Lu Mei, Yang Chengchen

In Emei Township, Hsinchu County, Taiwan, there is a tea culture center transformed from a traditional tea factory, and tourists flock to it every holiday. In addition to setting up an oriental beauty tea tasting area, the museum also exhibits the history of the tea, production process, traditional tea-making tools, etc., which are widely praised by tourists.

Taiwan is located in the tropics and subtropics, the climate is mild and humid, the rainfall is abundant, mountainous and hilly, very suitable for tea planting. As one of Taiwan's specialty teas, Oriental Beauty Tea is mainly produced in Hsinchu, Taoyuan, Miaoli and New Taipei; Due to the high requirements for the growth environment and the scarcity of production, it has the reputation of "treasure in tea".

Oriental beauty tea, also known as Ponfeng tea. According to legend, in the early years, a Hakka tea farmer could not bear to give up because of the insect infestation of tea, and after harvesting, he picked it and sold it in Taipei, but he did not expect that it was very popular because of its unique flavor, and when he mentioned this matter after returning to his hometown, he was actually referred to as "Ponfeng" (Hakka dialect means "exaggerated"). It is said that the tea spread to England, and Queen Elizabeth II praised the tea leaves after brewing like a beautiful dance, which became a legend from the name "Oriental Beauty". The authenticity is now impossible to verify, but it enhances the legend of this oriental drink.

"Oriental beauty tea is not easy to come by." Taiwanese tea maker Liao Chenwei said that the production of high-quality Oriental beauty tea requires not only unique raw materials, meticulous tea garden management, but also exquisite tea-making technology.

Taiwanese tea maker Zuo Ruyu's family has studied Oriental Beauty Tea for four generations, and she told the China News Agency that Oriental Beauty Tea belongs to the green tea family, that is, oolong tea. In the selection of tea varieties, the variety "Qingxin Daxiang" is preferred, and the tea planting land needs to be in a place with heavy humidity, warm climate and leeward. Some time before tea picking, it is necessary to leave weeds in the tea garden to cultivate a good ecological environment for small green leafhoppers to come to smoke.

This insect, also known as the little floating dust, is the mystery of oriental beauty tea.

Zuo Ruyu explained that the leaves will cause wounds after being sucked by small green leafhoppers, and out of survival instinct, the leaves secrete plant essential oils so that the wounds can heal quickly. The smell produced by this essential oil is the honey and fruity aroma of Oriental Beauty tea.

Every year around the Dragon Boat Festival, it is a good time to pick oriental beauty tea. In order to ensure that the tea leaves are fresh and tender, tea pickers strictly follow the standard of "one bud and one leaf" or "one bud and two leaves", and only pick the leaves that have been sucked by small green leafhoppers.

There is also something special about the making of Oriental Beauty tea. Zuo Ruyu told reporters that for example, in the Langjing link, it is necessary to skillfully grasp the strength and beware of destroying the leaf veins and affecting the water walking function, resulting in bitterness of tea.

Liao Chenwei, who jokingly describes herself as a "half-way monk," used to work in a medical-related industry and now runs a tea plantation in Nantou. He said that by chance, he learned tea making with friends, and gradually found that the tea industry is very interesting and contains a lot of rich knowledge.

For tea lovers who are well versed in tea art, brewing oriental beauty tea is also very particular. If you use a standard lid bowl, put the amount of tea about 7-8 grams, and the water temperature is best between 90-100 °C. After pouring the water, 15-20 seconds out of the soup, pour into a fair cup, and start dividing the tea after 3-5 minutes. The oriental beauty tea brewed in this way, the tea soup is golden and translucent, and the cheeks are fragrant.

In order to develop local industries, many tea-producing areas in Taiwan have held tea evaluation activities for many years, attracting tea farmers to continuously improve their tea cultivation and tea-making skills. According to media reports, the competition tea of Oriental Beauty Tea once hit a "sky-high price" of NT$1 million in the auction and became famous. With the rise of Taiwan's tourism and leisure industry, some traditional tea factories have also been transformed into tea culture centers, tea cultural relics museums, etc., to attract people to go.

Since the 20s of the 90th century, many Taiwanese tea farmers have set their sights on the mainland market and introduced Oriental Beauty Tea to Datian, Fujian and other places, and the now well-known "Datian Beauty Tea" comes from this. Zuo Ruyu, who has been traveling between the two sides of the strait for more than ten years, has also established a tea company in Xiamen, Fujian Province in recent years, and a group of young people on both sides of the strait who are obsessed with tea-making skills and culture have "learned from teachers".

"Tea is a good medium to bring people closer together, and our tea culture has lasted for thousands of years without interruption, and we hope to pass it on." Zuo Ruyu said. (End)