Break the established impression that there is no good tea at low altitude "port tea"-the local taste of the south of the border

The special geographical conditions make the flavor of port tea particularly special.

The famous saying in the tea industry textbook "low Mountain Mum and good Tea" has always influenced the judgment of consumers in Taiwan in the past. However, is it true that the geographical location at low altitude cannot produce good tea?.

When I came to Pingtung, south of the border of Taiwan, the hot summer wind steamed people dry, and beads of sweat kept rising from the sweat glands of the skin. In this hot Peninsula, does anyone really drink hot tea?.

The special flavor of hybrid and dill tea

Port tea is the southernmost tea area in Taiwan. Port tea has several famous features: low altitude, low latitude, long sunshine and strong sea breeze. When tourists enter Gangkou Village, Manzhou Township, Pingtung, they often see the word "hybrid tea" on the roadside telephone pole or on the roof of a nearby Tujiao house. At a glance, they may think to themselves, "Why is it so indecent?" Are you swearing? What kind of tea is this? "

When I came to Zhu Jincheng's tea garden, the scarlet letter of "authentic port tea" is greatly inscribed on the noodles, claiming that the history of the tea garden has been nearly a hundred years. Zhu Jincheng, who is 74 years old with a silver head, is the most indicative site of port tea, which is located on the hillside at an altitude of 60 to 100 meters and about 200 meters from the seaside. He told me that because of the hot weather, tea grows very fast, which can be ten years a year, and some people doubt the quality of the tea. However, Zhu Jincheng pinched the tea and said to me, "feel the thickness of this tea cyanine." "

Zhu Jincheng, who has passed the age of ancient age, has been quite familiar with the production of port tea from his youth to the present.

Most people do not know that Pingtung, which is hot, also produces tea, or many drinkers who are obsessed with "high mountain atmosphere" are not worth it for low-altitude tea areas. The history of port tea can be traced back to a tea-loving scholar (county magistrate) nearly 200 years ago. The first kinds of tea introduced here by Chinese mainland are Sydney, Wuyi, Qingxin Oolong and so on.

The so-called "hybrid tea" refers to the tea made by four varieties of tea, namely, Sydney, Wuyi, Qingxin Oolong, and Jinxuan (27), which was later improved in Taiwan. Perhaps because of its location and low yield, the tea species has never been improved by modern tea industry technology, and this kind of tea, which has not been improved, has now become a unique variety unique in Taiwan. Tea farmers have told us that tea industry improvement workers who have visited in recent years still hope that the port tea in Pingtung will remain unique.

Another feature of port tea is the emphasis on seed species (dill tea), that is, tea trees grow by sowing seeds. The advantage of real tea is its rich taste, but its disadvantages are large seed growth variability, genetic diversity, and quality is either very good or easy to deteriorate. For the business model of capitalist operation: it requires stable quality and mass production, port tea does not have an advantage in this respect.

Overlooking Port Creek and Bashi Channel from the tea garden.

Port tea that grows strong and tenacious under the falling mountain wind

Why does port tea insist on sowing seeds? In fact, this is also forced by the situation. Chu Sung-hsiung, another tea farmer, said that in the past, he had tried to grow tea by cutting or pressing, but the cuttings had no main roots, and they staggered all the way under the strong mountain breeze, and the seedlings died before they grew strong. However, if the seedlings are planted in this way, whether it is a strong wind or drought without rain, the tea seedlings are very tolerant and can survive.

The wind is too strong, tea trees are not good to grow, but there is a special advantage: not afraid of insect pests. "because the wind is so strong that even the insects can't stand, they will be blown away, so there are no pesticides here! Zhu Jincheng grabbed a handful of fallen leaves from the ground and told me that there were no pesticides or chemical fertilizers in the tea garden. Most of the nutrients of the tea trees came from the local withered branches and leaves, and occasionally they would deliberately find five-jointed awn and rotten wood to increase the fertilizer of the tea garden soil.

The summer of Taichun Peninsula is particularly long, and the winter is not obvious. The annual average temperature is 28.3 degrees Celsius. Tea buds sprout very quickly, ranging from six to ten degrees a year. There is a tea harvest in spring, summer, autumn and winter. However, because of the limited area of the tea area, the annual output is not much, but even so, during the tea season, we are faced with the same problem in Taiwan: we cannot find tea workers. "Ruan, this is where the grass is. The three" girls "of tea add up to more than two hundred years old, and they often can't find workers. "in the hot weather, the tea grows very fast. as long as it doesn't burn for three to five days, the tea will grow old. if it is not harvested in time, it will lose its harvest value. therefore, he makes no secret that when he is out of work during the tea season, he often needs to rely on the cooperation of" family visiting groups "from outside Vietnam to work.

Find a way out from restrictions

Is the port tea good? Many people always have a wrong impression of port tea: bitter and astringent, heavy taste, all drunk by the elderly! Apart from the taste of fresh and strange, why does anyone still want to taste this "bitter" taste? The biggest feature of the appearance of port tea is that there is a layer of fog on the outside, some say it is the sea breeze, some say it is the result of re-baking, but others say it is caused by fungi. "light fermentation, heavy baking" is one of the characteristics of port tea.

There is a layer of fog on the surface of port tea.

A tea farmer told me that his great-grandfather once said, "if you suffer, you can't have bitter tea." People in the tea industry often say, "No bitterness, no astringency, no tea." in fact, the emphasis is not on the word "bitter", but on the return of sweetness after suffering. The way of brewing port tea is actually some tricks, tea farmers taught me to use boiling water high temperature brewing, but the time can not be too long, high temperature fast, very resistant to brewing. In the early days, the consumers of port tea were limited to the south, with a relatively heavy taste and an older group, the so-called "old" tea, but in fact, there are also many young consumers who have many repeat customers who seem to be addicted to it and get stuck.

The method of making port tea also has its own knowledge.

However, the special flavor of port tea was once faced with the crisis of disappearance. Zhu Jincheng said that when he was young, he could make two to three hundred jin a day. Zhu Songxiong said that in the past, there were about 20 tea shops in Gangkou village, but today there are only about four tea shops that really produce, manufacture, and sell one-stop tea. and most of them still have to rely on the contract to produce tea on a decent scale, and more people are handed over to equipped tea factories to make tea on a decent scale.

Although the output of port tea is not large, during a visit to the port village, each tea company has its own advantages. Some focus on green tea, while others follow the traditional oolong tea series. Black tea and white tea are popular in the market recently, and there is no absence here. Some follow the market taste, some are unique, and want to make Zhenggang port tea that people can not imitate.

For example, Yunfa re-engraved the ancient handbag tea, simply packed it with two sheets of white paper, stamped with Zhu mud square seal, and then tied it with rushes. The ancient taste of port tea is about to emerge. In addition to packaging, Yunfa emphasizes that its port tea is a mixed single plant with rich levels of taste. Shunxing tea garden tea is a popular taste that is easily accepted by the general market, and the tea ice cream made by port tea is quite popular with tourists. In addition to making tea, Xinxin Tea Garden also makes tea steamed buns, tea biscuits and cold brewed tea. it also works with the port community to promote tea-scented mini-tours, integrate tea into the ecological tour of the community, take tourists to know their hometown, and enjoy the sunset from the Port Creek and the bus Strait. Apart from visiting the beauty of Kenting National Park, the southern end is crowded with tourists who want to catch a glimpse of the gray-faced eagle of the "National Day Bird". Port tea has become a popular local companion gift.

Yunfa No. Zhu Ni Square Seal.

Seriously, Manzhou Township in Pingtung is really not a good place to grow tea. there is a falling mountain wind for half a year, and the temperature is particularly hot, except for climatic factors, limited hinterland and an aging population. However, who says that there must be mass production in order to have a way out? today's port tea does not feel inferior to others at all. "what I sell is not altitude and sweetness, but characteristics." "it clearly and loudly shows the world that its altitude is low (about 100 meters) and that it is close to the seaside (about 200 meters). Tea cyanine is a smell of seafood that people can smell. It is the Pacific Ocean, and it is also the local flavor of the falling mountain wind.

Drinking tea is a kind of local taste. The tea produced by different geographical elevations and climatic conditions has its own characteristics. In addition to the freshness of the taste buds, port tea challenges our insight into tea.