Taiwan Dongding Oolong Tea

How did it get the name?

Now Dongding Oolong Tea is produced in Taiwanese tea-planting area at an altitude of 1000-1800 meters. “Dongding” refers to the name of the mountain, while “Oolong” indicates the breed. Originally produced in Lugu, Nantou, Taiwan, it is a kind of semi- fermented tea using Qingxin Oolong as material. It is foggy and rainy in Dongding Mountain. Moreover, the mountain path is rough and difficult to go up. People have to tense toes to climb the mountain, which is commonly called “freezing tiptoe”. This is how Dongding Mountain gets its name. Here comes the tea name “Dongding Oolong Tea”.

What is “Baozhong Tea”?

The name “Baozhong Tea” comes from Anxi, Fujian, where tea is wrapped in two pieces of bamboo papers to sell. The papers should be matched inside and outside. 200 grams of tea are put into the papers and wrapped into a rectangular-shaped bag. And then, the line number of teashop is printed onto the bag. It is because the tea is sold by the bag that “Baozhong” is called.
According to appearance, Baozhong Tea is classified into two kinds: bar-type one represented by “Baozhong in Wen Mountain” and hemisphere one represented by “Oolong in Dongding Mountain”. That is commonly known as “Wen Mountain is famous in North, while Dongding Mountain is famous in South”.

Features of tea

Dried Tea
Dongding Oolong Tea is tight and curve in stripe. It is bright and blackish green with gray points like those on frog’s skin.
Beverage
The beverage looks orange-yellow. With a clear fragrance like sweet-scented osmanthus, it tastes mellow and rich.
Moreover, it has a sweet aftertaste and a baking fragrance in the throat. Once you drink the tea, it can promote the secretion of saliva and biological activities, and can leave a long-lasting sweet aroma in the throat
Tea Leaves
The edge of tea leaves is reddish, which the centre is light green. The typical Oolong tea has green leaves with red edge.

Brewing the Famous Tea

Preparation
Red enameled pottery, Fair mug, Tea holder, Sample tea cup, Fragrance-smelling cup, Tea tray
Procedures
Warming the tea sets and putting in tea
Use boiling water of 100 degrees Celsius to clear the tea sets and put a certain amount of tea leaves into the red enameled pottery.
Infiltrating and brewing the tea
Fill the red enameled pottery with water of 95 degrees Celsius. Use the pot lid to skim floating foam and cover it. When the water outside the red enameled pottery is dried up, the beverage is ready to pour out.
Pouring out and tasting the beverage
Pour the beverage into the fragrance-smelling cup and cover it by the sample tea cup. Then, turn it over and give it to the guests.

Picking time

Dongding Oolong Tea can be picked all year round. In spring, it can be picked from late in March to late in May. In summer, it can be picked from late in May to late in August; in autumn, it can be picked from late in August to late in September; in winter, it can be picked from in the middle of October to late in November.

The best picking time in a day

It had better be picked from 10 o’clock a.m. to 2 o’clock p.m. As soon as get picked, it should be sent to factory for processing.

Related legend

It is said that Dongding Oolong Tea was transplanted from Wuyi Mountain in Fujian 140 years ago. At that time, a poor Xiucai named Lin Fengchi got financial assistance from local people on his way to Fujian for imperial examination. After being a Juren, he sent 36 tea plants for the local people as present and grew them on the Dongding Mountain, where became a tea garden with watchful care. Hence, Dongding Oolong Tea is spread afterwards.