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 The composition and functions
of tea
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The common seen tea species in Taiwan are teas such as
Qingxin Oolong (Ruan Zhi Oolong, Small Leaf Oolong), Qingxin Damo, Taiwan Tea No.
27 (Jinxuan), Taiwan Tea No. 29 (Jade Oolong), Tieguanyin, Shuixian, and Sijichun. |
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 Qingxin Oolong
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Qingxin Oolong is a small leaf
species; it is a late-sprouter that is suitable for producing semi-fermented
tea, because Qingxin Oolong is a historical and commonly planted variety, so it
has other names such as “Qingxin Oolong,” “Zhongzhai,” “Zhongcha,” and “Ruan
Zhi Oolong.” The tree size is slightly smaller and is an open type, the
branches are dense, the buds have a purple tinge, the leaves are long and
narrow, the flesh of the leaves are slightly thick, soft, and elastic; and the
leaves have a rich green luster. The Baozhong tea produced by Qingxin Oolong is
of high-quality and is well received by general consumers, so it is also the
tea with the largest growing area in
Taiwan
. Unfortunately the trees are
weaker, are susceptible to branch blight, and have lower production amount. |
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Qingxin Damo |
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Qingxin Damo is a small leaf type
medium-sprouting tea tree with high adaptability; other popular names are
“Qingxin” and “Damo.” The tree size is medium and slightly wide-out, the tea
buds are fat, fuzzy and purplish in color, the lanceolate leaves are long and oval
shaped, with a broad middle and serrated edges, the color is dark green, and
the flesh of the leaf is thick and hard. Because the Qingxin Damo is a stronger
tree, with high adaptability and production rate, so it often has the largest
growing area in
Taiwan
,
among the teas, Oolong and Taiwan Oolong tea have the highest quality. But the
past few years the growing area is the second largest, and mainly located in
Taoyun, Hsinchu, and
Miaoli
County
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Qingxin
Damo tea tree.
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Qingxin
Ganzhai tea tree.
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Tea No. 12 |
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Taiwan Tea No. 12 is also called Jinxuan, it was a newly
named species in 1981, because the Baozhong tea produced had a unique aroma, so
it was well received by consumers. Also because it is early-sprouting, strong,
has high production rate, and is suitable for machine picking, so the size of
the growing area is steadily increasing. Tea No. 12 is a larger tree type, it
is slightly upright and out-spreading, with high bud density, the buds are
large, green with hints of purple, the amount of fuzz is slightly less then
Qingxin Oolong, but it is not removed easily during the production process, so
an obvious fuzz can be seen on the tea leaves. The leaves are big and round, they
have less serrated edges, the flesh of the leaves is slightly thick, and the
color is green and lustrous. Because the tree is strong, highly adaptable; it
has high-production rate and quality, and is also well received by consumers,
so they are planted in most
Taiwan
tea growing areas.
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Tea No. 13 |
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Taiwan Tea No. 13 is also called Jade Oolong; it was bred
in the same period as Taiwan Tea No. 12. It is a mid-early sprouting new
species suitable for producing Baozhong tea, the tree is large, the bud color
is more purple, the density of fuzz is lower, the leaves are more narrow,
slightly large and thick, the two sides of the leaves roll slightly upwards,
the serrated leaf edges are blunt and large, and the color is green and glossy.
Tea No. 13 is looser and not easily picked with machines, in addition the
production rate is lower then Tea No. 12 so it was not widely grown in the early
stages, but because of the good flavor and strong flower aroma, it has gained
popularity. |
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Terrace
with good water and soil conservation is most suitable for growing tea.
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Taiwan
Tea No.
13.
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Zihongshin |
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Hard Zihongshin, a.k.a. Dagwong Hongshin, was one of the
four famous species introduced to
Taiwan
from Fukien
Taiwan
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It is a early sprouting species suitable for producing Baozhong tea, the tree
is large and upright, the leaves are slightly looser, the buds are large and
have dense fuzz, they are purplish red in color, the shape of the leaves are
similar to Tea No. 12 and Tea No. 13, but with sharper serrated edges, and the
tree is strong with medium production rate. Hard Zihongshin is mostly located
in Taipei County Danshui tea area; currently mostly in
Shimen
Town
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the strip or semi-curled Baozhong tea has a special aroma, but is lower priced
because of the poor tea color. Producing Tieguanyin, it has fair color,
appearance, and flavor; the quality and market demands are catching up to the
trend created by Tieguanyin tea trees. |
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Big Leaf Oolong |
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Big Leaf Oolong is one of the four famous Taiwan tea
species, it is an early sprouter, and is a species suitable for producing green
tea and Baozhong tea, the tree is tall, upright, and the leaves are loose. The
buds are big, hairy, and a light red color. The leaves are big and oval, dark
green in color and the flesh of the leaf is thick and strong, but it only has a
medium production rate. Big Leaf Oolong currently is scattered in areas such as
Taipei County Hsichih, Shenkeng, and Shimen, the total area is slowly
decreasing. |
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Tieguanyin |
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Tieguanyin is a small leaf species; it is a late sprouter
that is suitable for producing Tieguanyin tea. The branches are big and thick,
but the branches and bud density are loose. The buds have a hint of red, the
leaves are long, oval, and flat; but the edges go up and down and are wavy, the
edges are serrated but not sharp, the flesh of the leaves is thick and shiny,
the tree is weaker and has low production rate. Tieguanyin is currently grown
in the Taipei City Wenshan District, Muzha area; it is the best Tieguanyin tea
species. |
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Sijichun |
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Sijichun is a tea species chosen by the tea farmers in the
Muzha area, it is a small leaf variety, it is a very early sprouter Baozhong
tea species, the tree size is large and open, the branches and buds are dense,
the buds are a light red, the leaves are spindle shaped, the two ends are
sharp, the leaves are a light green color with fine, serrated edges; the flesh
of the leaves are thick and glossy, the trees are strong, the picking period is
long, and the production rate is high. Because the sprouting period for
Sijichun is earlier, and the picking period is long, the tea produced in the
spring has a special aroma, so the growing area had at one time increased, but
because the growing habits and production methods have not gone through
systematic testing, so the quality is hard to assess. |
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Qingxin Ganzai |
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Qingxin Ganzai also called Ganzai, it is a small leaf
variety, and is a species suitable for producing green tea, especially Longjing
tea. The tree is middle to large sized, it is a slightly upright type, but the
branches are loose, the buds are green with fuzz, so the high-quality Longjing
tea always come with Baihao. The leaves are large like a mandarin leaf, the
edges of the leaves curl up obviously, and they have an extremely large amount
of flower petals. Qingxin Ganzai is the most important Longjing tea species; it
is mainly located in the Taipei County Hsintien and Sanshia area. |
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Huanggan |
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Huanggan also called White Heart or White Leaf is a small
leaf variety late sprouter species that is suitable for producing black tea,
the tree is middle sized, with dense branches and leaves, the bud color is
slightly yellow, the leaves are oval to inverted oval shaped, and it has more
flowers. Huangan was grown mostly in Taoyun, Hsinchu, and
Miaoli
County
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but after domestic black tea lost the exporting market, the total area has
decreased rapidly. |
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Other types of tea |
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Among the different tea species grown in Taiwan, there are
also Wuyi tea, Hongshin Damo, Huangshin Damo, Hongshin Oolong, Huangshin
Oolong, Shuixian, Yuanzi Hongshin, Taiwan Tea No. 14 (Baiwen), Taiwan Tea No.
15, Taiwan Tea No. 16, Taiwan Tea No. 17 (Bailu), Danshui Qingxin, Foshou,
Wuzi, Meizhan, Dahuwei, and Assam, but the growing areas are smaller and not as
popular. |
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