Green Tea from Taiwan (Baguashan 八卦山): a pleasant and mild green tea

After the first infusion

For Christmas I received a really nice set of tea canisters containing a variety of tea from Taiwan.  (Would have loved to show pics of the canisters but my photos weren't very good.) I was super excited as there was green tea as part of the mix!  Taiwan is not known for green tea and they don't produce very much of it, but they do produce it.  Oolong teas are really their forte but this one was a nice change.  I remember after drinking the first cup, it sort of gave me a "Spring" like feeling...but, then again I also drank this on New Years Day when the sun was shining and it was much warmer than you'd think for January weather!  (Whatever it was, it was a nice feeling!)

This tea was from Taiwan Tea Crafts, which ships tea directly from Taiwan.  I've recently come across a number of websites (in English) offering Taiwan tea that are based in Taiwan and ship worldwide.  Five years ago there weren't that many but now there are so many options.  You can get Taiwanese oolong teas on almost any online tea shop but, most of these new ones mention that they work directly with the tea farmers indicating product authenticity.

Made from the Qing Xin Gan Zi  (青心柑仔) tea varietal, this tea was also hand-picked from the southern most tip of the Baguashan (八卦山) mountain ridge in Nantou County. Usually, Qing Xin (青心) is the only term referenced on a lot of sites, but I like how they were even more specific.  I only thought there was one Qing Xin varietal, but since I've been reading some text I bought from Taiwan, I've learned that they are further divided.  Qing Xin Gan Zi is mainly used to make green tea while Qing Xin Oolong  (青心烏龍) and Qing Xin Da Pan* (青心大冇) are normally made into various oolong teas.


Baguashan Qing Xin Green Tea

Dry Leaves...3 grams
Vessel...Ceramic Gaiwan 175ml
Temp...80°C boiled water

First cup

Infusion time...1 minute.

Colour - lovely light green/yellow, clear
Body - medium thick, nice mouth feel.
Taste - vegetal and grassy but not as sharp as other green teas...there was a bit of creaminess to it.


Second cup

Infusion time...1.5 minutes

Body - lighter than the first
Taste - vegetal but lighter.  I may have to adjust timing or temperature of this second cup as I thought it could have been better given the leaves were still quite rolled after the first infusion.


Overall, I really like this green tea.  It's more subtle than other green teas and the hint of creaminess is perfect for a light roasted oolong tea lover, but it does have a distinct vegetal grassy taste.  From the website, the tea was picked in Oct 2015, so a winter tea.  This is also unusual because most green teas I know of are picked in the spring.  I wonder what kind of difference there would be if picked in the spring vs winter?  Anyway, I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for more news on green tea in Taiwan.

*Not sure if this is the right English translation because the Chinese character is usually known as "mao3" when it is written elsewhere.