Light and fresh this tea is a great introduction to oolongs as it takes your senses through a spring meadow with its refreshing aromas and flavours.
Flavour
Floral, savoury and herbaceous
Harvest
Tsui Yu (Jade) or Formosa Tea #13 cultivar; spring
Processing
Light oxidation, no roasting
Elevation
400 metres
Harvested from a farm at 400m, this award winning tea artisan consistently produces unique oolongs. This Tsui Yu Jade is less oxidised and unroasted so it retains its fresh qualities.
The semi-ball rolled dry leaves have an aromatic floral aroma of osmanthus. Once infused the liquor is light and somewhat creamy as it coats the palate with herb notes and finishes with a pleasant dry floral taste that’s lingering with a hint of sweetness.
This tea would pair well with oven baked salmon topped with a beurre blanc sauce that brings out the herbaceous qualities in the tea, with a side of steamed baby carrots or sweet corn.
3g per 250 mls (1 cup)
First infusion: rinse leaves with 90oC water for 10 seconds and discard water; infuse for 3 minutes at 90oC
Additional infusion: gradually increase steeping time for second infusion.
7g (2 tsps) in 100ml Gaiwan
First infusion: rinse leaves with 90oC water for 10 seconds and discard water; infuse 20-30 seconds at 90oC
Second and third infusions: infuse 20-30 seconds at 90oC
Additional infusions: double infusion time with each additional infusion
3g per 250mls (1 cup) of room temperature water
Brew in a tea flask at room temperature for up to 2 hours. Taste as it's brewing and strain the tea when you like the flavours.
The Tsui Yu (Jade) is one of Taiwan’s four main tea cultivars specifically designed in the 1980s for making oolongs and it’s able to undergo different oxidation levels during processing.
This Tsui Yu was grown at 400 metres elevation in Mingjian Township, an area known for its distinct, mineral-rich reddish soil. This tea growing region is nestled between the Zhuo Shui Xi River that flows from the Shan Lin Xi Mountains through dense forests bringing fertile soils downstream, and a long ridge called Bagua Mountain.
Fog and an increased variation in temperatures are daily occurrence and help create ideal conditions for growing tea. The tea farm is part of a co-op of farmers who implement sustainable farming methods. No chemical weed killers or chemical fertilizers are used.
