Dance of the Tea Teaser Out Now

We just released the first teaser for our Taiwan Oolong Documentary! The Dance of the Tea.

This is the first installment in a series of teasers, all organized around elements of tea. This first is focussed on the actual leaves, farms and processing. You can see Dong Ding mountain and the tea fields there. The farmer we have bought tea from for a decade is in there, a thin man with white hair. He will show up in later videos.

Please enjoy and stay tuned for more teasers. We think the way the leaves dance is so beautiful!

Special thanks to Jake Knapp who filmed and edited the video and to Jon Davis who contributed music for this piece.

Dong Ding Guided Tastings Beginning Soon

We are very excited to bring our live session focus to Dong Ding! We believe drinking tea together with tea people is the best way to explore tea, and we want to bring that experience of sharing tea to our clients and friends far away. In these sessions, we will share what we have learned from having tea with Taiwanese tea merchants, farmers, artists and masters. It is really important to us to deliver the knowledge of these people. They have been steeped in tea culture for generations, and have so much to teach all of us. We hope you can accompany us on our journey.

With Master Zhan. Photography by Jake Knapp.

Dong Ding oolong is so important to us because it is a tea that inspires these tea people to work their artistry. Oolongs processed with caring hands in the traditional Dong Ding style bring our imaginations to Dong Ding tea farms of the early 20th century. It is clear that these farmers were striving for an excellence beyond commercial success, and their commitment to the craft is really beautiful to us. Now it is rarer to find this kind of tea, but what we've found we've fallen in love with.

Charcoal Roast Dong Ding. Photography by Lee Damon.

We hope you can find time to accompany Shiuwen for guided Dong Ding tastings this month, starting on November 14th. We really recommend you purchase the Traditional A and Charcoal Dong Ding from our website so you can drink it with us. If you do this, we will offer a one sessions sample of Charcoal Four Roast Dong Ding, given the name "Secret of the Sages" by Master Zhan. It is a rare opportunity to drink a masterpiece like this. Our first session, on Traditional A Dong Ding, will be Tuesday November 14th at 11:30 AM on Instagram. The next sessions, focussed on Charcoal Three Roast and Four Roast, we will cast on the following Tuesdays: November 21st and 28th.

Written by Noah


Dong Ding Oolong Tasting Set
Charcoal Dong Ding (three roast) is scheduled to arrive in the shop on the 6th. We've put together a tasting set to make things easier. If you prefer to buy the teas separately, we will still send a sample of Master Zhan's Four Roast Dong Ding. If you pre-order the tasting set this weekend, we will ship it to you as soon as the tea arrives. *The new Charcoal Roast Dong Ding just arrived!

A Good Traditional Dong Ding, Brew It 30 Times?

Our Dong Ding farmer told me that I could brew his Dong Ding 30 times. To be honest, I never have patience to brew any tea past 15 times. My friend, Oolong Owl, attempted it with our Charcoal Roast Dong Ding. She did 24 infusions with this Charcoal Roast Dong Ding! You can check out her writing here on her blog Oolong Owl. She has great descriptions of her process and the notes of this tea. Enjoy!

*photography by Lee Damon.

Dong Ding Documentary Project Sponsored By Embrace The Moon

Embrace The Moon, School for Taijiquan and Qigong is the first sponsor for our Dong Ding Tea Documentary! 

The founder and owner of Embrace The Moon Kim Ivy and I have known each other for 11 years now. I am honored to call her my friend and teacher. Two years ago I went back to take Taichi again, and our friendship grew. 

She teaches hard and really cares about what she does. I have learned so much about taichi and I love it! I see a lot of similarities between tea and taichi. There is so much detail and endless levels to explore. 

Then she started to come in to Floating Leaves Tea on Wednesday afternoon for tea. We tell jokes, gossip; sometimes talk about philosophy, politics and dreams. I show her what a good tea can do beyond just tasting good. We expirement with different styles of tea energy and see how they impact our Taichi practices. That has been extremely fun!

Since the first time I mentioned this Dong Ding Tea Documentary project to Kim, she has been supporting the project with money, encouragement and ideas. It's because of people like her and many of you who have believed in me that helps to push this project forward. Thank you!

We will continue to raise funds for editing and post production. To support this project, please visit our tea documentary fundraiser page here. 

*photography by Jake Knapp of Cloud 9 Photography & Design. 

An Excellent Charcoal Roast Dong Ding: Expansion

In my previous post about my experience with charcoal roast master Mr. Zhan I mentioned a Four Roast Dong Ding. That tea taught me about what a good tea can do 10 months after I first had it.  I purchased that tea in April 2016 and have been loving it to this day.

About two months ago, my tea friends Char of Oolong Owl and Andrew of The Happy Tea Man came to have a Dong Ding session with  me. I tried to show them how a good Traditional Dong Ding not only has good, solid broth and great aftertaste, but also that it has the most amazing "expansion". I normally experience expansion with Cha Qi (tea energy). That day, the Four Roast gave me a wonderful surprise. The expansion this Dong Ding has takes two routes: one is the tea energy, which is super strong, and the other one is texture expansion. I felt it for the first time. Its texture was pushed into my body while the cha qi was happening at the same time. I can't really express how excited I was when that happened! Our friend, Jake of Cloud 9 Photography & Design shot a short video of us. I don't think I completely understood what was happening at the time. I only knew how AWESOME the tea was afterwards.

Two things happened in this Dong Ding Tea session that I absolutely love: friendship and expansion. I love it that tea is very communal. Tea brings people together. Tea allows us to enjoy not only its goodness but also the company that is there. Tea is expansive. Throughout these years learning about tea, I noticed that the right people with the right mind in tea sessions can open and hold a precious space for the tea drinkers. Char, Andrew and Jake are very open-minded people with great taste in tea. They helped to create and hold that precious space with me.

And a good tea is a great teacher! I am still AMAZED at how this Charcoal Roast Dong Ding still teaches me after so many months. When I realized the tea broth in my mouth was expanding into my body, the beauty of it was beyond description and it has deeply touched me. I thought of Mr. Zhan and how he could possibly craft a tea like this. He inspires me! His tea inspires me!

I am grateful and thrilled Mr. Zhan agreed to be interviewed for our Dong Ding Documentary. I look forward to learning more from him and to sharing with you some of his tea stories. We are scheduled to film the documentary in the first two weeks of July. We reached Phase 1 of our fundraising goal, and that is to shoot footage. Thank you all who have supported this project! We are now working on Phase 2 fundraising and we are half way there! We just need a couple of thousand dollars to hire people in our places so that each of our businesses can stay open while we are gone filming. Please consider donating and supporting this Dong Ding Documentary Project. Thank you!

Charcoal Roast Master: A Spetacular Tea Session

After I met the Charcoal Roast Master Mr. Zhan in 2010, I was not be able to see him unitl 2016. Over the course of these years I would call from time to time to see if I could bring some customers to visit him. But they always turned us down, stating Mr. Zhan's health had not be good. The memory of that strong Chinese herbal medicine smell back in 2010 made me think of his troubled health condition.


In April 2016 my friends David and Jake went to Taiwan with me. I called Mr. Zhan's store and told them I am in Taiwan and I could go pick up the tea order I had placed.

The moment we entered the apartment Mr. Zhan was right by the door putting on some classical music (later we figured out his favorite music is Beethoven.) We shook hands, and the moment our hands touched I could feel he was weak. I don't know how to explain that, and from that moment I was doing my best to control my emotions. "Welcome! Please sit and have tea." Mr. Zhan said. I didn't expect to have tea with them that day, so I was very excited to be offered the opportunity.

Conversations started to flow and I was just so thrilled to drink tea with him again. I think we started with Charcoal Roast Dong Ding. The three of us were very happy to drink that. Then another Charcoal Roast Dong Ding was brewed. "That is our 4 Roast," he said.

"What? You have a four roast?" I asked.

"The tea base was very good and I was able to do it this way." I loved the 4 Roast! I continue to be amazed by this tea today. I will write another post on this Dong Ding tea.

Mr. Zhan and I. Photo by Jake Knapp.

With tea, conversations and laughter flowing, I noticed we were all opened up to each other, and a beautiful space was created. "I have parkinson's disease." Mr. Zhan said. I noticed how much his hand was shaking. A couple of times I thought he would drop his tea cup and yet he managed.

Then he asked his assistant to brew a certain Sheng Puer for us. After two infusions, he said, "Stop brewing this tea. This Puer is not showing up for them today. They deserve better." Then he asked the assistant to brew the next Puer.

"I understand some teas wouldn't open up certain days. I had experiences like this." However I forgot to ask him how he knew the tea was not showing up for us. Was it because we didn't say anything about the tea? I took a sip of the next Puer and I immediately felt something. It's not about how smooth the broth was (which was excellent) and it's not about the Cha Qi, or tea energy (which was clear and great). It was something else. It was a 'feeling'. I couldn't pinpoint it so I didn't say anything. After I sip the second infusion that feeling was still there. "What is this?" I thought to myself.

"This is a young Puer but it has an old soul." Mr. Zhan said very gently.

"What? Why?" I asked.

"When I drink this tea, I always feel a kind older sister's presence." he said.

"Oh my god! That's the 'feeling'. He knows!" I thought. I was compeletely blown away by the experience. I looked at him and then everyone else in the room. I looked outside the window and back in the room again. "Ah....He is the tea conductor" I thought to myself. I felt physically we were in an apartment in a city called Taipei, but we all managed to create a space together beyond the physical space. I couldn't possibly describe the beauty of it. I was simply inspired at that moment and thought, "could I accomplish this someday?"

I was extremely happy, if that's the right word to describe my emotion, with this tea session. It showed me a different level of tea drinking. At the same time, I was very sad to see Mr. Zhan's health trouble. In the next 30 minutes or more, I was trying to hide my emotions and became very animated. I poured out my Seattle life stories and how I didn't know how to resolve my karma in Seattle. His assistant and he listened to my stories with gentleness. Perhaps subconsciously I was trying to find an answer from him (I do believe he can read people's fortunes).

The conversation was switched back to tea and he asked his assistant to brew us a 70's Puer. It was delicious! We were all very honored that he gave us such a tea treat! "I would like to ask you a favor. When I come back next year, can I record and video tape your tea roasting? I love your roasting skills and you probably figured out I am crazy this way. I would love to record some of your skills. I mean, your work is amazing to me. You transform tea to a higher level. For nothing else, I would like to know a little bit of this technique and keep this beautiful part of you with me."

His eyes were closed for a while. Then he opened his eyes, "Yes, but only that and nothing else. I get tired very easily nowadays."

"Oh thank you! I am easy. When you are tired, just tell me to leave." I said. "Just one more question. What do you mean by 'nothing else'?" Everyone burst into laughter and he didn't answer the last question.

Still today when I think of this tea session, my heart is filled of gratitude for Mr. Zhan. I thanked him for showing me what he was capable of with tea and I thanked him for such a spetacular tea session. He gave me something to look forward to. I am also grateful to his tea assistant and my two dear tea friends. Their presence helped to create that moment. I will always hold those moments dear in my heart. And who could have known that request would turn into a Dong Ding Tea documentary project for Jake and me.

Charcoal Roast Master: Getting To Know Each Other

I met the charcoal roast master Mr. Zhan back in May 2010 with my friend Jennifer. I remember his store was difficult to find because he was running his tea business in a second floor apartment tucked in a narrow alley.

When we entered the shop, he, his assistant and another woman were there. In the middle of a small living room sat a tea table, and boxes of tea were laid around the room. There was nothing fancy about the room and yet there was a feeling of serenity. That day the room was filled with Chinese herbal medicine smell.
We all sat down. His assistant brewed tea for us. In my mind I thought, 'wow, that was nice to have someone brewing tea for you.'

Since it was the first time they met me, I tried my best to communicate with them what I like in a tea. They listened when I expressed my thoughts on the teas she brewed. I remembered the atomsphere was very pleasant. After trying two different teas, despite the flavor differences, these two teas had something in common: very soft. "How long have you been brewing tea? You are very good at it." I asked the assisstant. "25 years" she answered. I looked at her and noticed she looked like she was 30 years old, so I said, "you started when you were 5!?" "You are too funny, Miss Tai!" she laughed. "OK, what kind of lotion do you use?" I asked. We all laughed.

Mr. Zhan sat there without saying much. But there is something about his presence that I really enjoyed. He left the room for a while. I asked the other woman if she is learning tea from Mr. Zhan. She said she is learning "Yi Jing" (The Book of Changes) with him, and she said he is very good at "Yi Jing". Mr. Zhan came out from the back. "I just heard you are quite a scholar of the Yi Jing. Do you tell fortunes?" I asked. He answered, "Yi Jing is not for that." "I know, but I am shallow!" I joked with him.

charcoal roast dong ding

The third tea was a Charcoal Roast Dong Ding, and it hit the spot. "That's the tea I was looking for! The broth is solid and smooth." I claimed. He looked at me and said, "Let's see the place for roasting tea with charcoal." "Righ now?"I asked and reached out to grab my bag. "You can leave your things here." I followed him and suddenly came to realize that it's in the apartment! A door at the end of the hallway was opened and the warm tea, charcoal smell gently rushed to my face. I thought I was in a dream......

charcoal under the ashes

The room was as small as a closet. A cement platform was built with two big holes for charcoal. Mr. Zhan was roasting tea that day. He showed me some of the tools in the room and told me it's very time consuming to roast tea with charcoal. I thanked him for doing it so that we could have great tea to drink!

On the way out I handed him my name card, which also had my name printed in Chinese. He looked at it and said, "your family name is heavy." "You do know how to tell fortune!", I thought, but instead I asked him what it meant. He looked at my face and told me what it meant. My friend Jennifer also asked him to read her. But I think I should skip our fortune tellings here.

That tea session felt very good. I didn't know at that time that Mr. Zhan and his tea will be a huge inspiration to me. More of his stories to come.....

Dong Ding, Farmer, And Tea: Care And Love

After all these years, I still cannot say that it's easy to deal with the Dong Ding Oolong Farmer, although I do find it's easier nowadays. He has learned to take "No" from me as an answer, even if he doesn't like it.

I love recalling how our relationship has evolved, from being super difficult and swearing to myself after every visit that I would never go back there, to sometimes arguing with each other, and now to a level of mutual understanding where we have learned to get along with each other.

I think he has realized how sincere I feel towards Taiwan oolong and Dong Ding tea and at the same time how stubborn I am. He knows I will stand up to him if necessary and to push for him to craft the tea that I know my customers will love. And I've learned to see how he "loves" and cares for me and other people in his unique way.

He loves to show people around. I actually really enjoy those moments when he drives us around. I love seeing the mountains and trees. I love listening to the Taiwanese oldies he plays in the car, blasting at a high volume with the windows rolled down as we drive along quiet backroads. I take in the air, the view and the music from my youth. It feels like my past life and current life blending together. I sometimes wonder if the birds and insects would say, "Here he comes again!" When my son was younger, he would hum along with the songs even though he had no clue what they were saying and it would make the farmer very happy and they would sing together. I thought that was one of the most beautiful moments I've  witnessed.

Here is a clip of video where he drove us around in the mountains:

He is also very specific with things we eat. He thinks we are eating too much bad food. Their food is simple. Cooking is simple. Most vegetables come out of their own field or from the neighbors. Many times I had to eat some unknown powder which he thinks super good for our health, and drink some Chinese herbal brew which he believes will make me healthier. He also likes to ferment fruit. He has numerous jar of permented fruit "juice." I really dislike drinking those. On my last trip, I was thankful that my friends David and Jake enjoyed drinking them and it made the farmer very happy. He is OK now with me not drinking them.

I am grateful with all the things that farmer has done for me. I think I will never forget the moment he asked me, "When you drink a tea, can you taste if it's good?" I am looking forward to our future encouters. And I am really looking forward to my relationship with his wife, a strong woman behind the scene. I have been able to talk to her more and more during recent trips. She agreed to be in my Dong Ding documentary! It's time we bring her forward and showcase her skills and personality!

My friend Jake Knapp and I are going to be shooting a Dong Ding documentary this July. It's a dream come true for me to be able to showcase a tea that I think represents the soul of Taiwanese oolong. We will have a short two weeks to meet with a lot of people and to collect as many stories and as much footage as we can. The harder work will begin after our trip, when we have to edit the videos and put together a story that I think everyone will enjoy. The fundraiser page is up on my website. We appreciate and are grateful for all of your financial support as we work to preserve important Taiwanese tea culture and the human treasures who produce the finest oolongs.

The next few posts will be all about Dong Ding tea and this documentary project. Stay tuned.

2016 Winter Taiwan Tea Trip: Dong Ding Mountain

I am glad to be back in Dong Ding Mountain. I don't get a lot of time to write but would like to share some photos with you. I love Dong Ding Oolong and I am moved by the land and the people here. I look forward to sharing the tea, stories and more photos with you after my return to Seattle.

a beautiful view at dong ding

a nice hike

farmer's hospitality: a homemade riceball treat for winter solstice. 

cute tea flowers

Dong Ding Farmer and Tea: He Refused To Sell A Tea

Before I went to Dong Ding Mountain, my friend warned me that the farmer would refuse to sell tea if he thinks the person doesn't understand his tea.

After I tasted 7 of his Dong Ding Oolongs, I settled with #3 Dong Ding. While they were packing my order, my mother and I went to get our luggage ready. "His tea is pretty good, right?" my mother asked. "Yes, I like it." "Then I should buy some for your uncle. He drinks tea" my mother said. "Get #3 or #4. They are the best ones and they are equally good. There is not enough #4 for my business, but I am going to buy it anyway. I will keep it for myself and share with some of my customers"I said.

We got our luggage ready and went to pay for the tea I ordered. My mother said to them that she would like to buy two pounds of #4. "No, you can't buy that tea. You can buy #6 or #7." Farmer said. "Excuse me? #6 or #7?" I protested. "What's wrong with #6 or #7? Are you telling me that they are bad teas?" he asked. "I don't think they are bad teas, but #3 and #4 are better!" I said. "Your mother doesn't know the difference. You can tell. You can buy #3 and #4."

It was true that my mother couldn't tell the difference, but I was still very annoyed. At the same time, I was a little bit happy that my tasting skill was confirmed.

On our way back home, I thought to myself "what a place and what a farmer!" I really like his tea but man, he is very intense!

Dong Ding Farmer and Tea: Deciding On A Tea

After breakfast was cleared from the table, Farmer put the water kettle back on the stove. "You want to taste #3 and #4, right?" he asked. "Yes please!"

I proceeded to brew Dong Ding teas #3 and #4. Farmer's wife would come out of the kitchen from time to time to taste the teas. After the last infusion, she came out and looked at me closely. I was about to give the farmer my decision. She suddenly said, "Miss Tai, if I were you, I would...." "Be quiet! You can't tell Miss Tai which tea to pick!" shouted the Farmer. "It's OK. I know which one I want to buy. It's #3" I said. For the next 10 minutes, I explained to him my reasons for picking #3. I was actually talking to the wife to let her know the reason without talking to her directly. After that, I knew we had developed one of the most beautiful ways to communicate.

After she packed the tea for me, she said, "Miss Tai, don't you need the stroller for your son? Let me help you to get it." I looked at her for a couple of seconds and smiled, "Yes please. I need to get some stuff, too. Let's go together." We left the room and she said, "don't ask him about tea varietals or questions like that." I laughed, "I was very aware of it this morning." She quickly showed me some tea plants and told me about the shapes, leaf sizes and vein structure on the leaves. I thanked her for showing me that.

For the first couple of years, my tea tasting/learning journey in Taiwan had been very difficult. Not a single farmer, tea business person, or tea professional would tell me which tea he/she liked better. I knew that none of them was trying to "keep the secret" from me, it's just that they didn't want to share with me their own preferences. Their philosophy is "no one can tell you which tea is a better tea. You are the only one who can tell which one is right for you." I have come to appreciate this style of teaching, but I do have to say that it was very difficult at first and I felt like I was drowning in a sea of tea every so often.

*photography by Jake Knapp of Cloud 9 & Design Photography.

Dong Ding, Farmer, and Tea: When You Drink A Tea, Can you Tell If It's Good?

I am going to focus these next couples of months writing about Dong Ding tea, so that I can finally finish my stories and avoid repeating what I have written before.

From the recent three posts of my experiences with the Dong Ding farmer, I hope you get a good sense of his personality: Dong Ding, Farmer, and Tea; Dong Ding, Farmer, and Tea: This Is What I Did For Tea; Dong Ding, Farmer, and Tea: Tasting Tea.

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So much had happened during my first afternoon in Dong Ding. I woke up very early the next morning. The sun had just snuck through the clouds. I love that moment, so quiet and peaceful. The only thing that greeted me was the beauty from nature. There were tea fields around the house we stayed. I decided to take a short walk and noticed they were different tea varietals, but couldn't tell which one is which.

After looking at the tea plants for a while, I saw Farmer coming. I asked, "Are these your tea plants? They look very healthy!" He gave me an intense look again and said, "No." "It looks like they are different varietals. Can you teach me how to identify them?" I asked. "Why do you want to learn that?" he said. "Well, I own a tea business. I want to learn as much about tea as possible" I replied. He then said, "That's garbage. Now answer me a question. When you drink a tea, can you tell if it's good?" That question rang like a bell in my head. I closed my eyes for a couple of seconds and then looked at him right in the eyes, "Every time I do my best." He looked at me and I felt he could sense my sincerity. He said, "Tell you mom and son that breakfast is ready." I looked at his back and thought of that question, amazed by how that question hit me.

At breakfast he said to me, "Some people come and tell me they have been drinking tea for 20 years. The moment we share a pot of tea, I realize some of them can't taste tea at all, and that's very pathetic to drink bad tea for 20 years. I don't care how much one knows about tea. If one can't taste tea, what's the point of learning all the facts about tea?" I thought that made a lot of sense. Until today, I put "tasting tea" as my number one tea learning, and I haven't told the Farmer yet that knowledge is still very important. When one can taste more, knowledge becomes alive and beautiful.

*photograhpy by Jake Knapp of Cloud 9 Photography.

A Short Video on Tea Rolling at Dong Ding Mountain

When we visited Dong Ding Mountain this past April, Jake took a short video of tea rolling at a tea rolling factory. Their job is to help tea farmers roll their Dong Ding Oolong.

Here is the video:

From the video, you can see a man tighting up tea in a cloth. I believe each ball has more than 40 pounds of tea. I tried to pick up one and it was heavy! On the left hand side of the video, you can see each tea ball between two serrated plates, being rolled. Behind the man, you can see big metal tubes. After the tea has been rolled, they loosen up the leaves and send them to the tubes to be lightly warmed up. They will repeat the process up to 8 times, depending on how round the farmers want their tea to look.

A traditional style Dong Ding Oolong focuses on a solid tea texture and a very clear throat feel. I am a big fan of this tea. Try it out and tell me what you think.

*this video is provided by Jake Knapp

2016 Taiwan Tea Trip: Dong Ding

For those of you who have read my three posts about our Dong Ding farmer, you have probably got a pretty good idea that he is not an easy person to deal with. Well, good news, this spring trip at Dong Ding went smoothly! We saw some tea being processed, visited a sweet farmer couple, enjoyed astounding views in the mountains, and even got to do some sightseeing! Here are some photos to share:

collecting freshly picked tea

rolling tea

a beautiful tea field with mist

great view!

bamboo forest

beautiful waterfall

These photos might not capture the depth of the beautiful places and things that I actually saw. A photographer, Jake Knapp, went on this trip with me. I will be sharing his photos soon. Another travel companion on the trip, David Galli, recorded lots of our conversations with the farmers and tea people we met. I will be posting some interesting facts we learned on this trip after I receive the recordings.

2016 Spring Tea Trip: A Quick Tea Update

Due to the snow in February, and lower temperature after that, Taiwanese spring tea harvest is delayed for roughly two weeks.

I visited Muzha for Tieguanyin in April 12th, they were just starting to harvest the Si Ji Chuan( Four Season Spring). This cultivar grows faster than the majority of cultivars in Taiwan. The True Bush Tieguanyin was not ready for harvesting yet. Farmer Zhan told me that there was no sun for two weeks before this day.
I was at Dong Ding Mountain on the 14th and 15th, farmers were harvesting JinXuan( Tawan Tea #12). It was misty with sunshine breaking through here and there. Farmers were deciding if they had to pick Soft Stem varietal, because the weather was not looking good for the following week.
Same thing happened in PingLin. Farmers are waiting for Chin Xin varietal to get mature enough for harvesting.

I did bring back some amazing roasted Dong Ding and traditional Tieguanyin. For darker roasted style teas, I like them at least one year old, so that the roast can have time to intergrate. I will put them on my website as soon as possible.
For High Mountain Oolong and Baozhong, my two tea buyer friends will be sourcing them when the spring harvest is ready.

There will be more posts about this spring tea trip. Stay tuned.

2016 Taiwan Tea Trip: Wistaria Tea House

I am so happy to be back in Taiwan: the humid air, warmer temperature, the food and of course the tea people and teas!

After 12 and half hours of flight, Wistaria Tea House is always a perfect place to relax. 

A pot of Yu Shan High Mountain Oolong, a pot of 70's Dong Ding, and a pot of 60's Aged Puer brought so much happiness and satisfaction.

the entrance of Wistaria Tea House

window display

beautiful tea menu, so many good tea to choose from!

60's loose leaf Puer

awesome tea snacks: roasted peanuts, mochi, and tea plum

Dong Ding, Farmer, and Tea: Tasting Tea

This is the third post in a series of stories about my experiences in Dong Ding. You can find the first two stories among my January posts.

I was very happy to hear Farmer saying, "Let's go back. It's time for tea." Finally!

The tea table was set up and the water kettle was set on the stove. Farmer said, "Miss Tai, since you are the one who will decide which tea you like the most, you should brew the teas." I asked how many different ones he had. He told me he had seven different days of harvests. "Can we taste the teas in bowl style?" I asked. "Of course" was his answer.

While I was tasting the tea, Farmer's wife would come out from the kitchen and try the teas. She would look at me closely but didn't say much. I focused very much on the 7 bowls of tea. I went back and forth through all the bowls, trying to know all the tea's strength and weakness. "Miss Tai, the society is corrupt. Humanity has fallen. See how many people are sick? Of course they are sick. Look at the food they are eating. If someone gives me that food for free, I wouldn't eat. Even if he gives me $20,000, I still wounldn't eat it. Society is corrupt, and...." He went on and on like a broken tape player that I couldn't turn it off. I probably tasted the teas for 2 hours while he repeated variations of the same statements. I looked at him from time to time and nodded my head randomly. It was the most intense tea drinking session ever!

I tried to stay in my own world and focus on the teas. I was very happy with all the Dong Ding teas on the table. I suddenly said, "I am done tasting tea for the day. I like cups #3 and #4. Maybe I can taste them side by side tomorrow morning?" Farmer replied,"Of course. We should have dinner soon."

My mother, son, and I walked to the place where we stayed for the night. Mom said, "He is very intense." I said quietly, "Indeed."

Dong Ding, Farmer and Tea: This Is What I Did For Tea

When the farmer dumped the leaves into his water kettle, I thought he was very rude, but I followed him to his car anyway. He took us to see a small waterfall and there was a pond of clear water with lush greenery around us. It was beautiful! My son had fun playing in the water and it felt good to stretch after the long car journey to get to Dong Ding mountain. We all seemed to be in a better mood. Nature is magical!

Then Farmer told us to follow him. He wanted to show us one more place. We walked around and started to climb up a hill with very narrow steps. I walked behind the farmer and saw he was just wearing broken plastic slippers, but he made it look so easy. We stopped at a place where we couldn't go any further, with just a steep hill in front of us. Suddenly my friend's voice appeared in my head:  "Shiuwen, when you go visit the Farmer, he will take you to a special place he thinks you should see. It's a very steep hill and I almost died there!" "Oh sh**! THIS IS THAT PLACE," I thought. Farmer turned to us and said, "We will go up there. It's beautiful." I asked, "What's up there?" He said, "Let's go. You will see." My mother said, "I am not climbing up there" and then whispered to me," You shouldn't go. You have a son." I don't blame her. I looked in front of me and all I could see were a very steep dirt hill, a dead tree trunk, and an old rope tied to the trunk. I whispered back to my mother, "Mom, I will be fine. I have tea to buy. Stay here with your grandson."

I turned to the Farmer and said, "My mother and son will wait for us down here. I will go up with you." He seemed to be fine with that. I looked at that dead tree and rope, took a deep breath, and prayed in my mind that the dead tree and the rope would stay exactly where they should.

There was a waterfall and a pond up there. Farmer turned to me and said, "beautiful right? Nobody can see them unless he/she climbes up here." I thanked him and chatted for a bit.  Then we proceeded to climb down. Getting down was much more difficult for me than going up. When my feet touched solid ground again, I was thankful, thinking of my friend and wondering if he had thought, "thank God I didn't die on Dong Ding Mountain!"

Farmer led the way and said, "Let's go back. It's time for tea."

*I wish I could share some photos from this trip. Many of my photos are in a computer that I don't use right now. Some day I will get them out and share them.

Dong Ding, Farmer, and Tea

I have recently wanted to write about Dong Ding tea. I have forgotten if I have ever written about my experiences from visiting Dong Ding mountain. I like to write about my encounters with different farmers. In a way, I feel that if you drink a certain farmer's/tea person's tea and can read about that person's stories, it will bring you closer to the farm and help you gain a deeper appreciation for the tea.

Through a tea friend's introduction, I got my first taste of a very good traditional style Dong Ding Oolong in 2008. I fell in love with that tea. In 2009, I made my first trip to Dong Ding Mountain.

Before I went there, I was a bit nervous. The tea friend who introduced me to the tea and the farmer told me that he can be a difficult person, and that if he didn't think I had good "tastes" in tea, he wouldn't sell me tea. I was worried:  what if he didn't want to sell me tea?!

In May 2009, I went to Dong Ding mountain with my mother and son. Farmer and his wife were waiting for us at their house. He heated up some water and brewed us some tea. I was very happy when I tasted his tea. Prior to that, I had visited my family for three days and there was no good tea at their house, so you can imagine how happy I was when I finally had a taste of a good tea!

After three infusions, Farmer suddenly said, "Let's go. I want to show you a place." I was enjoying the tea so much that it felt like I was woken up from a dream. I said, "Where are we going? We should finish this tea. I know your tea can last for at least 8 infusions!" He looked at me very intensely and said, "8 infusions? It should be 30." I said, " Great! Let's do it!" He said, "No, we can drink tea later. I want to show you around." "No! I don't like sightseeing. In fact, I don't have any hobbies besides tea drinking (I made this up. I LOVE traveling)." He stood up, opened his water kettle with all the hot water in it, dumped the brewed tea leaves from his gaiwan, and said, "Here you go. You like to drink tea? You will have plenty to drink. Let's go!"

This is the beginning of a long series of stories and adventures about my time with Farmer on Dong Ding mountain. I'll talk more about this in upcoming posts.

Charcoal Roast Dong Ding

I have been out of the Charcoal Roasted Dong Ding for a while. I talked to master Zhen who roasts Dong Ding for us and was happy to hear that he had some for me. He told me that it's a lighter roast than what I usually order, but he is very happy with this version. I asked him if it's possible to get some with a heavier roast and he was very agreeable with my request when he said "Sure, I will get the charcoal fire going and make one special roast for you." Man, I can't tell you how excited and grateful I am!

I ended up ordering both of versions of the Dong Ding. I was curious to see the differences between these two teas and I want you to have a chance to see how a great tea maker can bring out the best in a tea.

I received these two Charcoal Roasted Dong Ding teas in early September and you may have noticed that they haven't been listed for sale on the website. There is a reason for this. For teas like these, it will take some time for them to open up so that they're ready to be enjoyed. I want them to open up and reach a certain amount of balance before I feel comfortable offering them for purchase.

I have been tasting them from time to time over the past month. First, I liked the lighter roast better, only to change my mind a week later, and then finding it to be too rough on my third tasting. Yesterday when I tasted both teas, they finally opened up enough and I really like both of them!

The broth of the darker roast (left) and the lighter roast Dong Ding (right)

The lighter roasted one has more of that Dong Ding fruit smell and taste. Its liquid disperses very nicely inside of the mouth and it's more balanced on the palate. The heavier roasted Dong Ding has a dually heavy yet soft feeling broth happening for it at the same time. The way it slides down to the throat area is better and the salivation is stronger.

The open leaf of the darker roast (left) and lighter roast Dong Ding (right)

I like how the lighter roasted one holds all the features together so nicely and I like how the darker one has more dimension and dynamic. And you know what I like about a good charcoal roasted Dong Ding? It never ceases to change and transform and the tea will stay good for a very long time!