Meixi TeaMeixi Tea
Flavour
Light-fragrance style
Meixi is at 1,200 metres near a watershed protection zone, in Seediq country.
Since water comes up, a word about the water you brew with. Calcium and magnesium in hard water bind to tea polyphenols: the liquor clouds, astringency rises and aroma is pushed down. Taiwanese tap water is mostly moderately hard; boiling it and letting it stand a moment helps.
The simplest test is to brew the same tea twice, once with bottled water and once with tap, and drink them side by side. The difference is larger than you expect.
Oxidation two, firing two. Clear honey-yellow, osmanthus and green apple.
Fair priceestimated
One jin is 600 g. Below NT$900, be sceptical.
A reasonable range is NT$1,500–3,000 per 600 g. Below NT$900, ask more questions. This range is estimated from nearby regions and elevation; it has not been verified against listed prices.
What to ask when buying this
One region can span 700 m to 1,700 m, with several times the price difference. The same name does not mean the same grade.
This price range is estimated from nearby regions and elevation and has not been verified, so compare for yourself.
Spring and winter lots fetch the highest prices and the best aroma; summer and autumn are a step down in both.
If they will not let you taste but want you to buy 600 g of something expensive, walk away. It is the simplest and most effective filter there is.
Specifications
About the origin
Along the Meixi river in Ren'ai Township, Nantou, at about 1,200 m. Water is plentiful and the gardens sit on the terraces around the valley. A moderate area.
These figures will be updated if they change.
Brewing
Why this temperature
Ball-rolled oolong is tightly wound, and the first pour only reaches the outside of the pellet, so it needs water close to boiling to open at all. If it does not open, the later steeps swing between thin and heavy. The first and second steeps often take the same time or less, because the leaf does not truly unfurl until the second.
Temperatures follow the official category guidance. Source: TRES — Effects of water quality and temperature on tea liquor
Common mistakes with this tea
95°C or above. Too cool and the roast aroma never opens, leaving it flat.
Rolled-ball leaf needs the first infusion to open up; the second is then shorter.
Best drunk within two months.
The most common beginner regret is buying 600 g on the first try. Buy a jin only after you know you like it.
What to eat with it
Glutinous rice clings and the sweetness lingers on the tongue. A tea with some astringency clears it away.
This one is Taiwan-only — not available overseas
Here are the closest teas we can actually ship you:
Alishan High Mountain TeaAlishan 1700m 1700 m Milky Osmanthus2.0–4.0kLocation accuracy: named locality (24.0300, 121.1000). This marks the growing area, not one specific garden.
Ren'ai Tea Region9
What there is to do here
2 routes Two days possible Qingjing・Lushan・Cuifeng, Cuiluan, Chunyang
Qingjing, Lushan, Cuifeng, Chunyang — all above 1,000 m on average, with the Dongyanshan farm reaching 1,750. This is the gateway to hot springs, high pasture and Hehuanshan; tea is one of several reasons to be up here.