Taoyuan District TeaTaoyuan District Tea
Flavour
Taiwan's endemic wild tea — an arboreal large-leaf type, left to grow unmanaged
Taoyuan district lies in the mountains of Kaohsiung at around 1,000 metres, in Bunun territory.
This one is about certification. Three kinds of proof exist for Taiwanese tea: organic certification (no synthetic pesticide or fertiliser), traceability registration (every lot's spraying and picking recorded — chemicals permitted but logged), and a residue test report (a single sample).
They mean different things. ⚠️ Phrases like non-toxic or natural farming are not certifications and have no legal definition. What counts is a certificate number you can look up online.
Oxidation two, firing two. Bright honey-yellow, tropical fruit on the nose.
Fair priceestimated
One jin is 600 g. Below NT$700, be sceptical.
A reasonable range is NT$1,200–2,400 per 600 g. Below NT$700, 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.
Real honey aroma comes from insect bites and is summer-only. What you find in winter is usually old stock.
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.
Specifications
About the origin
Around Baoshan and neighbouring villages in Taoyuan District, Kaohsiung. About 134 ha in total.
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: township level (23.1600, 120.7600). This marks the growing area, not one specific garden.
Southern Tea Region5
What there is to do here
1 routes Day trip Liugui・Meinong
Kaohsiung’s tea is scattered: Liugui and Namasia up in the hills, Meinong down on the plain, with Motianling, Taoyuan and Maolin each off on their own. What sets this district apart is the wild tea of Liugui — trees that were on those mountains before we were. A day can take in the plain at Meinong and the hills at Liugui.