Taiwan Native Mountain Wild Tea/35G

–––––– § Flavor Notes § ––––––

Taiwanese Wild Mountain Tea offers a smooth and full-bodied character, with less astringency than typical black teas, making it surprisingly gentle and highly re-steepable. Alongside the familiar hay-like notes often found in black teas, this selection also delivers hints of fermented fruit, reminiscent of dates, a cooling mint sensation, and a mellow honeyed finish.

A grounding, earthy flavor lingers in the liquor—an elemental taste often found in old-growth and arbor-type tea trees.

–––––– § About the Tea Variety § ––––––

The earliest known record of Taiwanese tea dates back to 1645, documenting Dutch observations of native tea trees. By 1697, Yu Yonghe’s Journal of a Tour to the Seas recorded the presence of wild tea trees—tall as men—in the Shuishe area (now around Sun Moon Lake). These wild-growing trees were large-leafed, arbor-type varieties. In 1717, the Gazetteer of Jhulou County also noted the presence of wild tea in the Chiayi region. At the time, Taiwanese mountain tea remained uncultivated, and tea was consumed after only minimal, rustic processing.

Scientific cultivation of wild Taiwanese tea did not begin until the Japanese colonial era. The Pingzhen Tea Research Station transplanted wild tea to the Yuchi Black Tea Experimental Farm and compared it to Indian Assam. The results confirmed that Taiwanese wild tea is genetically distinct from both Chinese and Indian large-leaf cultivars. The trees were initially categorized into two types: "Mountain Tea" and "Red Sprout Mountain Tea." However, by 1986, researchers concluded that there is likely only one true indigenous mountain tea variety in Taiwan.

Today, wild mountain tea can be found growing in Nantou, Chiayi, Kaohsiung, and Taitung, at elevations ranging from 700 to 1,780 meters.

This tea is made from leaves grown in untamed, naturalized gardens managed under ecological farming methods. Though processed from large-leaf material, the production style imparts a refined, delicate mouthfeel often associated with small-leaf teas.

–––––– § Teas by Hermit’s Hut ––––––

For every tea we select, Hermit’s Hut provides a dedicated tea card, carefully documenting each tea’s production process, historical background, the philosophy of the tea master, and flavor profile. Through repeated steeping trials, we record the optimal infusion times and temperatures from the first to the fifth brew, ensuring that each recipient can enjoy the tea’s full complexity and the giver’s heartfelt intention.

With the tea card in hand, no further words are needed.

Just trust your own senses. Get to know a good tea deeply, and listen as it tells its story—of mist and mountain, soil and rain, and the calloused, timeworn hands of its maker.

Our packaging draws inspiration from traditional fish baskets and knotted rope pouches. Crafted from tactile pale-gray paper and cut with clean, modern lines, each gift is completed with an elegant gold-stamped label indicating the tea’s flavor number and tasting notes, allowing the giver to effortlessly match a tea to the recipient’s preferences.

Contents: ※ Taiwan Native Mountain Tea 35g ※ 1 Tea Card