Cultivar: Taiwan Tea Experiment Station No 18, 紅玉 (red jade)

Harvested by hand: September 19th, 2022

Origin: Sun Moon Lake, Nantou county, Central Taiwan

Process: striped whole leaves, fully oxidized.

1. View

The black dry leaves are long, whole and fine. The brew has a very bright and clear orange /red color. The open leaves have a uniform red color that indicates they were fully oxidized.

2. Scents

Hong Yu has a very particular and expressive scent: it combines cinnamon and menthol in a very powerful and fresh way. It's the kind of smell that one either loves or hates. But in any case, it's fascinating to find it appearing naturally in an unscented red tea.

3. Taste

Full bodied and some reasonable astringency levels. The taste is actually improved by very long brews!

Conclusion: the Hung Yu red tea (TTES No 18) was obtained by crossing a Taiwan wild tea with a Burmese big leaf tea. The Taiwan Tea Extension Station announced the creation of this cultivar in 1999. This powerful red tea has since become very popular in Taiwan.