Friday, June 16, 2017

Da Yu Ling, spring 2017

View from a plantation on Da Yu Ling
The fame and prices of Taiwan's most famous tea mountain keep growing. A farmer told me that buyers were lining up in his factory to purchase and carry away the tea as soon as it was produced! 

DYL 95K, spring 2017
Therefore, I consider myself lucky and happy that I am able to offer several lots of Da Yu Ling High Mountain Oolongs from different plantations along the road number 8, Taiwan's central road that crosses the island between Taichung and Hualien. The Da Yu Ling mountain stretches for many kilometers along this road.

The locations of the various Da Yu Ling plantations are identified by the kilometer number of this road. For reference, the village of Lishan starts at 82K and finishes around 84K on this road. The Da Yu Ling starts further up. And since the road is ascending at this place, the highest plantations are generally located at the higher numbers. That's why 95K is higher and more expensive than 90K, for instance. 
At an elevation of over 2000 meters above sea level, it's easy to feel light-headed and slightly dizzy. I wonder if the tea leaves also 'feel' this, because they are able to convey this mountain feeling in the brew!
Da Yu Ling is not the only mountain where qingxin Oolong grows over 2000 meters. It became famous because that's where the highest plantation was located (reaching 2650 meters), but this one has been uprooted. But its fame isn't just simply a record elevation. For high mountain Oolong lovers, this fame is now rooted in the quality of its aromas.
Da Yu Ling Oolong manages the difficult task of combining the power/energy of the high mountain with finesse and purity. With most of the other mountains you have either one or the other.
With Da Yu Ling you can get both! It's a memorable experience for all Oolong drinkers.

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