This course explores ball-shaped oolong processing—one of Taiwan’s most iconic tea styles. Students will learn how rolling, kneading, oxidation, roasting, and drying techniques create the signature pearl-shaped tea leaves and influence their flavor, aroma, and mouthfeel. Through guided tastings and hands-on examination of leaf stages, the class demonstrates how ball-shaped processing differs from strip-style or open-leaf teas and explains why Taiwan became the global center for this craft.
This course trains participants to understand and apply the official sensory evaluation methods used in major Taiwan Tea Competitions. You will learn fragrance scoring, liquor evaluation, leaf appearance assessment, brewing protocols, and defect identification. Through guided tastings and hands-on exercises, participants will develop the skills to conduct competition-style evaluations with confidence and accuracy.
Core 05: Flavor Wheel of Taiwan Specialty Tea
This course introduces the Flavor Wheel of Taiwan Specialty Tea—a structured sensory map that helps tasters identify, describe, and communicate the complex aromas and flavors found in Taiwan’s iconic teas. Through guided sensory practice and comparative tastings, students will learn how to use professional flavor vocabulary, understand the organization of flavor wheels, and apply these tools to evaluate teas such as high-mountain oolongs, Oriental Beauty, Red Oolong, Black Tea, and more.
Core 06: Techniques to Brewing Taiwan Tea and Tea Ceremony
This intensive session introduces the foundations of brewing Taiwanese teas using precise techniques. Participants will explore tea categories, leaf shapes, water control, teaware choice, and sensory evaluation. By the end, they will be able to brew strip-style, ball-shaped, and loose oolong/black teas with confidence.
