Join us from 2-4pm on February 8th, 15th, 16th for a special tasting of four years of bug-bitten, GABA processed, and aged Honey Jia Long! A gem of an oolong birthed into existence when farmer Mr. Chen was experimenting making Taiwan Beauty, we will taste four different years of the King's Grade of this tea: 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023.
In southeast rural Taipei is Pinglin 坪林, the home of Honey Jia Long where Mr. and Mrs. Chen grow vegetables alongside the tea plants. At the tea shop, they sell tea and vegetarian dishes made mostly from vegetables they grow.
In November, Chih Hui landed in Taipei and immediately made her way, luggage and all, to Pinglin 坪林 to visit Mr. and Mrs. Chen. She sat down with them to taste his teas side-by-side and order his Tea Seed Oil 苦茶油 noodles, and she left with a bag of Honey Jia Long King's Grade from varying years.
Grown with Mr. Chen’s natural farming practices, the leaves of Honey Jia Long are “bug-bitten” by cicadas. The result is a nip in the astringency of the leaves and an ushering of honey-like flavor. With nectar, mead-like sweetness, this tea's characteristic and heady fragrance continues to deepen as it ages. Mr. Chen also uses anaerobic processing to bring out the tea’s natural content of GABA, a neurotransmitter that regulates our nervous system, making Honey Jia Long unique in a multitude of ways. Highly oxidized and unroasted, this complex tea is one of our most beloved in our collection. We currently have 2020 Honey Jia Long King’s Grade and Standard Grade available, and we enjoy observing how the tea changes each year through aging. We used to have the special batch of 2018 Honey Jia Long King’s Grade, but that prized stash is no longer available because, as happens with tea, it's all been drunk!
Despite being the same tea produced by the same humans, each year is distinctly different due to differences in weather as well as aging time. We are looking forward to exploring these nuances with you at the tea bar just as Mr. Chen does with customers at his tea shop!