The Many Names of Oriental Beauty Tea

Oriental Beauty, or Dong Fang Mei Ren (东方美人) is internationally the most commonly used name for this famous Taiwanese oolong. The origin of the name “Oriental Beauty” has at least a couple of variations, both relating to queens of the United Kingdom. In one, a little over a century ago, British tea merchants brought the tea to Queen Victoria and presented it to her along with the beautifully expanded steeped tea leaves. The queen found its appearance pleasing, “like a beauty dancing in a crystal cup.” After tasting it, she praised it and gave it the name “Oriental Beauty.” The other story involves Queen Elizabeth II circa 1960. The tea had just won the silver medal at the World Food Expo in the United Kingdom and was brought to the queen so that she could taste it. After tasting it, she was full of praise and gave it the name “Oriental Beauty.” The name “Oriental Beauty” is also most often associated with the tea that comes from Emei Township (峨眉乡), Xinzhu County.

Oriental Beauty tea was originally known as Pengfeng (膨风) Tea. In Taiwanese slang “Pengfeng” means “bragging.” The story behind the name is that a tea farmer thought his tea crop might have been ruined because it was so infested with insects. Determined not to lose out, he harvested and processed the tea anyways and brought it to the city to sell it. The tea surprisingly turned out to be a hit and became very popular. When he told the story to the villagers of his hometown, they accused him of bragging. The name “Bragging Tea” caught on and spread like wildfire. Oriental Beauty from Beipu Township (北埔乡), Xinzhu County sometimes uses the name “Pengfeng Tea,” whereas in the Shiding (石碇) area the names "Shiding Meiren Tea” (石碇美人茶) or "Wenshan Pengfeng Tea” (文山椪风茶) are used to promote the tea.

Bai Hao (白毫) is another popular name for Oriental Beauty oolong tea which can be translated as “White Tip'' or “White Hair” (“hao” 毫 means “fine long hair”) because of the white hair-like appearance of the tea buds. This name is often associated with the version of the tea coming from Emei (峨眉) and Beipu (北埔) in Hsinchu County (新竹县), and a few areas in Miaoli (苗栗县) and Pinglin (坪林) Counties. 

Another name was Fanzhuang Oolong (番庄乌龙) because the tea was processed in Panzhuang Pavilion. This name is often associated with the version of this tea that comes from Toushang Township (头伤乡) and Sanwan Township (三湾乡) in Miaoli County (苗栗). 

The tea was also called “Champagne Oolong'' (香槟乌龙) because Europeans and Americans enjoyed adding a drop of brandy wine to the tea soup. Other names include Bingfeng tea (冰风茶), Yanfeng tea (烟风茶), Yanzai tea (蜒仔茶), or Fushou (福寿) tea (a name given to it by former Vice President Xie Dongmin (谢东闵). 

Oriental Beauty Cultivation

The main cultivars that are used for Oriental Beauty oolong are Qing Xin Da Mao (青心大冇) and Bai Mao Hou “White-haired Monkey” (白毛猴). However there are several others that are used as well including: Qing Xin (青心), Man Zhong "Slow Species" (慢种), Taiwan Tea No. 12 (台茶12号), Taiwan Tea No. 15 (台茶15号), and Taiwan Tea No. 17 (台茶17号), among which Qing Xin Da Mao and Taiwan Tea No. 17 are considered the most suitable. 

Oriental Beauty tea is harvested in the heat of summer, generally June or July, between the traditional Chinese solar terms of Mang Zhong “Grain in Ear” (芒种) and Dashu “Major Heat” (大暑), which are before and after the well-known Chinese Dragon Boat Festival. The highest-grade tea is hand-picked where the pickers know to pick “yi xin er ye” (一芯二叶), meaning “one shoot and two leaves.” One interesting feature of Oriental Beauty tea is that it is bug-bitten. The tea is heavily oxidized for an oolong, up to 70-80%, and this oxidation process starts while the leaves are still on the plant due to the bites of insects. 

Bug-bitten Tea

Oolong tea varieties are known for their elaborate processing techniques in which the tea leaves are subjected to various forms of stress which elicit certain types of flavors due to the plant’s stress response. This stress response causes terpenoid volatiles to build and accumulate, creating a distinct terpenoid profile. One unique way that this is done in the case of Oriental Beauty tea involves subjecting the tea plants to the bites of certain insects. Of course, this means that the tea cannot be sprayed with pesticides. Jassids (commonly known as “leaf hoppers”), in Chinese called Fuchenzi “Floating Dust” (浮尘子), and other insects are allowed to bite the leaves which elicits a unique stress response and begins oxidation before the tea leaves are picked. This feature is said to give the tea its sweet flavor resembling honey and ripe fruits. 

Taiwanese Oolong Tea

Of all types of tea, Taiwan is best known for its oolong (wulong) teas. Oolong makes up around 90% of all tea produced in Taiwan. In Taiwan, there is a wide range of various altitudes and microclimates among the different tea growing regions, which results in many different styles of Taiwan oolong teas. The top oolongs coming out of Taiwan can easily be considered among the best in the oolong category worldwide. 

Taiwanese Oolong History

Due to Taiwan’s proximity to Fujian Province in mainland China and the fact that Fujian is such an important location for oolong tea, it is no surprise then that Taiwan oolong tea has its roots in Fujian. Despite this history, the tea-making process in Taiwan has changed and become unique during the more than 200-year history of Taiwan’s tea industry. 

During the Qing Dynasty, Taiwan’s population increased significantly due to immigrants from mainland China, and it was during this time that Taiwanese tea took root. In 1810, a Fujian tea merchant named Ke Chao (柯朝), attempted to grow tea from seed in Taipei County (台北县) and was successful. After this, tea planting started to become widespread in Taiwan. 

In 1858, British and French invasions in mainland China resulted in the Treaty of Tianjin, which stipulated Taiwan as an international trade port. British businessman Jardine Mantheson from Hong Kong sent people to Taiwan to purchase crude tea. 

Fujian tea makers originally brought the technique of strip-shaped oolong tea from Fujian to Taiwan. In 1885, two tea makers by the names of Wei Jingshi (魏静时) and Wang Jinshui (王锦水) were well known for bringing the method of fragrant, strip-shaped oolongs to Taiwan, basically the same style of oolong as Wuyi Rock Oolong tea and what is currently the style of Baozhong oolong tea.

In 1868, British businessman John Dodd was impressed by Taiwanese crude tea products and began shipping it to Fuzhou each year for processing and refining. Tea masters from Fuzhou also went to work in Taiwan and various tea production equipment was brought over. It was around this time that Taiwanese oolong tea was shipped to the West for the first time. By 1873 the Taiwanese oolong industry began to flourish with foreign firms competing to buy oolong from Taipei, causing the price of Taiwanese oolong tea to steadily rise. 

From 1939 to 1941, two other well-known tea makers, Wang Taiyou (王泰友) and Wang De (王德), passed on the tea leaf kneading skills of Anxi, Fujian to others in Nantou County, Taiwan. At this time, the famous style of oolong known as Dong Ding Oolong (冻顶乌龙) began to gradually evolve into its rolled-ball appearance, and this was coupled with the delicate art of tea roasting.

Since about 1980, high mountain tea (高山茶) has become popular in Taiwan. Tea makers gradually adjusted the tea making method of common oolongs such as Dong Ding oolong, along with a trend towards less roasting in the tea-making process, so as to maintain the fresh mountain flavor of the tea.

Taiwanese Oolong Cultivars

A tea cultivar (i.e. “cultivated variety”) is the result of one of the two tea varieties (Camellia Sinensis var sinensis or Camellia Sinensis var. assamica) that has been selectively bred for certain characteristics. A certain cultivar can then be used with specific tea processing methods to result in specific tea styles. Sometimes specific styles are also associated with specific tea growing locations as well. Each style of tea may have a special name, a name related to the growing location, or may just go by the name of the cultivar itself. 

Around 1900 Taiwan was under Japanese occupation, during which time a research institute was created that was called the Taiwan Tea Research and Extension Station (TRES). TRES was created to develop cultivars and educate tea farmers. TRES continued functioning post-occupation and has been responsible for the creation of many of the popular Taiwanese cultivars in use today.

The following are the main Taiwanese oolong cultivars:

Qing Xin (青心) - Qing Xin is one of the most widely used cultivars in Taiwan and also one of the highest quality. It is said to have originated in Jianou City (建瓯市), Fujian Province. Qing Xin is also known as Ruan Zhi (软枝), which means “soft stem.” Qing Xin is usually the cultivar used for Dong Ding, Baozhong (a fragrant strip-shaped oolong), and most of the high-mountain oolongs (Da Yu Ling, Alishan, Lishan, etc.). Qing Xin can also be seen as a category of similar cultivars since there are several “Qing Xin” cultivars.

Qing Xin Da Mao (青心大冇) - Qing Xin Da Mao is not as popular as Qing Xin. It is mostly used for Oriental Beauty oolong and has a sweet, honey flavor.

Jin Xuan (金萱) - Jin Xuan is another of the most well-known Taiwanese oolong cultivars and is often sold by its cultivar name, which means “Golden Lily.” Jin Xuan is known for its creamy mouthfeel and milky aroma “nai xiang” (奶香). There are many “milk oolongs” on the market that are artificially flavored, however, high-grade Jin Xuan naturally has the milky flavor without any adulterants. Jin Xuan is popular amongst lower-elevation farmers, but is also grown by high-mountain farmers on Alishan Mountain. It tends to be cheaper than Qing Xin Alishan. 

Cui Yu (翠玉) - “Jade Oolong” is usually sold by its cultivar name. This cultivar is very popular in Asian markets, and is only grown at lower elevations (the stems contain too much water for high-mountain growth). Cui Yu yields better than Qing Xin and its flavor is more towards the floral end of the spectrum and is less creamy than Jin Xuan. 

Si Ji (四季) - “Four Seasons Oolong” (or Four Seasons of Spring “Si Ji Cun” (四季春)) is primarily grown at lower elevations and used to create greener oolongs (i.e. low oxidation). It is known to produce fragrant spring-like crops all year round and can even be harvested up to six times per year with its fast growth rate. Si Ji usually has a stronger fruit flavor and aroma than the other Taiwanese cultivars. 

Tie Guan Yin (铁观音) - The Taiwanese Tie Guan Yin cultivar is processed differently from the well known Tie Guan Yin of mainland China. The Taiwanese version is usually roasted and sometimes aged, and it is the most expensive Taiwanese cultivar. 

Fo Shou (佛手) - Fo Shou is another oolong that is also popular in mainland China and is sold as its cultivar name. It is known for its very large leaves. 

Bai Mao Hou (白毛猴) - This is a cultivar that is usually used for Oriental Beauty oolong. 

Taiwanese Oolong Tea Processing

Picking 采摘

There are two types of tea picking: mechanical-picking and hand-picking. Generally, tea gardens with lower altitudes will choose "mechanical harvesting" to reduce labor costs, but some high mountains will also consider the mechanical harvesting of mature tea leaves.

Most of the tea gardens at high mountain altitudes choose to hand-pick the tea leaves, which can reduce old leaves or excessive branches and maintain the quality of the tea.

Withering 萎凋

(Solar Withering 日光萎调→ Indoor Withering 室內萎凋) The freshly harvested tea leaves contain a lot of water (75% to 80%). After the tea leaves have withered, the water will dissipate and evaporate by 8% to 12% due to the rising temperature of the leaf surface. The oxidation reaction on the leaf surface will start to change the leaves.

• Solar Withering This means that the tea leaves, after being picked, are usually set out in the sun to oxidize and let the water content reduce. After the water partly evaporates using sun withering, the leaves will give off a nice scent.

• Indoor Withering The tea leaves are flattened on a shelf indoors to an appropriate thickness, and then the leaves are lightly flipped at an appropriate time (requires a lot of standing work). Next is to wait for the tea leaves to slowly drain to remove the bitterness and astringency so that the tea leaves will have a pleasant aroma and a sweet taste.

Laying and Tossing 做青/摇青

After the tea leaves have withered, they must be stirred in a timely manner and rotated in a machine (or manual-stirred as an alternative) to rub the leaf cells, so that the polyphenol oxidase and various tea polyphenols come into contact with other tea polyphenols, and an enzymatic oxidation reaction occurs.

Stir Fixation 炒青

Stir-frying is a turning process that links the previous step to the next, and it is also an important step in the formation of the oolong tea’s endoplasmic aroma. The effect of stir-frying on oolong tea is similar to that of green tea, which inhibits the activity of enzymes, prevents the leaves from continuing to oxidize, and ensures the lasting quality of the oolong tea.

Rolling 揉捻

The purpose of kneading is to inflict stress in a controlled way and essentially destroy the cell tissue of tea leaves to a certain degree. This also results in the juices of the tea leaves getting kneaded out which facilitates oxidation. This way the tea leaves are tightly rolled into strips for easy storage. The degree of rubbing and stress caused to the tea leaves will create different tea flavors due to the natural stress-response of the plant tissue.

“Breaking up” 解块 → Initial Drying 初干 → Mass Kneading 团揉 → “Breaking up” 解块

After kneading, any clumps that have formed are broken-up and placed on a large drum to quickly dry at high temperatures. Then, they are poured onto a cotton cloth and pressed into balls. After the next step of rolling and kneading, clumps are broken-up and separated, and these steps are repeated 3 to 8 times.

Screening 筛分

After several repetitions of the above steps, the oolong tea has formed a spherical or hemispherical shape. At this time, it is necessary to use "mechanical pick-up" and then "manual pick-up" to remove excess tea branches and tea stalks.

Re-roasting 复焙 → Post-baking 后烘焙

The dried tea leaves must be roasted and dried to keep the tea leaves at a certain degree of dryness. During the baking operation, different degrees of baking temperature and the number of times baked can be varied to provide the resulting oolong tea with different flavors. The degree of baking can vary from light to heavy.