Formosa Vintage Dongpian

Formosa Vintage Dongpian

Dongpian means winter pieces. It refers to a harvest when the tea bushes would normally hibernate due to the climate, but a warm weather front simulates spring and they begin to sprout prematurely. Winter pieces are therefore dependent on very specific weather phenomena and are therefore rather rare. Winter pieces should also not be confused with the winter harvest, which takes place much earlier in Taiwan.

These winter pieces have been processed from the Qingxin cultivar. Due to the special climatic conditions, they develop their own unique aroma, which often is very similar regardless of the cultivar. Sweet, delicate notes are clearly in the foreground while astringent and bitter notes are usually almost non-existent. They have a very special freshness which, depending on the processing and region, is more or less reminiscent of lemongrass. Formosa Vintage Dongpian is not quite as strong in aroma as those from Cuifeng, but you can still clearly taste the typical character of winter pieces. The oxidation is much higher which is reflected in the golden yellow to bright orange infusion colour. It is also immediately visible on the leaf material in the Gaiwan with its distinct red edges.

Due to the good processing, Formosa Vintage Dongpian remains stable and fresh even during longer storage. A rarity that does not exist every year and is only available in very limited quantities.

Harvest date: Winter 2013
Aroma: delicate and sweet, with notes of lemongrass
Oxidation: approx. 50%
Roasting: light
Terroir: Alishan, Nantou, Taiwan
Preparation: In this blog post you will find a description of how to brew Oolong tea in an optimal way.
Tip: The aroma in the mouth unfolds best when Formosa Vintage Dongpian is not drunk too hot. Waite until it has cooled down a little bit in the cup.
This tea is especially suitable for infusion in a large cup or a larger pot as it does not become bitter and it is very high-yielding. The infusion does not need to be poured off, simply let the tea leaves sink to the bottom.