Origin: Mingjian Village, Nantou County, Taiwan
Cultivar:
四季春 Si Ji Chun “Four Seasons Spring” Elevation: 500m
Harvest: January 28, 2022
Four Seasons Spring is a specialized tea cultivar developed in Taiwan that is highly regarded for its impressive strength and rich bouquet of floral and sometimes fruity aromas.
It was originally created by cross breeding the “Qingxin Da Pan” and “Wu Yi” cultivars in the Mu Cha region of Taiwan between 1960 and 1970. It is around this time the local people began referring to this cultivar as 輝仔種 “Farmer Huei’s cultivar.”
It was growing both healthier and stronger than the Taeguanyin cultivar in Mu Cha, but its flavor was lacking, and so it was cultivated in only small quantities. However, some Mingjian farmers who worked in Mu Cha found the Huei tea cultivar interesting for oxidation processing and unofficially transplanted it from Mu Cha to Mingjian between 1975 and 1980.
The tea farmers in Mingjian worked hard to develop the Four Seasons Spring strength and flowery fragrance in light oxidation so it could be differentiated among all Taiwan tea. Since 1985, the Four Seasons Spring tea gardens have performed better than other tea cultivar gardens in terms of leaf production volume and unique aromatic quality emphasizing a balance of strength and fragrance.
Add 7g to a Gaiwan or Gongfu teapot (per 150ml).
Use 212°F boiling water.
Don’t rinse this tea.
Infuse 1st brew for 45 seconds - 1 minute.
Infuse 2nd brew for 30 seconds.
Repeat several times at 30 - 45 seconds, brewing until the flavor and aroma of the tea dissipates. As the tea leaves expand and unfurl, the brewing time may increase to coax out more aroma and flavor.
