Beipu Puffed Wind Tea

Beipu Puffed Wind Tea

       Produced in Beibu Township, Hsinchu County, Taiwan, China, it is known as “Puffed Wind Tea” or “Pengfeng Tea”; when produced in Emei Township, Hsinchu County, it is called “Oriental Beauty Tea.”

　　     Puffed Wind Tea is actually Baihao Oolong, a unique Taiwanese summer tea that must grow in an environment free from air pollution and pesticides, and it also needs to be infested by the small green leafhopper (known as jassid or thrips), commonly referred to as “tea leafhopper attachment” (or locally as “tea garden attachment”), which causes natural qualitative changes in the leaves—only then can this extraordinary tea develop its distinctive flavor.

　　     Its tea heart features thick, glossy fuzz, and its buds have white tips—also known as one heart with two leaves: one heart with white fuzz, and two golden-yellow tender leaves. The harvest season for Puffed Wind Tea is between Mangzhong and Dashu (around the Dragon Boat Festival).

　　     The origin of Puffed Wind Tea dates back to the 12th year of the Guangxu reign during the Qing Dynasty (1886 AD), when an experienced tea master, exhausted from overwork, accidentally allowed the tea leaves to over-ferment, thereby discovering this uniquely fermented flavor profile. This led to the tea becoming a famous local brew in Beibu. The name “Puffed Wind Tea” came about during the Japanese colonial period when the then Governor-General of Taiwan praised it as a perfect work of art and purchased the entire batch at twenty times the usual tea price. When the news spread, locals dismissed it as “puffed wind”—a Hakka term meaning to boast—but once newspapers reported the story, the tea gained fame far and wide, and the name has endured to this day.

　　     Oriental Beauty Tea is a unique and renowned tea from Taiwan, also known as “Puffed Wind Tea,” “Pengfeng Tea,” “Fushou Tea,” or “Fan Zhuang Oolong.” The Hakka people also call it “Bingfeng Tea” or “Yanfeng Tea.” Due to its prominent white fuzz on the tea buds, it is also referred to as “Baihao Oolong Tea.” Oriental Beauty Tea is among the most heavily fermented of the semi-fermented (oolong) teas, with a fermentation level of 60%. In Hsinchu and Miaoli regions, tea farmers ferment it up to 75–85%, resulting in nearly half of the catechins being semi-oxidized—thus avoiding any raw green astringency, and making the tea neither bitter nor astringent. Its aroma resembles black tea but also carries fruity and honey-like notes, making it one of the finest Taiwanese oolongs. Alongside Taipei’s Wenshan Baozhong, Nantou’s Lugu Dongding Oolong, and Alishan High Mountain Oolong, it is known as one of the “Four Famous Teas of Taiwan.”

　　     Oriental Beauty Tea boasts three unique characteristics:

　　     First, its growth conditions are unique—it requires a sheltered, humid, sunny environment free from air and pesticide pollution, and it must be exposed to the feeding of the small green leafhopper.

　　     Second, its appearance is distinctive—the finished tea displays a blend of green, white, red, yellow, and brown hues, with the white fuzz tips giving off a glossy, velvety feel.

　　     Third, its flavor is unique—the tea liquor is amber-colored, with aromas of ripe fruit and natural honey, offering a smooth, sweet, and mellow taste upon drinking.

　　     【Origin】

　　     The main producing areas of Oriental Beauty Tea are widespread, with abundant yields and superior quality found in Beibu, Emei, and Zhudong in Hsinchu County, as well as Toufen, Touwu (Laotianliao), Sanwan, Nanzhuang, and Shitan in Miaoli County. The island’s climate combined with unique mountain formations results in unpredictable fog and large temperature differences—nights in spring are cold, which helps tea trees become more cold-resistant, leading to thicker leaf veins and richer tea content. In recent years, areas such as Pinglin and Shiding in Taipei have also emerged as new production regions. Located in northeastern Taiwan, Shiding enjoys a mild climate, cool and moist air, evenly distributed and abundant rainfall, deep soil rich in organic matter, rolling hills, and an excellent natural environment highly suitable for tea cultivation.

　　     Tea produced in Beibu Township, Hsinchu County, is called “Puffed Wind Tea” or “Pengfeng Tea”; in Emei Township, Hsinchu County, it is known as “Oriental Beauty Tea”; in Touwu and Sanwan, Miaoli County, the old name “Fan Zhuang Oolong” is still used; in Shiding, the promotional names are “Shiding Beauty Tea” or “Wenshan Pengfeng Tea”; while the Pinglin region has traditionally been known as “red tea”—though here, it still refers to Oriental Beauty Tea.　

　　     【Tea History】

　　     Taiwan has long had wild tea plants. According to the Zhuluo County Annals (1717), “In the mountainous regions of central and southern Taiwan, at altitudes of 800 to 5,000 feet, there are wild tea trees. Local residents pick their young buds, process them simply, and use them for their own consumption.” The Danshui Annals also recorded: “Maoluo Mountain produces tea, which is extremely cold in nature, and the indigenous people dare not drink it.” This wild tea is what is known as “mountain tea,” and such wild tea plants can still be found in the mountainous areas of central and southern Taiwan today, though they are not botanically related to the tea varieties cultivated by farmers today.     Historical records state that Ke Chao brought tea seeds back from Wuyi Mountain during the 15th year of the Jiaqing reign and successfully planted them in Taiwan, marking the beginning of oolong tea production in Taiwan. Later, through various improvements, Wuyi rock tea evolved into a beautiful and magical type of tea on this wondrous and lovely island.

　　     Oriental Beauty Tea originated during the Japanese colonial era (1920s). At the time, in an effort to improve the quality of traditional oolong tea, tea farmers developed a new production method involving heavy fermentation (with a fermentation rate of 75%). In the early summer of the 1920s, the small green leafhopper (commonly called jassid or thrips) severely damaged the tea farms in Beibu and Emei, Hsinchu. The infested tea leaves were difficult to use for high-quality traditional oolong tea, but one frugal Hakka tea farmer still picked the damaged leaves and processed them using the heavy fermentation method. He discovered that the resulting tea had a unique aroma of ripe fruit and honey, with a smooth, mellow, and rich flavor. He took a small amount to sell at a tea shop in Taipei and managed to sell it at thirteen times the normal tea price. Locals didn’t believe it and thought he was boasting—hence the name “Pengfeng Tea” or “Puffed Wind Tea” (in Taiwanese and Hakka, “puffing wind” means to boast) became widely spread.

　　【Name Origin】

　　　　    Oriental Beauty Tea was originally called “Puffed Wind Tea” (“puffed wind” is a Taiwanese slang term for “bragging”).

　　     1. Legend has it that an early tea farmer, whose tea garden was infested by pests, unwilling to accept the loss, carried the tea to the city to sell. Unexpectedly, its unique flavor made it very popular. When he returned home and told fellow villagers about it, they accused him of bragging—thus the name “Puffed Wind Tea” spread quickly.

　　　　    2. Jiang Axin, who served as the head of Beibu Township, Hsinchu County in the early post-retrocession period, participated in a tea exhibition during the Japanese colonial era. The tea he exhibited was purchased at a high price of 2,000 Japanese yen per dan (100 catties) by the then Taiwan Governor-General’s Office. When the news reached Beibu Village, locals dismissed it as “puffed wind.” Later, after the newspapers confirmed the story, the name “Puffed Wind Tea” spread far and wide and has been passed down to this day. It was later renamed “Pengfeng Tea” by literati.

　　　　    3. In the early days, the rough tea of Puffed Wind Tea was transported to Dadaocheng tea warehouses and underwent a final roasting and sorting process at the “Fan Zhuang Pavilion” before export—hence it was originally called “Fan Zhuang Oolong.”

　　　　    4. Oriental Beauty is also known as Fushou Tea, reportedly named by former Vice President Xie Dongmin.

　　     5. The elegant, subtle, and graceful appearance of Oriental Beauty Tea—with its fine blend of red, yellow, white, green, and brown hues—resembles the colorful feathered celestial beings painted in Dunhuang murals. Hence, tea enthusiasts also call it “Five-Colored Tea.”

　　     6. The origin of the name “Oriental Beauty Tea” is said to come from a British tea merchant who presented Puffed Wind Tea to Queen Victoria. Upon brewing, its vibrant, golden-clear appearance and rich, sweet taste upon drinking earned her high praise. Since it came from the East (Formosa), she named it “Oriental Beauty Tea.”

　　　　    【Production Process】

　　     Suitable tea cultivars for making Oriental Beauty Tea include “Qingxin Dayu,” “Baimao Hou,” “Qingxin Oolong,” “Tai Tea No. 15,” and “Tai Tea No. 17,” among which “Qingxin Dayu” and “Baimao Hou” are considered the highest quality.

　　     The small green leafhopper is a pest of tea trees. After Mangzhong (around early June each year), it appears in large numbers and feeds specifically on the sap of tender tea leaves. The tea buds that grow after being fed on by the small green leafhopper (also called small green jassid or thrips) are called “saliva-infested” tea leaves, and the degree of infestation determines the quality of the tea. The small green leafhopper is only as big as a sewing needle. It pierces the leaves with saw-like antennae to absorb water and nutrients, stunting the tea’s development and preventing further growth. Originally pest-damaged tea buds, however, undergo chemical reactions under sunlight due to the interaction between substances within the tea leaves and the leafhopper’s saliva, producing enzymes. The tender leaves cannot perform normal photosynthesis, causing the leaf edges to turn brown and eventually fall off, turning the color golden and the shape as if scorched by fire. The tea produced through heavy fermentation has natural honey and ripe fruit fragrances. This special processing method becomes key to its quality, so the quality of the tea depends on the degree of leafhopper bites. It is also the source of the tea’s rich fruity and honey flavors. To attract and support a healthy population of small green leafhoppers, Oriental Beauty Tea gardens never use pesticides—thus, Oriental Beauty Tea, with its pest damage, is considered the finest of premium oolong teas.

　　     The harvesting period for Oriental Beauty Tea is during the hot summer months of June and July, between Mangzhong and Dashu in the lunar calendar—approximately ten days around the Dragon Boat Festival. Warm weather promotes the growth of small green leafhoppers and their feeding on tea nutrients, while also facilitating the secretion of substances that produce the desired aromatic compounds in severely bitten buds. This enhances the tea’s texture, making the three key characteristics of “tenderness, freshness, and sweetness” even more pronounced.

　　    Dongfang Meiren tea must be hand-picked from young tea leaves—specifically one bud and two leaves—that have been bitten by the small green leafhopper. It is then refined using traditional manual techniques to produce a premium oolong tea.

　　    The production process of Dongfang Meiren tea includes picking, sun withering, tossing (langqing), reverse stirring, pan-firing, moistening, rolling, initial roasting, shaping, and final roasting. Each step requires precise control. Raw tea leaves have a fishy smell, which is removed through repeated tossing. During the tossing stage, the raw taste is eliminated, and a faint banana-like aroma emerges. Some mistakenly think the tea fragrance has developed and proceed to roast the leaves dry, but this only results in a dull aroma that disappears once brewed. The most critical phase is the fermentation process. When it reaches its peak, the moment must be seized to fix the flavor, quickly pan-firing the leaves. At the exact climax of the burst, the true essence of the tea’s original fragrance is captured. It contains no added fragrances yet possesses the delicate aroma of certain flowers. After pan-firing, the leaves undergo an additional fermentation step called “resting and softening,” where they are wrapped in cloth and placed in bamboo baskets or iron drums for secondary fermentation. This is followed by rolling, breaking up clumps, and drying to produce rough tea. It is then graded, finely roasted, and packaged.

　　    【Quality Characteristics】

　　    Dongfang Meiren tea features plump white pekoe, with leaves displaying a striking mix of white, green, yellow, red, and brown hues, making them vibrant and lovely. The tea liquor is richer and more vividly colored than other oolong teas, shining bright with a beautiful amber hue. The aroma offers notes of honey and ripe fruit, fragrant and pleasant. The taste is full-bodied, mellow without astringency, smooth and rounded with a stimulating quality. It leaves a lingering aftertaste and generates a gentle flow of saliva as it goes down the throat.

　　    【Fancy Ways to Drink Dongfang Meiren】

　　    There are various opinions on how to brew the best-tasting Fengfeng tea (another name for Dongfang Meiren). One suggests that the water temperature should not be too high, with 88–93°C being ideal, and the steeping time around 30–45 seconds before pouring out. For tea ware, transparent glass cups or white lid bowls are best to clearly appreciate the tea leaves’ graceful dance in the water and the beautiful amber color.

　　　　Fengfeng tea can also be prepared in many fancy styles similar to black tea:

　　    1. For example, adding one or two drops of brandy to hot tea gives it a champagne-like flavor, known as “Champagne Oolong.”

　　    2. Adding fresh milk turns it into a honey milk tea; it can also be served chilled.

　　    3. Or mix it with fruit wine to create a cocktail.

　　    The current tea plant varieties cultivated in Taiwan were brought over by immigrants from Fujian over two hundred years ago, and early Taiwanese tea-making techniques were also taught by Fujian masters. Today, the production techniques for oolong tea, pouchong tea, and other tea types produced in Taiwan all originate from China’s Fujian Province.

　　Beipu Fengfeng Tea

　　Xinpu County Beibu Township Office

　　10022305

　　Tea