From a single tea leaf, a cup of bubble tea and a bowl of douhua to the lights of the night market — sail six stops along Taiwan's coast to meet its flavors and people, and see how a Taiwanese food company carries them to the world.
Along Taiwan's coastline — setting off from the tea hills and finally sailing from the harbor to the world.
Brand Philosophy
Tang Sugar Brand Philosophy: Taiwanese Food and Taiwanese Service, Bringing the Flavors of Taiwan to the World
From the Formosa Oolong that sailed to New York in 1869 to bubble tea loved around the globe, Taiwan has long been sending great flavors to the world. Tang Sugar (Caitang International) is a Taiwanese company proud of the food Taiwanese people make and the service they provide. With consistent ingredient quality, clear partnership terms and verifiable supply capability, we…
It introduces Taiwan's tea, bubble tea, night-market food, fruit and sugar, everyday life and Made in Taiwan, and shows how Tang Sugar brings these flavors and Taiwanese service to partners around the world.
How is Taiwan Stories different from the blog?
Taiwan Stories covers culture, origins and Taiwan through foreign eyes; the blog covers drink recipes, ingredient dosage and sourcing. The two link to each other, so you can go from a story to a recipe.
The Story of Oriental Beauty Tea: The Taiwanese Tea Bitten by Leafhoppers — What Are Pengfeng Tea and Bai Hao Oolong? Beipu and Emei, Hsinchu
Key answer
Oriental Beauty is an oolong unique to Taiwan: around the Dragon Boat Festival in summer, tea leafhoppers bite the young buds, the leaves develop a distinctive honey and ripe-fruit aroma, and farmers then process them with heavy oxidation. Also called Pengfeng tea, Bai Hao oolong and Fanzhuang oolong, it’s grown mainly around Beipu and Emei in Hsinchu. The Tea and Beverage Research Station puts its oxidation at about 60%, the heaviest among semi-oxidized teas. Because the gardens must attract leafhoppers, they can’t be sprayed with insecticide. The tea’s origin is told through a Beipu “bragging” story, though it’s a folk tale. Tang Sugar is proud of Taiwanese tea and supplies commercial teas, bringing Taiwanese tea aromas to the world.
A famous Taiwanese tea made by a tiny insect
Most tea farmers dread pests, but Oriental Beauty is the opposite. Each year between the solar terms Mangzhong and Dashu (early June to late July), when it’s hot and humid, tea leafhoppers — farmers call them “floating dust” — fly into the gardens and feed on the tender buds, and the bitten leaves produce special aroma compounds. Hakka tea farmers call this “zhuo xian”. The finished tea shows five colors — white, green, yellow, red and brown — brews an amber liquor and smells of honey and ripe fruit.
Why “Pengfeng tea”? A Beipu legend
Legend has it that in the Japanese era a tea farmer in Beipu, Hsinchu, found his garden badly damaged by insects. Unwilling to throw the leaves away, he processed them anyway — and the tea had an unusual fruity, honeyed aroma. Taken to a foreign trading house in Taipei’s Dadaocheng, it fetched a high price. When he told the story back home, neighbors laughed that he was “pengfeng” — bragging — and the name Pengfeng tea spread. It’s a widely told folk tale with limited historical evidence, and there are several stories behind the name “Oriental Beauty” as well.
Names and growing areas
Item
Details
Other names
Pengfeng tea, Bai Hao oolong, Fanzhuang oolong, Fushou tea
Main growing areas
Beipu and Emei in Hsinchu, and parts of Miaoli
Harvest
Around the Dragon Boat Festival in summer
Oxidation
About 60% per the Tea and Beverage Research Station (often heavier when made by local farmers)
Flavor
Honey and ripe fruit, amber liquor
Origin marks
“Beipu Pengfeng Tea” and “Emei Oriental Beauty Tea” hold certification marks of origin
The name has also been debated: in 2004 the Hsinchu County Government wanted to standardize on “Oriental Beauty”, but Beipu farmers felt “Pengfeng tea” carried local history and kept it, so both names live on today. Honey-scented black tea from Hualien and Taitung is also made from leafhopper-bitten leaves (further reading: a map of Taiwan’s tea regions).
Tang Sugar: taking Taiwanese tea craftsmanship to the world
Oriental Beauty shows how Taiwanese tea farmers work with nature, turning what others see as a flaw into a unique flavor. Caitang International Co., Ltd. (brand name Tang Sugar) is proud of this craftsmanship and brings Taiwanese tea flavors to drink shops overseas:
This article belongs to Stop 1, Taiwanese Tea, of the Taiwan Stories series. Series opener: Tang Sugar brand philosophy.
FAQ
What kind of tea is Oriental Beauty?
Oriental Beauty is a heavily oxidized Taiwanese oolong made from leaves bitten by tea leafhoppers, with a natural honey and ripe-fruit aroma.
What is 東方美人茶 in English?
東方美人茶 is Oriental Beauty tea, also often written Bai Hao Oolong.
Why is Oriental Beauty called Pengfeng tea?
Legend says a Beipu farmer sold insect-damaged tea for a high price and was laughed at for “pengfeng” (bragging) when he told the story — a folk tale.
Where is Oriental Beauty grown?
Mainly around Beipu and Emei in Hsinchu, with some in Miaoli; “Beipu Pengfeng Tea” and “Emei Oriental Beauty Tea” both hold certification marks of origin.
How should I brew Oriental Beauty?
Water at about 85–90°C is usually recommended so the delicate buds don’t scald; it can also be cold-brewed for a softer aroma.
