A Guide to Dihua Street in Dadaocheng, Taipei’s Oldest Street

Dadaocheng (大稻埕) is undoubtedly one of Taipei’s most compelling neighborhoods and best places to explore on foot. While Wanhua, the historical Old City to the south, is a magnet for tourists, serious history, food & culture fans can’t miss Dadaocheng. Twatutia, as Dadaocheng is pronounced in the Hokkien (Taiwanese) language, was once the second largest …

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Tea in Taiwan: A Super Detailed Guide

Tea in Taiwan: the best of Taiwanese tea

I’ll be covering a lot in this article, including varieties of Taiwanese tea, how to order tea from Taiwan, where to buy tea in Taipei and Taiwan, Taipei tea houses, how to brew Taiwanese tea, tea tours in Taipei, and tea-related attractions around Taiwan. Get a pencil and notepad ready! I’ve been living in Taiwan …

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Sun Moon Lake Tea: Why is it so good?

Sun Moon Lake Tea

When it comes to Taiwanese tea, oolongs like Alishan High Mountain Tea, Dong Ding, and Oriental Beauty are internationally renowned, but fewer people are aware that the country also produces some excellent black teas. While many of Taiwan’s tea growing regions do produce a limited amount of black tea, Sun Moon Lake is practically synonymous …

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Alishan High Mountain Tea: The Champagne of Taiwan Oolongs

A worker on a field where Alishan tea is grown

Taiwan’s oolong teas are so good that they have been described as the “champagne of tea.” In recent decades, Alishan High Mountain tea has stood out from the crowd as the most sought after of Taiwan’s impressive array of teas. In fact, my (Taiwanese) father-in-law, an avid tea drinker, turns his nose up at anything …

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A Day Trip to Yingge Old Street, Taiwan’s Pottery Capital

Yingge, Taiwan is the country’s undisputed center of pottery and ceramics, and one of the most interesting day trips from Taipei for anyone interested in ceramics and the arts. Taiwanese ceramics range from perfect renditions of ancient Chinese styles to creative, modern innovations. For a country that is one of the world’s great producers of …

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Visiting Global Tea Hut: Zen and the Art of Cha Dao

Global Tea Hut Taiwan

After I wrote an article introducing tea in Taiwan in 2016, I was contacted by representatives from several Taiwanese tea-related companies and organizations. One of these was Sam, one of three permanent residents at Global Tea Hut (國際茶亭)’s headquarters Tea Sage Hut (通聖亭) in Miaoli (苗栗), a small county capital in Central-Western Taiwan. At first …

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A Taiwan Dong Ding Oolong Tea Review

In order to put one of my new favorite oolong/wulong teas, Ai-Want Formosa Tea‘s 2015 Winter Dong Ding oonlong tea, to the ultimate test, I’ve decided to take extreme measures. I am going to carry out a trial on the pickiest, most captious food and drink critic that I know: my Taiwanese father-in-law. You’ll have …

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Ruby Red #18 Tea (台灣紅玉紅茶)

Ruby Red 18

Ruby Red 18 was the first tea sample that I received as a part of my subscription to Global Tea Hut‘s monthly Tea and Tao Magazine. Read more about my visit to Global Tea Hut and my full guide to Miaoli, where the international organization is based. When I first started writing about the amazing …

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