Three major Alishan spring tea competitions announced one after another; Meishan Farmers' Association oolong tea fetches a higher price
The Alishan tea region has 3 major tea competitions, organized respectively by the Meishan Township Farmers' Association, the Alishan Farmers' Association, and the Alishan Production Cooperative. This year, affected by climate drought, the competition schedules were postponed along with the harvest time. The earliest to submit tea and the earliest to conduct judging was the competition organized by the Alishan Tea Production Cooperative. Cai Huiying, chairwoman of the board of the Alishan Tea Production Cooperative, said that this year's spring tea had more "grandparent-grandchild buds," with more uneven plumpness and thinness, and water shortage in the tea trees could also cause bitterness and astringency. The number of eliminated entries was somewhat higher, but as long as an entry could make the competition shortlist, its quality was quite good.
Alishan Tea Cooperative competition held awards ceremony today; those who made the shortlist are already good teas
The results of the Alishan Tea Production Cooperative Spring Fine Tea Competition were announced on May 11, and the awards ceremony was held on the 25th. Chiayi County Magistrate Weng Zhangliang presented awards to the skilled tea makers and also tasted this year's fine Alishan tea.
Cai Huiying said that this year's Alishan Tea Production Cooperative Spring Fine Tea Competition had 221 entries: 104 in the Jinxuan group and 117 in the oolong group; 39 entries were eliminated in the Jinxuan group, an elimination rate of 37.5%, and 50 entries were eliminated in the oolong group, an elimination rate of 42.7%. Common defects in eliminated tea samples included: off-flavors caused by improper roasting control, greenish or unpleasant greenish flavors caused by insufficient fermentation, tea liquor that was too coarse, astringent, or bitter, and overly weak tea liquor taste caused by deficiencies in the tea-making process. Therefore, after judging, the shortlisted tea samples had all reached the quality standard of spring fine tea.
Spring tea values aroma. There is no need to mention that the tea farmers' tea-making skills are excellent; their field management is also meticulous. Cai Huiying, chairwoman of the board of the Alishan Tea Production Cooperative, pointed out that the tea farmers were quite cooperative with the Council of Agriculture's "Taiwan Agricultural Product Production Traceability Barcode (QR-code) System." Therefore, "all award-winning teas have passed strict pesticide residue testing, and there is absolutely no problem in terms of both safety and quality."
Meishan Farmers' Association competition oolong group Grand Prize rises from 60,000 to 80,000 per jin. Want to taste the deliciousness?
In fact, the largest Alishan tea competition should be the one organized by the Meishan Farmers' Association, with 1,337 entries. The competition results were announced on May 17. Huang Shiyu, director-general of the Meishan Farmers' Association, said that the tea expert who evaluated the spring tea quality said this year's spring tea quality was generally good, and there were quite a few teas that met the competition grade. The competition was divided into an oolong group and a Jinxuan group. The most prestigious award is the "Grand Prize." The farmers' association raised the suggested prices this year: the oolong group's Grand Prize sells for 80,000 yuan per jin, and the Jinxuan Grand Prize sells for 40,000 per jin.
Huang Shiyu explained the rules for tea farmers participating in the competition: 22 jin of tea must be submitted to the organizer to enter. After the competition, the winning works are packaged and sealed by the organizer, and the packaging bears the award certificate. Because the competition requires tea tasting, the final packaging returned to the tea farmers is 20 jin of tea. For example, the winner of the oolong group Grand Prize will have 20 jin of tea, and the suggested price per jin can reach 80,000 yuan. Huang Shiyu recalled that the Alishan spring tea competition has been held from 1987 to now. The earliest Grand Prize sold for several thousand yuan per jin. In 2009, the Grand Prize sold for 30,000, and afterward the price was raised in sequence to 36,000, 40,000, and 60,000 yuan, while this year it was raised to 80,000 yuan.
This spring tea competition organized by the Meishan Farmers' Association will hold its awards ceremony on June 2. On the day of the awards ceremony, a sales exhibition will also be held. The farmers' association invites tea-loving consumers to come to the parking lot at Meishan Park in Chiayi County on June 2 to attend the competition tea sales exhibition, where they may have a chance to taste the Grand Prize oolong tea at 80,000 yuan per jin!
Three major Alishan tea region competitions vie for supremacy; the 27th is the last spring tea event of the season
Because of drought, spring tea harvest was delayed, and production generally declined in various tea regions. The Alishan tea region originally estimated a 30% reduction, but after actual harvesting and tea-making were completed, it should be a 20% reduction. With reduced production plus good quality, the farmers' association said there had already been situations of tea merchants rushing to buy tea. Under the double boost of low volume and good quality, the suggested prices of this year's competition teas were greatly raised. Huang Shiyu said that in fact, spring tea prices in the Alishan tea region generally rose this year.
The last competition for this year's spring tea in the Alishan tea region was the event organized by the Alishan Farmers' Association, with 1,034 entries. The number of entries also decreased along with the reduced spring tea production. Tea was submitted on May 21 and 22, judging began on the 23rd, and the competition results were announced on May 27.
