Taiwan's Oriental Beauty black tea wins UK three-star award; pilot Chang Chia-chi becomes a tea-making champion
According to a report in "Wealth Magazine", on Chang Chia-chi's business card and tea bags there is a sailing ship with a teapot as its hull, printed with "Formo Cha TAIWAN 1869". Why 1869? "Because that year was the starting point for Taiwan tea to stand on the world stage." He stared at the round label with two stars reading "Great Test 2020" on the tea can and smiled: "The 2021 label hasn't arrived yet. It took me 3 years to finish drawing this ship!"
In the chronicle of world events, 1869 had several important milestones: the opening of the Suez Canal and the completion of the United States' transcontinental railroad. In Taiwan, the Paoshun Trading Company, a partnership between the Scottish merchant Todd, known as the "father of Taiwan oolong tea", and Li Chunsheng, known as the "father of Taiwan tea", carried 203,000 pounds of "Formosa Oolong" on two sailing ships, setting sail for New York and causing a sensation. Overnight it became famous and established Taiwan tea's place on the world stage: a refined, unflavored, pure tea liquor, a high-priced signature drink made by highly skilled tea masters.
"At British tea exchange events, no lengthy explanation is needed. They immediately say, oh! I know Taiwan, I know Formosa Tea, very expensive, very good to drink..." Chang Chia-chi began competing on the world stage in 2018, and the first contest he fought in was the UK's "Great Test Awards". Founded in 1994 by the British food association and widely recognized as the world's largest food flavor evaluation competition, Chang Chia-chi returned empty-handed at first, but when he competed again the following year, he came back with medals for 3 consecutive years.
A young man returns home with lofty ambitions, competing in the international cup
According to analysis by "Wealth Magazine", the 2021 competition featured more than 14,000 products from 108 countries, judged by 355 people from the global culinary world through blind tasting. Chang Chia-chi's "Flora" and "Luna" Oriental Beauty teas won the highest three-star award. In the single-estate tea category, only 3 entries received the 3-star award, and Chang Chia-chi entered two teas and scored with both, setting a new record in the competition's 25-year history; the other was a Darjeeling black tea from the British company Teafields.
"If you're going to compete, compete in the hardest one," Chang Chia-chi said. "Maybe it's about proving something. Young people returning home face all kinds of difficulties, and you always want to prove yourself before you're satisfied." Before this, he had entered the Miaoli Red black tea competitions in 2016 and 2017. He won no award the first year, and although he received a medal the second year, at the awards ceremony the judge said: "Seeing that you young people are willing to come home and make tea, we encourage you, let you take an award home." The care of elders toward a young person returning home felt warm, but he was very unconvinced.
According to a report in "Wealth Magazine", Chang Chia-chi was born into a family that manufactures tea-roasting machinery. Most of the tea-making machines along Provincial Highway 3 come from their family's factory. From his grandfather Chang Chien-yeh to his father Chang Mu-jung, owner of Mingyang Tea Shop, besides designing and building tea-making machinery and equipment, they also make and sell tea. His childhood dream was to fly airplanes. He learned to fly in Australia, and the flight hours he accumulated were already enough to obtain a commercial pilot's license, but before reaching the final mile, he stopped and came home to help make tea.