How is Tangpo vinegar brewed? Yang Rumen's Journey to the Place of Origin, Episode 4
Tang Po's vinegar is brewed in the Shuilidong area of Toufen, Miaoli County. The moment we arrived, we felt the "weather" was so nice -- maybe because it had been raining nonstop in Taipei, which was getting tiresome. When I first met Tang Ya, I already knew about his old family house, so I had to take a photo for everyone to admire. Strolling through the fields and gardens gives you a distinctly different feeling.
I should point out that Tang Ya is an artist. Among full-time farming friends, it is no easy thing to find someone who shows up at the market every single week, rain or shine, to talk with consumers. And many of an artist's friends have "personality" -- put simply, they are hard to get along with and not easy to warm up to people. But Tang Ya has no such "problem." Heh... quite rare!
Tang Ya is an artist whose specialties are ceramics and calligraphy. His ecological focus is on nectar-source plants, with butterflies as the main emphasis. This is the second year since he came home to grow citrus, so he is still not very familiar with pruning, and he still needs to consult friends on the technical side. As Tang Ya himself puts it, he is an artist! He only cared about styling and changing shapes, ignoring the growing habits of citrus. Last year he pruned away all the old branches, which is why this year's citrus peel is on the thick side.
The style and hand-dyeing of the outfit Tang Ya is wearing were both designed by him and Tang Po.
Plum blossoms. Spring is almost here, and the plum flowers are in full bloom! I took a photo specially to share with everyone.
In the orchard, the fruit trees have been over-pruned, so the branches and buds all grow toward the "sky," which makes the fruit grow facing upward too. This makes it difficult for nutrients to be transported, so the citrus will not be sweet, the moisture content will be poor, and the peel will become very thick. Done correctly, the branches, leaves, and fruit should all grow downward, and rainwater will flow down along the branches and leaves to reach the roots and be absorbed.
The orchard has its grass cut four times a year, and it had just been trimmed the day before we came.
Citrus growing facing the sky -- doesn't it look like fun!
People's awareness keeps advancing. This spot is another farming friend's orchard. In the past, when older generations saw grass, they would think the person farming that plot was "lazy." This notion came from the "first Green Revolution," the era of large-scale use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Then came the "second Green Revolution" of large-scale mechanization. Now people are gradually understanding that you have to give the land time to rest and regenerate -- during the non-producing season, don't use herbicides and let the land turn dry and yellow. This picture is one kind of change!
Today Tang Ya also brought along another friend, Teacher Miao of "Wancheng Garden," who truly is an ecology expert. For most of the plants we passed, he could give an introduction. In the photo is "three-leaf passionflower" (Passiflora suberosa). Teacher Miao's explanation was simple and clear: don't the leaves look like fingers making a "3" gesture? And "passion fruit" is another name for passionflower, because the inside of the three-leaf passionflower's fruit looks a bit like a passion fruit.
The good thing about the countryside is the space, the easy parking, and the leisurely life. Wherever you go, the power of community keeps a settlement connected. Put simply, kids can run out the door without worrying about heavy traffic or bad people, roaming all over the hills, happy as can be! A group of people at the front yard -- the rice-drying yard -- pull up a chair and, with fruit and tea, chat freely under the sky!
Garland chrysanthemum (Glebionis coronaria), also known as Showa grass. Along the way, Teacher Jiao kept introducing me to edible "wild vegetables," all growing in the places we often pass, step on, and see -- we just rarely pay attention. Another aspect is that agriculture is not only primary and secondary industry -- that is, eating directly (raw, stir-fried...) and making processed products (vinegar, dried fruit, soy sauce...). There is also the tertiary value of tourism, which Taiwan has promoted for a long time with results that have never been very good. Most current thinking focuses on the eating part. The eating segment could be extended in distance and depth, as could "ecological tours." Adding knowledge and education means friends who come to the countryside gain knowledge in addition to food.
Tropical ageratum (Ageratum houstonianum), a common weed in the countryside.
In fallow fields, if you receive the fallow subsidy on the plains, most people plant sunn hemp, rapeseed, sunflowers, cosmos... After turning a corner, I saw a stretch of purple. If you did not know, you might think a "romantic" farming friend had scattered lavender seeds across the fallow farmland, blooming into a carpet of purple. It turned out to be tropical ageratum.
In the photo is shepherd's purse. Its formal name is "little-flower bittercress" (Cardamine hirsuta). In the Jiangnan and Jiangsu areas, the custom is to pick the leaves before it flowers and cook them, such as stir-frying directly with cured meat, which is quite good. Another way is to cook it into shepherd's purse rice, with a recipe the same as cabbage rice. In Wenzhou big wonton shops, there is also "shepherd's purse wonton."
I first got to know Tang Ya and Tang Po at the market, starting with Tang Po's vinegar brewing. This jar is pine-needle vinegar, brewed by Tang Po from pine needles gathered at home.
Have a glass of pine-needle vinegar with sparkling water, honey, and ice. It does not have the "sour" kick of traditional vinegar drinks. Not bad, quite smooth.