Mr. Chen, owner of his own Taiwan tea farm, visits us and explains how he makes his JONA (Japan Organic and Natural Foods Association) certified organic oolong tea. His tea is also certified organic by the Taiwan MOA.
We are happy to drink oolong tea with the man who grows and creates it.
This organic oolong tea farm is in the Wanda forest in central Taiwan.
Workers hand pick the leaves.
This is an MOA sign. Weeds grow amongst the tea plants, providing insects with an alternative foodsource from the tea leaves.
An official like this gentleman from the Japanese JONA tests the soil annually.
An abundance of living things may be found in the tea garden.
Even birds live in the garden and eat the worms.
This type of bee makes it home in the garden to eat worms as well.
Mr. Chen's son likes to play with the bugs in the garden.
Mrs. Chen shows a handful of freshly picked tea.
After picking, the tea is allowed to air.
Then it is sun dried to reduce the moisture content.
The tea is allowed to dry indoors.
The oolong tea is tumbled in a dryer for 5-8 minutes in high heat.
The tea is poured out of the dryer.
The tea leaves are placed in a special bag that is used for rolling. Over a period of ten hours, the tea is rolled and heated about six times.
The tea is tasted for quality.
