Formosa Red #20

$32.00

Product Details >

漢字日月潭蜜香紅茶, 迎香	origin Yuchi, Taiwan	craft twisted, mi xiang	flavor notes honey, tropical fruit, bright
漢字日月潭蜜香紅茶, 迎香	origin Yuchi, Taiwan
craft twisted, mi xiang	flavor notes honey, tropical fruit, bright

Black tea crafting in Taiwan was initiated by the Japanese in 1903. In 1926, the first Assam cultivar was introduced and planted around the hills of Sun Moon Lake in Nantou County. This lake’s climate, environment, and terroir was deemed the most similar to the Assam tea gardens of India. Today, Sun Moon Lake produces the bulk of Taiwan’s black tea.

Our Formosa Red #20, Mi Xiang is crafted from Taiwan's increasingly popular #20 cultivar (a hybrid of qing xin and varietal #2022), developed in 2004 by the Taiwanese Tea Research and Extension Station. The #20 cultivar is known for its bright, fruity-floral aroma. This particular harvest is also a mi xiang or "honey fragrance" tea; before harvest, the leaves were attacked by leafhoppers, triggering the plant to release natural terpenes that to us taste like honey.

This tea is organically grown and produced in Yuchih, a village on the northern edge of Sun Moon Lake. The leaves were harvested mid-May, then wilted naturally, rolled, bruised and left to oxidize on covered bamboo trays until the next day when they were roasted, baked and dried.

We absolutely love the result - a black tea with natural honeyed sweetness, underpinned by complex notes of tropical fruit and citrus. Like our other Taiwanese black teas, the bright, crisp character of #20 brings to mind a classic breakfast tea without ever needing milk or sugar.

Brewing Guide

#20 offers a brighter and more delicate flavor profile compared to our other Formosa Reds. However, the tea can be brewed either light and floral, or dark and rich depending on preference; we suggest a middle-of-the-road approach.

For a gaiwan or small tea pot, use 3.5 grams of tea leaves, brewed at 205 degrees. Give the tea an initial 1 second rinse, then proceed to steep for 1 minute 45 seconds. Steep the second infusion for 1 minute 30 seconds. For subsequent brews, increase steep time in 30 second increments.

#20 will also brew nicely in a tea bowl.

Gaiwan/Teapot (6 oz.)

leaves 3.5 grams
temp 205 ° F
time 1 min 45 sec

Teapot (12 oz.)

leaves 5 grams
temp 205 ° F
time 2 min 30 sec

Infuser Cup

leaves 3.5 grams
temp 205 ° F
time 2 min

Tea Bowl

leaves 2.5 grams
temp 205 ° F

Gaiwan/Teapot (6 oz.)

leaves 3.5 grams
temp 205 ° F
time 1 min 45 sec

Teapot (12 oz.)

leaves 5 grams
temp 205 ° F
time 2 min 30 sec

Infuser Cup

leaves 3.5 grams
temp 205 ° F
time 2 min

Tea Bowl

leaves 2.5 grams
temp 205 ° F

Related products

Cloud & Mist

$22.00

jEmail us about this product

漢字雲霧綠茶	origin Fuding County, Fujian	craft drum roasted	flavor notes vegetal, robust, bright
漢字雲霧綠茶	origin Fuding County, Fujian
craft drum roasted	flavor notes vegetal, robust, bright

Harvested late April 2019 from Fuding County, Fujian Province. Cloud & Mist is one of the oldest styles of green tea from Fujian. The locals sometimes call the tea "cai cha" or "vegetable tea", an endearing, familiar term for a tea that they drink day in and day out. Each... →

Pre-rain Dragonwell, 2020

$27.00

jEmail us about this product

漢字雨前龍井	origin Panan County, Zhejiang	craft pan roasted	flavor notes nutty, buttery, rich
漢字雨前龍井	origin Panan County, Zhejiang
craft pan roasted	flavor notes nutty, buttery, rich

Picked a few days after the Qing Ming holiday on April 5th, the date marks the beginning of a two week green tea harvest period that wraps up on April 20th. That end day is important, because it falls on the Guyu Festival, an agricultural holiday held to invite the... →

Dragon Pearl Jasmine Supreme

$25.00

jEmail us about this product

漢字極品龍珠飄香白茶	origin Fuding County, Fujian	craft rolled & scented	flavor notes jasmine, sweet, smooth
漢字極品龍珠飄香白茶	origin Fuding County, Fujian
craft rolled & scented	flavor notes jasmine, sweet, smooth

Dragon Pearl Jasmine Supreme is our finest Jasmine scented tea. We only use spring-harvested Da Bai leaf buds from Fuding County, Fujian for the base tea, a variety usually reserved for white tea crafting. The buds are handpicked, then steamed and individually rolled by hand. The finished tea is then... →

Tung Ting

$14.00

jEmail us about this product

漢字凍頂烏龍	origin Nantou County, Taiwan	craft qing xiang	flavor notes floral, vegetal, bright
漢字凍頂烏龍	origin Nantou County, Taiwan
craft qing xiang	flavor notes floral, vegetal, bright

A descendent of oolong varieties taken from Jian'ou in China's Fujian Province, Tung Ting was brought to the eponymous central Taiwan mountain in the mid-1800s. Its name means "frozen summit", in reference to what was, at the time, one of the highest elevation tea gardens in Taiwan. Today, tea is... →