2012 TOST - Opening Ceremony (10/21/2012)

 
This is our 5th Taiwan Oolongs Study Tour.  We believe in group learning.  A very well mixed group of tea professionals from Northern America, each year we are having one week long hands on study on the fields, at the plants, meeting many farmers, industry leaders, scientists and researchers... After each trip, the fermentation is always continuously on going.  Thanks to many volunteers chipped in this program with their passionate love in tea.  We just hope with this program it will benefit everyone in his/her career development or business growing.  We know at least, Taiwan tea industry is winning many more friends in Northern America.  Soon, there will be more Ambassador of Taiwan Tea will work on the roads at the marketplace.  We have a series of slideshows that cover the whole program of 2012 TOST. 
Browse on...I hope you will be one of our members of next TOST trip !

2012 TOST - Our first stop: TRES Wenshan Branch (10/22/2012)

Our friends were lucky to see farmers' tea just brought in to be checked and packed for the tea contest in Wenshan branch, the morning while we arrive there...
Director Wu has guided us to tour the tea garden with various cultivars there...and our members are okay to pick some leaves there...He also gave a DVD briefing about TRES - Wenshan Branch...

2012 TOST - an experience of purchasing Pouchong at HsiangTai in Pinglin (10/22/2012)

2012 TOST - Visit an ISO22000 tea plant in Wenshan Tea District (10/22/2012)

2012 TOST - Green Tea Hand Rolling in Yilan SanTai (10/22/2012)

2012 TOST - Hand Rolling Ruby 18 in Sun Moon Lake (10/23/2012)

 Taiwan Bear, Mr. Liang's nick name, prepared the withered leaves of Ruby 18 in his parents' tea factory for our 2012 TOST friends to experience the hands rolling. He also have the tea we have done separated and also to be further processed and packed in the tins with our ow signatures. Enjoy the slideshow and see the hard efforts plus the fun experience.

2012 TOST - Cupping Brandy Oolong in TRES / Yuchih Branch (10/23/2012)

 
TRES/Yuichih Branch is one of our TOST training facility, our 2010 TOST Hands on making tea mainly using this facilty. We like to visit this place, and having our Brandy Oolong cupping, with different cultivars, to be guided by Master Steve Huang.

2012 TOST - visit Organic tea garden in Nantou (10/23/2012)

 Mr. Chen Cheng-Ching, a good friend of our TOST.  He helps TTMA produce a video demonstration of how Oolong traditional hand rolling with canvas clothes for World Tea Expo.  Also he showed our 2008 TOST friends how machinery plucking in his tea garden, and how outdoor withering in mass scale... This time, Mr. Chen leads our 2012 TOST friends a short walk by some conventional tea fields to an isolated tea garden, which he owns and having "Taiwan organic practice"...  We are hoping he can get NOP certified and then we can bring his USDA Organic tea to the Northern America...
 

2012 TOST - Visit Hong-Hsin Tea Nursery (10/23/2012)

Mr. Kang, the owner of Hong-Hsin Tea Nursery is waiting for our arrival.  We are grateful to his kindness to open his tea nursery for our 2012 TOST friends.  Some farmers are having their own tea plants to be cloned in their own gardens.  Yet, most farmers will purchase healthy tea plants from the tea nurseries.  Hong-Sing might be the largest tea nursery in the Nantou tea district, and our instructor Mr. Steve Huang is a good friend, and that is why we are able to study cloning the tea plants here.  So many baby tea plants...and we can tell from his nursery's arrangement to judge what kind of cultivars are popular and why...

2012 TOST - Hands on making Jade Oolong in Alishan

2012 TOST has a two day hands on making Jade Oolong in Wang Ting Tea Factory.   Wang's couple are very generous to open up their tea garden and also their tea plant for our members to have a great working environment and a good experience.  Of course, without our instructor, Master Steve Huang, this learning session won't be any possible. Please click on the Youtube video and be shared with our friends who were working hard up in Alishan...from the garden, plucking, solar withering, indoor withering and fluffing, panning, drying till rolling...

2012 TOST - TRES TungTing Sub Station

We have arranged a  quick visit to the TRES - Tung Ting Sub Station, where an advanced lab is installed here to help control the pesticide safety for our tea farmers. The day we visit, is the big moving day for Steve Huang's office... We realized how busy they are...yet, Steve still manages to receive our TOST friends and also have his lab specialists to guide us to see how the lab is functioning.  Food Safety in tea is so important, and we are glad to see how the TRES is working to help the farmers to carry out good practices.

2012 TOST - Visit ShanLinSi tea district

Max Wu is a good friend who owns his tea garden in ShanLinSi. We have planned to see the leaf plucking and tea making here on 10/25/2012.  Due to the long drought, the winter crop in this tea district has been delayed for another week.  Max did call us to check whether we should change our plan... well, here we come to visit a friend and have his teas tasted in the high mountain.  Along the way to Max's tea garden, our friends have enough surprise to eyewitness so many tea gardens on those steep slopes.