Drinking and buying tea in Taiwan and Kuala Lumpur

Travel logs and questions
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sqt
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Tue Mar 12, 2019 4:37 pm

Hi guys,

I'm going to be traveling through parts of Taiwan and then on to Kuala Lumpur soon. If any of you are based there and would like to get together for some that would be wonderful.

Any tips or suggestions for teahouses or vendors would also be greatly appreciated.

Dates:
March 31st-April 1st : Taichung
April 2nd and 3rd : Yinnge
April 4-7: Taipei

April 12-15 : Kuala Lumpur

(also stopping in Hong Kong on March 21+22)

Thank you.
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Bok
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Wed Mar 13, 2019 8:10 pm

Some good suggestions in here:
https://eco-cha.com/blogs/news/14-spots ... -be-missed

I beg to differ for Chun shu itang in Taichung which I would swap for their other outlet called Qiu shan tang (in B1 of the Art museum Taichung), which is more classically oriented versus gongfu brewing as opposed to bubble tea. Also the Palace museum teahouse Taipei is an ok- enough spot to have a snack, but really the tea experience. The museum is nice though if you are into that sort of thing, tea ware is few and not impressive (at least what is on display).

I've written about Wisteria in Taipei, you can look it up.

Yingge, I suggest to stop by my friends shop Daqian (https://daqian.myshopify.com/), they do mostly wood-fired stuff. Yingge is otherwise full of doubtful quality teaware, a lot of fake Yixings, so be careful when buying. Overwhelming as well, as the place has 100s of shops selling pottery, take you time and hold back on buying, until you have seen a few shops.
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Tillerman
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Wed Mar 13, 2019 10:37 pm

I would add Hui Liu in Yongkang Park, Da'An District - not too far from Wisteria. There is a nice selection of tea and the vegetarian food good.
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OCTO
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Thu Mar 14, 2019 4:09 am

sqt wrote:
Tue Mar 12, 2019 4:37 pm
Dates:
March 31st-April 1st : Taichung
April 2nd and 3rd : Yinnge
April 4-7: Taipei

April 12-15 : Kuala Lumpur

(also stopping in Hong Kong on March 21+22)
Would you like to swing by Penang while you’re in Kuala Lumpur? We can meet up for some tea.

Cheers!!
sqt
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Thu Mar 14, 2019 6:18 am

@Bok and @Tillerman:
Thank you for the suggestions, much appreciated and very helpful. My focus is more on drinking tea and meeting people, and experiencing teahouses and even tea ware stores, as that is what I don't get to do at home. If I get to buy some good tea that is a nice bonus, but not the priority.

@OCTO :
I would have loved to meet up for some tea but I wont have the time to make it to Pengang this time. But its part of the plan for my next Malaysia visit (fall this year or next spring). But thank you, much appreciated!
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Victoria
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Thu Mar 14, 2019 10:46 am

@wuyiyancha just spent a month traveling through Taiwan, maybe pm him for places he visited. In Taipei, Wistaria tea house I had been told is a nice experience. I know he enjoyed meeting and trying teas with Hua Yin Chen in Taichung. Some info oolong vendors;

Hua Yin Chen
You can messenger him via Facebook. His English isn’t great but he manages :) .
No. 466 Chang'an Road, Taiping District, Taichung City (shop)
Nantou County, Deer Valley Township Wing Lung Village Renyi Road 68, 558 Taiwan (farm)
Tel: 886-921-745-726, 886-908-628-138
Yuio2112@gmail.com
http://2088taiwan.com/

Jay lives in Hong Kong, you might pm him as well; @tealifehk

Would be great if you can share your journey and the places you end up visiting.
chofmann
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Thu Mar 14, 2019 11:43 am

If you're going to be in Taichung, definitely reach out to Hua Yin Chen. My wife speaks with him practically daily, so if you have any issues with communication or otherwise, just let me know.

As for Wistaria - it is a nice experience, but massively overpriced for the quality of tea in my opinion. Go here to enjoy the experience more so than the tea.
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Bok
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Thu Mar 14, 2019 7:20 pm

chofmann wrote:
Thu Mar 14, 2019 11:43 am
As for Wistaria - it is a nice experience, but massively overpriced for the quality of tea in my opinion. Go here to enjoy the experience more so than the tea.
Pricey in comparison to having tea at home, yet in line with most other teahouses I’ve been in Taiwan.

My issue was more that the teas did not correlate to the fame of the place... although it seems to be more respected among foreigners than people in Taiwan.
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Bok
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Thu Mar 14, 2019 7:57 pm

sqt wrote:
Tue Mar 12, 2019 4:37 pm
April 2nd and 3rd : Yinnge
Just noticed: Yingge barely warrants two days in my opinion... lots of shops yes, but that can be done in a day. Also do not need to live there, takes under 1h to get there by train from Taipei. Basically it is one long street with lots of shops in the alleys, but that's it. The factories and workshops are spread all over town, but I do not think that they cater to visitors.
Ethan Kurland
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Thu Mar 14, 2019 8:33 pm

I took a bus to Yinge once that got me closer to the area of lots of ceramic shops than the train does, but the train stops close to the museum which I think is worth visiting. If you have lots of time, I suggest being open-minded about tasting teas there (and in general). Sometimes a place that only has a few teas for sale has one that is just right for someone.

In Taipei a travel guide and looking at travel advice sites such as Trip Adviser helped me make decisions about where to sample tea etc. I would not buy more than 150 grams (its minimum purchase); nonetheless, Wang Tea was pleasant for sampling Oriental Beauty and its best and next to best were delicious. A couple of less pricey shops are about 5 - 10 minutes away for O.B. (Other teas should be purchased in the South).

Cheers
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Bok
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Thu Mar 14, 2019 9:16 pm

just one finesse to bare in mind for the considerate traveller: You might easily get invited to sit down and have tea (in a teashop), if you do so and spend some time sampling, it will be considered polite to buy something in the end. Usually one tries a few, three or more and at some point decides on something. Often that also serves as a test to the owner to see how much you know or not.

I mostly do politely decline if I am not at least interested/intrigued by something in the shop.

This is different to when some shops offer browsing customers a cup on a tray, sort of on-the-go.
sqt
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Sun Apr 21, 2019 2:06 am

So I am finally back home after 4 intensely rewarding but also very tiring weeks on the road.
Thanks again to everyone for the tips and suggestions.

I spent way too much time (and money) on tea even though this wasn't a tea oriented trip but I am not complaining.

Once I've had a chance to catch a breath and deal with my backlog at home, I'll post a summary of my trip that might be helpful for others visiting the same places.
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Victoria
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Fri Jul 05, 2019 11:56 am

@sqt curious how your trip went. Any new places to share for us future travelers?
jason19870313
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Thu Aug 01, 2019 4:13 am

sqt wrote:
Tue Mar 12, 2019 4:37 pm
Hi guys,

I'm going to be traveling through parts of Taiwan and then on to Kuala Lumpur soon. If any of you are based there and would like to get together for some that would be wonderful.

Any tips or suggestions for teahouses or vendors would also be greatly appreciated.

Dates:
March 31st-April 1st : Taichung
April 2nd and 3rd : Yinnge
April 4-7: Taipei

April 12-15 : Kuala Lumpur

(also stopping in Hong Kong on March 21+22)

Thank you.
Tea Vendor
台中市南屯區東興路二段106號9樓

Li shan tea
地址:南投縣鹿谷鄉中正路二段70號

Tea vendor
No. 57, Section 3, Wenxin Road, Xitun District, Taichung City, Taiwan 407
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