What does it mean to truly care for the craft of tea production, not only in the process, but beginning with the soil? In Taiwan, there is a small world of tea that comes from ‘wild cultivation’ 野放, also known as ‘natural farming’ 自然農法, appreciated by those who not only have the environmental impact and toxicity in mind, but also search for flavor that is ‘true’.
It is perhaps a purist perspective, but there is something special about tea that has been left to grow naturally, pulling all the nutrients from the natural soils without a pre-designed fertilizer recipe. Is that perhaps how tea was supposed to taste ages ago, when tea was made for local consumption in the community?
No pesticides. Weeds pulled by hand. No added fertilizers. Some tea makers even manage to not water the trees. Yet, the tea bushes thrive and carry incredible depths of flavor. Making tea like this in Taiwan is almost unheard of. Some might say it borders on madness. It’s hard enough to survive as a small producer; doing it with natural farming makes it even more challenging. Who are these teamakers, and why did they choose to pursue this pathway?
This session features guest practitioner Gawin @teatiantian, who spent two years in Taiwan with tea makers to understand what “eco-friendly” means, and why he gradually shifted to seeking teas with unconventional cultivation methods. With a deep passion for tea making, Gawin offers a technical view, yet grounded in his philosophical and aesthetic approach to tea. This time, he is bringing rare and limited batches of tea from tea makers that he knows personally and therefore understands their approaches.
In the session, Gawin will guide us to taste wild cultivated teas from these regions in Taiwan:
TEAS FROM
三峽 SAN XIA
北埔 BEI PU
鹿谷 LU GU
六龜 LIU GUI
It's a precious and rare opportunity for us tea lovers and we're so glad and super excited to welcome Gawin to Muyō!
Come and join us.
📍 Location: Muyō, tea & culture center, Uudenmaankatu 15
⏰ Time: 17:00 – 19:00，13th of March (Friday)
Ticket: €42
