Maokong (貓空) Gondola, Muzha (木柵)Tea Plantations
After my plans for Alishan were shelved because of poor scheduling on my part, Angie suggested taking the Maokong Gondala up to the Muzha tea plantations. Since Taiwan is famous for their tea, this seemed like an appropriate and super fun day's activities.
We caught the MRT out to the end of the brown line. It's pretty amazing how many hills are cut thru, making the commute way shorter. Next the Maokong Gondola rises thru the foothills up into the mountains. The cable cars are hot and stuffy, better designed to keep the heat in on a snowy alpine day. At the top we take the road to the left and walk down the mountain for about 30 minutes (keep going past the temple).
All of the tea from the farms in Maokong is used at the 100-odd tea houses and restaurants in the area. To keep up with the demand for tea, high end tea from other parts are also served. Tea plantations in Maokong started out offering just tea and desserts. As the tourist trade became more popular, they started offering meals.
The teahouse is nestled into the side of the mountain. Lush with greenery, the picturesque stone and wood teahouse looks like it's been there for centuries. We order a local high mountain oolong more toasted but with the light fruit flavors of the green. For lunch we have the tea smoked duck, green mountain vegetables and deep fried sweet potato. We enjoyed a fabulous afternoon tucked inside the little teahouse, learning all about local tea, eating delicious treats. On the way back it rained (surprise!) and we caught the local mountain bus (which accepted the Taipei transit pass) back to the Gondola.
The instructions for brewing are as follows
1. Boil water
2. Fill pot 1/4 with dried tea leaves (should fill pot when unfurled)
3. Add water to tea up and over top of pot
4. Immediately pour out the water into the bone china jug and use to rinse utensils
5. Add water to tea, steep for 15-25 secs depending on taste, immediately decant into jug (to keep leaves dry so they don't go bitter)
6. Pour over spoon or pour into tall cylinders (to develop the nose) and then transfer into regular cups
7. Smell the spoon/cylinders
8. Sip slowly over conversation with friends
NB this is highly caffinated, tea leaves can be reused 4-6x
Yaoyue 邀月 (Inviting the Moon) Teahouse
No. 6, Lane 40, Sec. 3; 指南路3段40巷6號; tel (02) 2939-2025