The story goes, over 100 years ago when the Dutch controlled Indonesia, they brought over Japanese tea trees. They had the Indonesians as their slaves working the plantations. Finally after the Japanese war ended and the Indonesians regained control of their country, the former slaves got their land back and inherited these tea plantations. I met one family who was the inheritor of a beautiful tea plantation on the island of Java. The tea trees on this island are over 100 years old, qualifying them as old tea tree teas. In addition, they 100% organic. Not a single chemical is used or even needed. The plantation is over 6,000 feet high (2,000 meters) which makes it a high altitude tea. The third positiviTEA about this plantation is that it could qualify as a BiodiversiTEA tea plantation as it has a variety of plant species and other crops growing with it. If you look at the pictures you will see some coffee trees growing between the tea trees as well as bamboo and other species creating a beautiful, high mountain, organic, old tea tree plantation. They grow Oolongs, blacks and a little greens.
Apparently growing the coffee trees next to the tea trees has had an effect on the taste offering a little more of a coffee flavor on the tea. What is interesting is that they keep the same manufacturing methods as the Dutch, who were making tea to pair with milk and sugar. I suggested they change their manufacturing method and study some other ones to create a richer, deeper taste that I know this tea possesses. The Qi of the area is fantastic and has the potential to create some outstanding teas. I am curious for what the future brings once they can innovate the current production methods, I see a bright future for them and a new style of tea that already has got the “Qi”!
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