Faces of Taiwanese Tea: Liu Chung-Sen
- Ilja Aviarjanau
- 23 hours ago
- 7 min read
Master Liu Chung-sen (劉重森) is an 82-year-old tea artisan based in the heart of Lugu Township (鹿谷鄉), Nantou County (南投縣), who has dedicated over 67 years to the refinement of Dongding Oolong (凍頂烏龍) tea. He is the proprietor of the Chyuan-Yi Tea Studio (全一製茶所), an establishment that has become a sanctuary for traditional manual processing methods in an era dominated by industrial automation. Liu’s career began out of severe economic necessity in the aftermath of the Second World War. As a child born into a family of tea farmers, he was forced to end his formal education after graduating from elementary school because his family could not afford the fees for junior high school. This early entry into the workforce meant that he experienced the most grueling aspects of traditional production, including the era of "stepping on tea balls" (踩茶球), where laborers would gather tea leaves into large cloth balls and roll them with their bare feet to initiate the necessary cell damage for fermentation.
The core of Liu’s identity as a tea master is his uncompromising mastery of charcoal roasting, a craft he views as a cultural mission rather than a mere commercial enterprise. He is widely celebrated as a national treasure (國寶級) artisan because he refuses to use modern electric ovens, which he believes cannot replicate the complexity of flavor provided by open flames. This commitment has come at a high physical cost, as decades of exposure to the intense heat and the specific smoke of carbonizing charcoal have resulted in chronic injury to his eyes. Despite these hardships, he continues to personally manage every stage of the process alongside his wife, Su Bi-yun (蘇碧雲). Su is an expert in her own right, having served as a professional tea competition judge for the Lugu Farmers' Association (鹿谷鄉農會) for 20 years. Her sensory expertise provides a critical counterbalance to Liu’s technical management of the fire, allowing them to produce teas with a profound "throat rhyme" (喉韻) that has made them famous internationally.
Longan Wood Charcoal
The technical foundation of Liu’s superior tea lies in his specific choice of longan (龍眼) wood charcoal as a fuel source. Scientific research conducted by the Tea and Beverage Crop Research and Extension Station (茶及飲料作物改良場) confirms that longan charcoal is uniquely suited for roasting oolong because it is dense and burns at a very stable, consistent temperature. Crucially, as the longan charcoal reaches a state of stable carbonization, it emits far-infrared radiation in a precise wavelength range. This range is critical because it matches the absorption spectrum of the organic compounds and water molecules within the Camellia sinensis leaf. Unlike electric convection, which uses hot air to dry the leaf from the outside in, far-infrared radiation penetrates directly to the core of the tea. This ensures that internal moisture is drawn out evenly, preventing the defect of "trapped green" where a leaf becomes bitter and sour because the interior remained raw while the exterior was scorched.
The physical environment of Liu’s roasting room is centered around specialized charcoal pits where he employs a traditional technique known as ash covering (蓋灰). Once the longan charcoal is lit and burning with a steady red glow, Liu covers the coals with a thick layer of white wood ash. By manually adjusting the thickness of this ash layer, he can control the amount of radiation reaching the bamboo baskets and maintain a steady "slow-fire" (慢火) for days on end. Liu’s guiding philosophy is to "look at the tea to roast the tea" (看茶焙茶), meaning he does not follow a fixed schedule but instead monitors the color, aroma, and brittleness of the leaves to determine when they require more or less heat. A standard batch of his oolong can take over 200 hours to complete, while his most prestigious aged varieties are subjected to cycles of over 500 hours at a constant temperature of approximately 100 degrees Celsius.
Under the influence of this intense but controlled heat, the chemical structure of the tea leaf undergoes the Maillard reaction (梅納反應) and caramelization (焦糖化反應). The Maillard reaction is a complex chemical interaction between reducing sugars and amino acids that results in the development of nutty, malty, and savory flavor notes. Meanwhile, caramelization breaks down the internal sugars into compounds that provide a deep amber liquor color and a scent of honeyed fruit. These chemical transformations also serve to reduce the levels of caffeine and polyphenols, creating a texture that Liu refers to as "water-soft" (水軟). This describes a tea liquor that feels viscous and smooth on the palate, stimulating immediate saliva production and leaving a lasting sweetness in the throat. Master Liu explains that only through this long-term exposure to the fire can the "original flavor" of the Lugu (鹿谷) tradition be truly realized.
The history of the Lugu (鹿谷) region is deeply intertwined with the development of "Shi Tea" (蒔茶), a variety that Liu continues to preserve. In the late 18th century, early settlers like the Su family arrived in Lugu (鹿谷) and began cultivating tea bushes grown from seeds (實生苗) rather than from clonal cuttings. These seed-grown plants are known as "Shi Tea" (蒔茶), and they were traditionally favored for their resilience and deep root systems. Liu’s earliest memories of tea involve harvesting these bushes with his grandfather, though the variety largely disappeared as modern farmers switched to clonal cultivars like Qingxin Oolong (青心烏龍) for higher yields. However, in the year of the 921 Earthquake (九二一大地震) in 1999, Liu had the opportunity to acquire a batch of raw "Shi Tea" (蒔茶) from a century-old garden. He has since re-roasted and aged this tea annually, transforming what was once a bitter "harvesting tea" (刈稻仔茶) into a rare and sought-after "Aged Shi Tea" (陳年蒔茶) noted for its extreme durability and layered fruit fragrance.
International Fame and Tea Competitions
Liu’s success has not been limited to the domestic market, as he was a pioneer in exporting heavy-roast Taiwanese tea to the world. He was the first tea farmer from Taiwan to successfully establish a direct export market in Russia, a country that has historically appreciated the warming, robust qualities of charcoal-roasted teas. His reputation for artisanal excellence has also attracted significant interest from buyers and collectors in Germany, Iran, Japan, and the United States. In the contemporary market, his products are viewed as high-value collectible assets. For instance, his 37-year-old aged oolong has been valued at 150,000 NTD per catty, while his 50-year-old aged charcoal-roasted tea (陳年炭焙老茶) is priced at 180,000 NTD per catty. These high prices are a direct reflection of the decades of careful storage and the repetitive manual roasting cycles required to ensure the tea remains stable and continues to improve with age.
To educate the public on the complexities of his craft, Master Liu often uses an academic metaphor to classify tea drinkers into different levels of appreciation. He considers those who prefer "raw" or light-roast teas to be at an elementary or middle school level, as these teas provide immediate floral gratification but lack the depth found in processed leaves. Those who enjoy medium to heavy-roast oolongs are viewed as having reached a high school or university level. Finally, connoisseurs who seek out decades-old, charcoal-roasted aged teas are considered to be at a doctoral level, capable of discerning the subtle mineral notes and the "rhyme" (韻) of the fire. Liu’s commitment to innovation is also seen in products like "Tea Salt" (茶鹹), which he introduced in 2011 to showcase the concentrated mineral essence of heavily roasted tea leaves, though he keeps the specific manufacturing details of this product a closely guarded secret.
Future Prospects
The continuity of the Chyuan-Yi (全一) lineage was recently affirmed during the 2025 Lugu Spring Competition (鹿谷鄉農會春茶評鑑), an event often called the "Oscars of the Tea World" due to its intense competition and over 4,400 entries. Liu Ru-chuan (劉如玔), a fourth-generation tea farmer born in the 48th year of the Republic (四年八班), won the prestigious Grand Champion (特等獎) award. This victory was the culmination of 40 years of work and represented the highest honor in the industry. The champion tea was praised by judges for its golden, bright liquor, its intense aroma of fruit and fermentation, and its incredibly smooth, mellow (甘醇) taste. This win demonstrates that the rigorous standards of tea garden management and artisanal roasting fire maintained by the Liu family continue to set the benchmark for quality in Taiwan.
The work of Master Liu Chung-sen at the Chyuan-Yi Tea Studio represents the survival of a nearly lost artisanal tradition. By refusing the shortcuts offered by modern technology and continuing to manage the longan charcoal pits by hand, Liu has ensured that the cultural heritage of Lugu remains a living reality. His teas provide a unique sensory link to the history of Taiwan, capturing the terroir of Dongding Mountain and the thermodynamic mastery of a lifetime of labor. As global interest in authentic, high-provenance products continues to grow, Liu’s charcoal-roasted and aged oolongs stand as a definitive testament to the beauty of the "original flavor" and the enduring value of human intuition over the machine.
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