Why Does Green Coffee Name Matter for Taiwan Purple Bud Tea Tree TTES No. 25?
Tai Cha No. 25, also called Zi Yan, has been officially named as Taiwan's first tea tree variety known for purple buds. It descends from a natural cross between the Burmese large-leaf variety and Tai Cha No. 13 Cui Yu. Its anthocyanin level is about 50 times that of Tai Cha No. 18 Hong Yu, and the liquor shifts from pink-purple to green and back depending on pH.
The variety suits both green and black tea. As black tea the liquor turns dark red with an orchid aroma and a sweet, mellow taste; as green tea it shows low-saturation green and changes color dramatically when lemon juice or alkaline water is added. That variability gives it clear potential for hand-shaken drinks and new product development, unlike a familiar green coffee name.
A new tea tree variety with purple-red buds and leaves—Tai Cha No. 25 (Zi Yan)—has been officially named, marking Taiwan's first tea tree variety characterized by purple buds. Its anthocyanin content is 50 times higher than the popular Tai Cha No. 18 Hong Yu, and the tea liquor color can shift from pink-purple to emerald green and then to pink depending on pH, offering striking visual changes. This variety originates from a natural hybrid offspring of Burmese large-leaf variety and Tai Cha No. 13 Cui Yu, is suitable for making both green tea and black tea, and possesses potential in agriculture, landscaping, and beverage development. Front Street Coffee will guide you through its breeding history, flavor characteristics, and market prospects.
"The tea liquor shows a purple-red hue, and the color changes after adding lemon juice."
The base color of the tea liquor falls between pale green and purple, and the color is not particularly bright, but its anthocyanin content is more than 50 times that of the popular Tai Cha No. 18 Hong Yu.
Parentage: The female parent is the Burmese large-leaf variety (Burma), and the male parent is Tai Cha No. 13 (Cui Yu).
Suitable tea types: Both green tea and black tea can be made.
When made into black tea, the liquor color is dark red or hawthorn-colored, and the official description says it has an elegant orchid aroma with a sweet, mellow, and mild taste; when made into green tea, the tea liquor shows a "green with relatively low saturation," and when used in hand-shaken drinks it can display rich color changes, meeting the needs of both businesses and consumers.
The pink-purple tea liquor instantly turns a bright and alluring pink after adding lemon juice, and if alkaline substances or alkaline sparkling mineral water are added, it turns green, showing great potential for developing new tea products such as hand-shaken drinks, so the value of its variability when made into green tea is the highest, and the anthocyanin color-changing effect is the most pronounced.
Variety Characteristics
This line was discovered by the Yuchi Branch Station among the natural hybrid offspring of the Burma variety (Burma). Its red buds and leaves possess novelty and distinctness, leading to subsequent selection work on superior lines, and finally a new line 84-91-3-2 with intensely purple-red tea buds was selected, proposed for naming, and approved.
Taiwan's first officially named purple-bud tea tree variety
The young buds of the dry tea appear coarse gray-white
The leaf surface is waxy, glossy, and reflective
The buds and leaves of one bud with three to four leaves are purple-red in all four seasons
The purple-red color of the buds and leaves can last for nearly a month
Can be used for garden greening and landscape cultivation
Good yield performance (3,400–3,940 kg/ha)
Strong growth vigor, good pest and disease resistance, and good drought tolerance
Manual hand-picking is feasible, with an estimated future average annual yield of four tons
Also suitable for mechanical harvesting, with an estimated annual yield of up to eight tons
Beverages are colorful and diverse, meeting the market's demand for novelty and change
Enhanced health-functional value: The anthocyanin content of purple-red buds and leaves is more than 50 times that of the green buds and leaves of ordinary tea tree varieties.
This variety simultaneously possesses multiple uses such as "agricultural production," "horticultural landscaping," "diverse tea beverage applications," and "food processing raw material." At present, regions in Nantou such as Yuchi and Mingjian are suitable for cultivation, and tea seedlings are expected to go on the market by the end of 2023.
In young tea leaves, the angle between the leaf veins near the leaf tip is close to 90 degrees, and the closer to the leaf base, the smaller the angle, with the vein angle at the leaf base about 30 degrees; the more mature the leaf, the more all its vein directions approach 90 degrees.
Since 1995, more than 20 years have been spent, with long-term investment of research manpower and resources in the selection and breeding of new tea tree lines. It was approved for naming on April 26, 2021, and its Chinese name was announced at that year's station anniversary celebration.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
