Between Cinnamon and Mint: The Journey of the Taiwanese Cultivar Hong Yu 紅玉

Between Cinnamon and Mint: The Journey of the Taiwanese Cultivar Hong Yu 紅玉

When a new chapter of Taiwanese red tea began to be written in the 1990s, a name appeared that today is known across the tea world: Hong Yu 紅玉, officially Taiwan Tea Cultivar #18 – 台茶18號. A cultivar created at the research station in Yuchi 魚池, it carries a special charm. It’s not a tea plant that tries to blend in — on the contrary, it can be so distinctive that you could never mistake it for anything else.

Its parents?
On one side, the Taiwanese wild mountain tea; on the other, a Burmese large-leaf lineage. A fusion of gentle wildness and robust sweetness. Together they created a tea tree that smells of cinnamon, mint, and air that carries both the warmth of the sun and the cool of the forest.


If you take a walk among the tea gardens of Yuchi, it becomes easy to understand why Hong Yu found its home there. The hills around Sun Moon Lake 日月潭 feel calm, almost meditative. After 1999, when the cultivar entered the market, the region began to transform. Old betel nut plantations disappeared and were replaced by new rows of young tea bushes. And around 2010, it was clear: Hong Yu had become the voice of this landscape. Nearly every grower dedicated part of their gardens to it, and the red tea “Sun Moon Lake Red Jade” became a symbol of Taiwan — not a marketing slogan, but the true handwriting of the land.

Hong Yu is not a tea that tries to please.
It has its own character, and you either embrace it — or you don’t.


Its flavour is dense but not heavy. Sweet but not intrusive. And that gentle combination of cinnamon (肉桂 ròuguì) and mint (薄荷 bòhé) can be surprisingly expressive — as though the tea had its own breath. It is no wonder that it has become the most cultivated cultivar around Sun Moon Lake. Estimates speak of more than 70% of total production, which is extraordinary for a single cultivar.

The Rhythm of the Harvests

Hong Yu is harvested from spring to autumn, easily even six times a year. Each season gives it a different face:

  • June–September: the most expressive period. The tea is dense, deep, and full — perfect for competitions and premium editions.

  • Spring and autumn: more sweetness, more softness. In these months, Hong Yu is also ideal for other processing styles beyond black tea.

Experienced buyers usually wait for the June and July harvests. They tend to be the most balanced for everyday drinking.



Although most people associate TTES #18 with black tea, Hong Yu is actually very flexible.
Handled with care, it can adapt to many styles without losing its unmistakable signature.

Hong Yu as Black Tea – Its Most Famous Form

This is where Hong Yu is at home.
Here its full strength unfolds:
deep sweetness, warming cinnamon, cool mint, and a long aftertaste reminiscent of tropical wood and summer after rain.

Black tea made from Hong Yu is like a voice you hear once and never forget.

Hong Yu as White Tea – Subtlety with Underlying Energy

When Hong Yu is processed as white tea, an entirely different side of its character appears.
It surprises with lightness, fresh sweetness, and a gentle spiciness rarely found in white teas.
Spring and autumn harvests are ideal for this style — and modern Taiwanese producers are increasingly fond of it.


Hong Yu as Green Tea – Rare but Fascinating

Green tea from TTES 18 is rare.
It appears only occasionally, mostly from small gardens where growers want to “experiment”. The result tends to be:

  • clean, bright,

  • with a light minty freshness,

  • without any roughness or bitterness.

Green Hong Yu is like opening a window on a cold morning — straightforward but uplifting.

Hong Yu as Oolong – A New Direction

As an oolong, it feels comfortable whether lightly or more heavily oxidised.

Lightly oxidised oolong:
clean, floral, fresh, with a subtle line of spice.

Medium oxidised oolong:
round, with notes of dried fruit, elegantly layered.

Heavily oxidised oolong:
somewhere on the border between oolong and black tea; deep, woody, warming.

Looking back, it is fascinating how a single cultivar managed to transform the entire Taiwanese landscape. Hong Yu is not merely material for tea; it is the story of a place, its people, its climate, and a tradition unafraid of modern paths. Whether processed as black, white, green, or oolong, it always retains its characteristic “heart” — a lightly spiced, gently cooling, soothing signature that defines it.

Hong Yu is simply a tea that breathes the landscape from which it comes.

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