Choui Fong

Traditionally, Thailand did not have a tea culture of its own, but with the fortunate combination of Chinese migrants' skills, imported Taiwanese expertise, and the perfect tea growing territory, many excellent teas are now being produced in northern Thailand. After Mao Tse Tung established the communist state in China in 1949, the defeated nationalist army fled into Mynamar, before moving on to Chiang Rai, bringing their tea making knowledge with them. With daily temperatures of 25°C and misty cool nights, this proved to be the perfect tea growing climate. Chiang Rai sits in the "Golden Triangle", well known for its lucrative opium growing industry. Specialist tea masters and tea bushes from Alishan, a famous oolong growing area, were brought over from Taiwan in the 1980s by the Thai king as a way of encouraging a diversion away from opium crops, and to enable an upgrade of tea production. The result of all these factors is the excellent Choui Fong tea, made in the Chinese style, with a distinct smooth oolong flavour.