From its bustling cities to its stunning natural landscapes, Taiwan offers something for everyone. Immerse yourself in the heart of the island with its thriving coffee and chocolate producers, innovative craft beer and cocktail makers, vibrant art scene, rich indigenous and Hakka cultures, and the historic charm of Taipei’s Dadaocheng District.
Each of these routes is a unique and immersive way to explore Taiwan’s multifaceted charm and vibrant spirit. Our first of five articles will cover Taiwan’s local coffee and chocolate. Watch the video below to see Interview with these creators!
Taiwanese coffee culture
While Taiwan is world-famous for its high-quality tea, it has also seen a huge rise in coffee culture, with local farmers growing high-quality beans in the island’s unique climate. Coffee has been grown since the 19th century in Taiwan’s high mountain range – with peaks exceeding 3,000 meters – that runs along the island.
Today, Taiwanese coffee is grown by just over 400 artisanal farmers on small farms across the country, so their beans are rarely found outside of Taiwan. Many farmers roast their own coffee and run small coffee shops to generate revenue. This means that the best way to enjoy Taiwanese coffee is to visit the boutique coffee shops that are scattered throughout the island or on farms high in the mountains.
The flavor of Taiwanese coffee beans is different from the usual blends you are used to, as most tend to have a fruity aroma and flavor. The preferred method of serving coffee is the pour-over method, which results in a fresher, cleaner, and more delicate flavor.
Coffee is produced mainly in four counties—Tainan, Alishan, Pingtung and Yunlin—with each region producing slightly different flavours. The harvest season runs from November to May. The largest coffee-producing region is Yunlin, home to high mountains and volcanic soil that produce coffee with nutty flavours and low acidity. The wooded Pingtung Mountains and the high Alishan Mountains are also popular places to sample coffee, but most visitors tend to head to the foothills of Tainan near the hot spring town of Guanziling.
Coffee Road
The famous Dongshan 175 Coffee Road in Tainan County is one of the most authentic places to experience Taiwan’s local coffee culture. This famous winding mountain road is lined with coffee plantations and rustic cafes where you can sip a cup of coffee while enjoying the stunning mountain views. Some of the cafes, such as Dazhou CoffeeThey offer coffee farm tours where you can see the entire process from farm to cup, and then enjoy some fresh coffee afterwards.
The founder of Dazhou Coffee Shop, Mr. Gu, has been producing coffee for more than 30 years, having taken over a plot of land that used to grow coffee a century ago. Today, his coffee shop, perched 700 meters up in the Dongshan Mountains, is a popular spot to enjoy a cup of coffee and a meal – and play with cats – while taking in the endless mountain views. On a clear day, you can see all the way to Kaohsiung in the south and even Pinghu Island just off the coast!
If you’re lucky, you can even ask Mr. Joe to take you on a tour of his coffee plantation up on the hill. His plantation grows five types of Arabica coffee, and here you can learn to differentiate between washed, sun-dried, honey-cured and other types of coffee.
If you can’t make it to the mountains, you can still enjoy Taiwanese coffee at various cafes across the island. In addition to Taiwanese coffee chains like Louisa, 85°C or Cama Café, there are nostalgic coffee shops as well as trendy cafes like Simple Kaffa where you can enjoy Taiwan’s vibrant coffee scene.
Pingtung: Chocolate County
Nestled among the palm trees and lush subtropical landscape of Pingtung County in southern Taiwan, there is an industry that is captivating consumers with its unique local chocolates. In fact, Pingtung has won 59 awards at the 2023 Asia Pacific Bean to Bar and Craft Chocolate Competition organized by the International Chocolate Awards (ICA)!
What’s even more surprising is that every stage of chocolate production in Taiwan, from cocoa tree planting to processing, takes place within the region, resulting in the shortest production and processing distance in the world. By comparison, cocoa-producing regions such as Africa and South America export raw cocoa for global processing, often resulting in massive deforestation.
Pingtung County is home to many cocoa farmers, many of whom offer tours of their farms (the harvest season lasts all year round) and chocolate production facilities. On the farm tours, you’ll have the chance to see the cocoa trees, and even taste the fruit of a cocoa pod. Once the cocoa pod is opened, it contains about 20-60 seeds surrounded by white flesh that resembles a mangosteen, with a sweet, tart flavor similar to cream or even custard apple. However, it’s the bitter seeds that actually turn into chocolate.
From betel to chocolate
Taiwan’s cocoa industry is thanks to Chiu Ming-sung, the “Father of Cocoa.” At the age of 70, he has been growing cocoa for nearly two decades after taking over his family’s betel nut farm. Since then, he has helped other farmers in the area by giving them the seedlings he has nurtured. Today, Pingtung County is home to dozens of chocolate brands, with more than 200 hectares dedicated to cocoa farms.
Mr. Chiu produces chocolate under Choose Chios He also runs a restaurant where you can have a meal and sample the chocolate and coffee he grows in his home (coffee beans are also grown on his farm alongside cocoa). Mr. Chiu is also happy to take guests on a tour of his farm, which is attached to the restaurant.
Not far away is another popular chocolate brand, TC ChocoRun by Chiu Chun Yu. Here you can not only visit the cocoa plantation, but also take a look at the factory where they produce small batches of chocolate. While there is no café, the shop offers chocolate tastings, and they also serve chocolate beer and chocolate ice cream.
For Choose Chius and TC Choco, the cocoa beans are sourced not only from their own cocoa farms, but also from nearby farms by contracted farmers.
Pingtung chocolate producers offer a wide variety of varieties; the most common is 100% cocoa chocolate, which allows you to experience the true taste of the beans. For those unfamiliar with pure chocolate, there are versions with 50% to 90% added sugar. Unlike the commercial chocolate you find in supermarkets, Taiwanese chocolate has a unique tart fruity flavour. Some local chocolatiers also add local ingredients to their chocolates – the most common ingredients include Taiwanese tea, flowers or fruits.
If you can't make it to Pingtung County, you can sample some Taiwanese chocolate at specialty chocolate shops in Taipei. One such shop is Coffee In the city's trendy Dadaocheng area, which specializes in chocolates mixed with Taiwanese tea (such as Alishan Oolong, Tieguanyin, Oriental Beauty, etc.) and coffee (such as Alishan Geisha).
