"Chi Tsai Liu Li Ecological Farm", at 1,200m above sea level, is located in Tapangu of Alishan Township in Chiayi County. While "Chi Tsai" stands for rainbow; "Liu Li" (colored glaze) is a metaphor for the glitter of jewels. There are about 300 coffee trees in the farm. According to Chuang Chia-Jung, the owner, in order to maintain the primitive ecology of this area, coffee of the farm is under-produced. In the old days, he grew bamboo shoots and ficus pumila in the farm. Due to climate change, bamboo shoots became ill and the production of ficus pumila fell as well. Chuang wanted to increase the income of the farm. That was why coffee cultivation began, accordingly.
Regarding coffee processing, natural green beans have a scent of strawberry, grape, and dried dragon-eyed fruit, while washed ones smell like peach, plum, baozhong tea, nuts and fermented aroma. “These are quite special features of my farm”, said Chuang. To be honest, coffee cultivation is not an easy task to him. Due to shorter sunlight duration and lower temperatures, this farm does not have a wonderful environment for coffee to grow. Consequently, it takes him much more time and effort to take care of his coffee trees. In the early days, only Typica was cultivated in the farm; SL-34, Geisha, and purple-leaf mutations cultivation began later. Chuang utilized grafting and genetic testing to search for good varieties since last year. He wished to improve coffee quality in a more efficient manner, and to win magnificent results in coffee competitions.
This year, it is the first time that "Chi Tsai Liu Li Ecological Farm" participates in the PCA competition. Chuang would like to take this opportunity to increase its recognition in the international market. He himself is a coffee drinker, so coffee cultivation is more than just a job to him. He enjoys doing research while processing coffee and exploring changes in coffee flavor made by processing. A few years ago, when the insect damage was severe, he lost more than 100 trees all at once. He almost wanted to give up coffee cultivation at that moment. Fortunately, with the encouragement of his wife, he overcame all the difficulties and held on to his dream till now. Currently, his greatest hope is to take good care of each tree, sell all the green beans, and solve the labor shortage issue. After that, he expects to increase production furthermore in the next step.
