9 Zou Zhou Yuan BOT 2023

Located at 1300 meters above the sea in Alishan of Chiayi County, the 5-ha Zou Zhou Yuan is perhaps the most famous of all Taiwanese coffee farms. Owner Cheng-Lun Fang, often nicknamed “the coffee prince of Taiwan,” comes from a family of tea and moth orchid farmers and is a member of the Aboriginal Zou Tribe. According to him, the economic value of coffee is much lower than that of tea and moth orchids. However, he found self-confidence in the process of growing coffee, his success having brought him an incredible sense of personal accomplishment when he returned to his family farm after spending years in Taipei.
Fang grows many varieties of coffee seedlings in his nursery. Since it takes a huge amount of research and DNA analysis to explore the linkage between varieties and their distinct flavors in the cup, not mention external factors like appropriate field management, processing, and local terroir, Fang spends much of his time cupping his coffees by individual trees. This way, every single coffee tree planted in his farm is a result of careful sensory analysis. He believes if Taiwan cannot compete with other coffee origins in quantity, then we shall excel in quality.