Tainan Drink Shop RecommendationsWhich Local Brand Has the Best Taste? A Review of 7 Unique Tainan Hand-Shaken Drink Venues

I initially thought TUGU was just another trendy Instagram spot, but my opinion completely changed after trying it. The "flower-infused sugar" is a standout feature, allowing you to choose the scent of your sugar! The five options—osmanthus, jasmine, rose, longan, and amber—are like perfumes, each with its own distinct personality, adding a ritualistic element to the ordering process.

Hermione ordered the Sun Moon Lake Red Rhyme Black Tea with Osmanthus-infused sugar and Jade Pearls, as well as the Sun Moon Lake Red Rhyme Milk Tea with Hundred Flower Oolong Jelly. The tea base was solid, with a clear Red Rhyme aroma that blended perfectly with the flower-infused sugar. The sugar's fragrance wasn't cloying; for example, the longan infusion had a subtle honey-like note, and the "light sugar" option was just right for someone who usually drinks unsweetened beverages.

The Jade Pearls had a good chewiness and a unique lingering aroma, though whether you like it is a matter of personal taste—some of my friends weren't fond of it, and the overall texture was a bit ordinary. Also, the pearls themselves are already sweet, so if you don't like things too sweet, remember to factor that into your sugar level choice!

Overall, this Tainan Beverage Venue offers outstanding creativity and quality, making it a place I'd definitely revisit. The minor drawbacks are the smaller drink size (the small is 500ml) and slightly higher prices, plus they only accept cash, so remember to be prepared. But for a bubble tea you can "smell," it's truly worth the price.

This time, Hermione ordered the Old Tree Malted Tea and Uva Milk Tea. The Old Tree Malted Tea here has a rich malty flavor, like walking into a wheat field. Its refreshing taste carries a strong, wholesome vibe, perfect for those who enjoy natural flavors. Unlike typical black teas, the prominent malt aroma offers a fresh, natural essence.

The Uva Milk Tea is another popular beverage. It uses Uva tea from Sri Lanka as its base, sourced from the highlands on the eastern side of the central mountains. This tea boasts a unique, rich aroma with a hint of spice, and its pairing with fresh milk achieves a perfect balance. The fresh milk used here is from Freshland, known for its rich flavor that complements the tea's notes beautifully. Even with just a touch of sugar, the creamy richness of the milk tea is astonishing, making it incredibly satisfying sip after sip.

Although the venue is small and lacks air conditioning, its clean environment and young, friendly staff create a welcoming local atmosphere from the moment you step inside. If you're looking for a beverage with robust tea flavor, authentic milk richness, and a reasonable price, this Tainan Beverage Venue is an absolute must-visit.

60+ Tea Shop stands out for its champion teas, which blend traditional tea culture with modern creativity to deliver an entirely new beverage experience. This time, Hermione ordered two drinks: Ruby Black Tea with Amber Tea Jelly, and Ruby Milk Tea. The black tea is rich and robust without any bitterness. Paired with the amber tea jelly, each sip offers a smooth, lingering aftertaste. Whether you choose sweetened or unsweetened, you'll enjoy a harmonious, concentrated tea flavor that's never overly sweet or lacking in its original aroma.

In addition, the venue specializes in oolong tea bases, ranging from the light and refreshing Snow Oolong and Golden Oolong to the rich, roasted Fire Oolong — each one unforgettable. The unsweetened oolong teas, in particular, are wonderfully aromatic and easy to drink, perfectly showcasing the natural flavor of the leaves. The venue also offers creative toppings, incorporating tea-based elements like tea pearls and tea jellies to add unique textural layers to every drink.

Beyond that, 60+ Tea Shop's champion teas successfully reinterpret traditional tea culture in a trendy way. Whether you're a tea connoisseur or a newcomer, this venue offers a unique tea journey. Each cup will help you rediscover the allure of tea.

Hermione ordered the Osmanthus Oolong and Jinxuan Tea, and the staff recommended the ideal ice and sugar levels. The Osmanthus Oolong is known for its elegant and rich profile: the tea has a delicate fragrance that subtly captures the osmanthus's light aroma, perfectly blending with the robust character of the oolong tea itself. As you drink, the osmanthus fragrance weaves through your palate, creating a comfortable, relaxing experience, with a rich, lingering aftertaste that makes it ideal for those who appreciate a balance of floral and tea notes.

The Jinxuan Tea stands out for its high-mountain quality, using杉林溪 high-mountain Jinxuan. Its biggest highlight is the natural, understated creamy or milky aroma it emits, which is never the overpowering scent of artificial flavoring. This tea is best enjoyed unsweetened, with a smooth, silky texture and a satisfying, rich mouthfeel that offers complex layers and a delightful finish.

Beyond the quality of the tea itself, Hermione's favorite feature is the venue's "tea ice cubes." This clever innovation perfectly solves the common problem of traditional hand-shaken beverages becoming diluted as ice melts. The venue makes ice cubes from the same tea ordered by the customer, ensuring that the drink maintains a consistent, rich tea aroma and flavor concentration from start to finish, allowing the lingering aftertaste to persist.

The tea ice cubes are not only uniquely shaped but also provide a longer-lasting chilling effect, so even when taking your drink to go in hot Tainan, you can enjoy excellent tea with undiminished flavor. A final reminder: choosing "no ice" means the drink will not include tea ice cubes.

Xiaode Yinman offers a fresh, minimalist vibe, with bright, comfortable interiors and strong air conditioning that provides instant relief on a hot day. The staff are friendly and proactive, introducing the unique characteristics of each tea, which really conveys the brand's dedication.

Hermione ordered the Youyou Honey Red and the Xihong Milk Tea. Overall, the tea flavor was quite robust, and the unsweetened tea had a noticeable sweet aftertaste, though it finished with a slight bitterness that was a definite drawback and generally disliked by my companions. The Xihong Milk Tea, however, featured a delicate foam layer topped with nuts, creating a more complex texture than expected. I initially thought it was whipped cream, but the staff explained it was a foam made from tea and fresh milk, which was impressive and added a novel touch to the mouthfeel.

Prices are within the typical market range, and considering the overall ambiance and creative tea offerings, this is a good value Tainan Beverage Venue. If you enjoy strong tea flavors and varied textures in your drinks, Xiaode Yinman is a worthwhile choice.

At Shangyuantang, you truly feel the venue's commitment to "natural" and "traditional" methods. This time, Hermione ordered the Four Seasons Green Tea and the signature Guanxi Grass Jelly Tea.

First, their pure tea series, like the Four Seasons Green Tea, is sold "iced" without added ice cubes, ensuring the pure flavor of the tea. The unsweetened Four Seasons Green Tea is refreshingly light and elegant, with no astringency and an incredibly smooth finish. It allows the tea leaves' gentle notes to fully unfold, making it a surprisingly delightful and guilt-free tea.

The Guanxi Grass Jelly Tea, a true gem of the venue, embodies the value of tradition. This herbal tea is made from high-quality dried Guanxi grass jelly, slow-brewed for an extended period. It boasts a rich flavor with a subtle bittersweet note and an intense grass jelly aroma, offering a warm and comforting mouthfeel that is distinctly different from other grass jelly teas on the market.

Beyond the beverages, Hermione found the decor of this Tainan Beverage Venues to be a major highlight. The interior is elegantly and tastefully designed, perfectly blending vintage furniture with exquisite decorations to create a surprisingly sophisticated ambiance—it's hard to believe it's just a beverage venue. Even more uniquely, Shangyuantang features high-quality audio equipment, often playing charming oldies or jazz, creating an immersive and relaxing space for customers.

This time, Hermione visited Aoyama Tea House. Their signature Amber series was sold out, but while waiting in line, the venue offered a sample of their Dreamer Fresh Milk Tea, which she found quite good. She ended up ordering the Dreamer Fresh Milk Tea and the Honey Scented Red Oolong.

The Dreamer Fresh Milk Tea is a classic example of an old tea house's milk tea, using a high-quality black tea base. The tea aroma is rich, and with fresh milk, the texture is mellow and smooth. Although the sweetness is mostly fixed (using handmade brown sugar syrup), the sweetness is fragrant and not cloying.

In contrast, the Honey Scented Red Oolong showcases the tea house's depth in tea leaves. The biggest feature of this tea is its natural honey aroma. The tea is smooth and not astringent, with a fresh and unique flavor and rich layers. Hermione ordered it unsweetened, and after drinking the fresh milk tea, she felt that a slight sweetness would better bring out the lingering aftertaste of the tea. On her next visit, she would lean towards ordering one-quarter or a touch of sugar.

Whether choosing the unsweetened version of the pure tea to savor the natural sweetness of the tea base itself, or pairing it with fresh milk to make a milk tea, Hermione highly recommends this Tainan Beverage Venue. Even without trying the signature series, these were "spot-on" specialty teas.