The "pearls" of pearl milk tea are actually " powder balls ". The main ingredient is starch, usually made of starch powder. There are also sweet potato powder , potato powder, etc. or jelly with a diameter of 5 to 10 mm. Starch balls are added with water, sugar and spices. Their color and taste vary depending on the ingredients. So its original name is Fengyuan Milk Tea.
Then why is it also called "Boba Milk Tea"? This was first called by a beverage vendor in Tainan City in 1988. Because the "Boba actress" Ye Zimei was very popular at the time, he called the big pink round Boba and the small pink round Pearl.
In fact, pearl milk tea is a branch of Taiwan’s “bubble black tea culture”. In Taiwan, the bubble tea shop has a long history.
Before coffee shops became popular in Taiwan, bubble tea shops were a favorite gathering place for office workers and students. In the late 1980s, bubble milk tea began to appear on the menus of bubble tea shops, and it became more and more popular among students. Then, bubble milk tea vendors gradually appeared near schools, areas with dense cram schools, and night markets.
In the late 1990s, it was possible that the invention of the "automatic sealing machine" replaced the traditional cup lid, making it more convenient to take out, and many chain beverage stores began to sprout, such as Leli Cup, Leisure Station, Dalian, and Kuaishou. But wait, since then, take-out bubble milk tea shops have become mainstream, and because of the participation of chain stores, businessmen have begun to expand bubble milk tea to the world, becoming one of Taiwan's internationally renowned beverages.
So, who invented "Powder Round Milk Tea"? There are two shops in Taiwan that claim to be the inventor of bubble milk tea, one is Chun Shui Tang in Taichung City , and the other is Hanlin Tea House in Tainan City.
It is said that an employee of Chun Shui Tang invented the first cup of pearl milk tea by merging and blending powdered balls with iced milk tea and lemon black tea in 1987. The ingredients added at that time were fruits, syrup, candied sweet potatoes and rice balls. Bubble milk tea was not popular when it was first launched, but by chance, it finally attracted attention after being interviewed by a Japanese TV program. In addition, Chun Shui Tang also claimed that they invented bubble black tea in 1983.
Another theory is that the "owner of Hanlin Tea House" was inspired by the white powder balls in 1986 and mixed them with milk tea. It was named because the white powder balls were crystal clear like pearls. Later, the powder balls were added with brown sugar and the name was changed to Black is the current appearance; now you can still buy black and white pearl tea in stores.
In order to argue about who invented bubble milk tea, Chun Shui Tang and Hanlin Teahouse had a lawsuit. However, because neither of these two stores had applied for a patent or trademark, bubble milk tea became the most representative national drink in Taiwan. . In the closing ceremony of the 2009 "Summer Deaflympics", Zhen milk also became the "designated specialty tea drink"! Just like Coca-Cola is also the designated drink of the Olympic Games.
