Pearl milk tea is a national drink that has taken the world by storm. Although different stories are told about the origin of pearl milk tea, two of them stand out. The first comes from a tea house in Taichung named Chun Shui Tang. A staff member there named Lin Hsiu-hui was at a local market when she noticed tapioca balls (also known as “pearls”) for sale and thought to add them to her milk tea. She liked the taste, as did her colleagues with whom she shared her new drink. It started as a drink that was only shared with friends, but was so popular that it became a product – pearl milk tea.
珍珠奶茶是紅透全世界的國民飲品，其由來起源可說是眾說紛紜，最為人知的是兩間茶館之爭。台中的茶館春水堂，宣稱是店員林秀慧在菜市場採買時看到粉圓，靈機一動將粉圓煮熟後加在奶茶中，廣受同事間的好評。起初只是與好友分享的私房茶飲，後來因大受歡迎而成為商品。
national drink (n. phr.) 國民飲品
Photo: Pixabay l 圖片:Pixabay
tea house (n. phr.) 茶館
tapioca balls (n. phr.) 粉圓
The second origin story comes from another tea house in Tainan. The Hanlin Tea Room there claims that pearl milk tea was created by its owner Tu Tsong-ho, who saw a vendor selling white tapioca balls at the Yamuliao market. He came up with the idea of combining the tapioca balls with tea, leading to the first cup of bubble tea. The Hanlin Tea Room uses black and white tapioca balls (“pearls”) as its signature touch.
台南翰林茶館則說是由老闆涂宗和所創，涂老闆在逛鴨母寮市場時，看到有攤販販售白色粉圓，晶瑩剔透，想到到可以結合在茶飲中，於是第一杯珍珠奶茶就此誕生，翰林茶館也以黑、白雙色的珍珠為招牌。
vendor (n.) 攤販
Although the “pearls” in today’s pearl milk tea differ from those tapioca balls in the origin stories of the two tea houses, both are made from tapioca starch. The original tapioca balls are usually translucent on the outside and white inside, and often added as a topping to shaved ice. The tapioca balls used today are larger and black, like smooth round black pearls, giving bubble tea its well-deserved name.
雖然現今的珍珠奶茶的「珍珠」與粉圓外觀已有不同，但都是以木薯澱粉做成的。粉圓煮熟後有些透明，裡面為白色，時常加在剉冰中當作配料。相較於粉圓，現在珍珠奶茶中的「珍珠」更大更黑，有如一顆顆圓潤的黑珍珠，因此稱為珍珠奶茶，可說是名副其實。
Milk tea’s appeal today is already astonishing, and the addictive texture of the pearls makes the drinks irresistible to Taiwanese and foreigners alike. It is hard to imagine that this popular drink originated from tea houses that often have an impression of quiet and calm. Its popularity has led to the flourishing of Taiwan’s beverage industry, with an annual consumption of 1 billion cups. Nowadays pearl milk tea has become popular in Asia and has now expanded to other markets in Australia, Europe and the United States, with many brands competing for the market.
奶茶本身就已魅力驚人，再加上珍珠粉圓令人上癮的口感，不只台灣人喜愛，外國人也無法抵擋它的魅力。珍珠奶茶是如此受到歡迎，令人難以想像它原本是從靜謐的茶館中誕生。珍珠奶茶的風行使得台灣飲品業蓬勃發展，甚至達到年銷10 億杯的驚人數字。現在，這種飲料不但風靡亞洲，也進軍澳洲和歐美競爭飲料市場。
addictive (adj.) 上癮的
flourishing (adj.) 興旺的; 繁榮的
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