Shanshang has another hidden gem, 山上還有另外一塊隱藏的塊寶

and that's its brown sugar. 那就是它的黑糖

To make sugar, you need sugarcanes. 要做糖 你需要甘蔗

Right now we are inside a rare sugarcane plantation. 我們現在在一座少見的甘蔗園裡

Sugarcane plantations used to be quite common in Taiwan, 以往甘蔗園在台灣很常見

but now it's a very rare sight. 但現在已經很稀有了

So let's go inside and see what it has to offer. 我們進去看看有什麼吧

One thing people don't realize about sugarcanes 關於甘蔗 有件事大家可能沒察覺

is how tall they actually are. 那就是它們到底有多高

It's incredible. 真的很難相信

It's almost 3 meters. 它快3公尺高

Sugarcane used to be a very, very major cash crop in Taiwan, 過往甘蔗在臺灣是很重要的經濟作物

especially in southern Taiwan. 尤其在南臺灣

Taiwan used to have a very large sugar industry, 臺灣曾有非常大規模的糖業

and to make sugar, you need tons and tons of sugarcanes. 製糖需要極大量的甘蔗

The sugar industry in Taiwan was so large, 以前臺灣糖業的規模之大

in fact, it had its own rail system to transport the sugarcanes. 甚至有專屬的鐵路系統來運輸甘蔗

While the industry has all but disappeared, 雖然這個產業已經消失

places like Shanshang still makes its own sugar. 但一些地區像山上 仍在製糖

Shanshang once had a vibrant sugar-making industry. 山上曾有個活躍的製糖產業

But it's gradually declined along with its sugarcane plantations. 但它跟甘蔗園一樣都逐漸凋零了

A few years ago, a few villagers banded together to recreate the brown sugar made 幾年前 幾位村民聚在一起想再次做出

by their ancestors. 祖先時代的黑糖

After some trials and errors, 經過了一番嘗試

it finally occurred to them, 他們最終發現

that the key to making great brown sugar 做出優質黑糖的關鍵

is not to use any agrochemicals in their sugarcane plantations. 是不在甘蔗園中添加任何農藥與化肥

The government suggested the 「One Town One Product」concept. 那時候政府有建議一鄉一特色

So I decided to make brown sugar. 我就來做黑糖

I thought it'd be our specialty. 想說這就是我們的特色啊

It's been lost for centuries. 這已經失傳幾百年了

It was lost even before the Japanese came. 日本人來就已經失傳了

So I gave it some thought. 所以我就在那邊思考

Thinking about what our ancestors said, and how it was made. 思考我們祖先當時是怎麼說的、怎麼做的

The first batch failed. 第一次做整個失敗了

It was much harder than expected. 沒有我們想像中這麼簡單

My neighbor was busy and gave us some sugarcanes to make sugar. 後來鄰居說沒空 然後把甘蔗給我們做糖

It proved to be successful. 結果做起來都成功

The sugarcanes that were planted by the house 種在家旁邊的甘蔗

had no agrochemicals, 就是都沒放農藥也沒用化學肥料

so, the sugarcanes from that area were all successful (in making brown sugar). 所以那區的甘蔗都做成功

This is it. 就是這了

This is the legendary brown sugar of Shanshang District. 這就是山上區傳奇的黑糖

Let's give it a shot. 我來吃吃看

By the way, 對了

even though it's called brown sugar, 雖然這叫黑糖

it's actually more yellow, 它其實比較偏黃

and that's because they don't have any additional additives in it. 這是因為它沒有多餘的添加物

They don't add chalk. 他們沒添加石灰

I think that was one of the ingredients they used to add to brown sugar. (石灰)好像是製作黑糖的材料之一

But, nowadays, they've refrained from adding that. 但現在他們已經不再添加了

So, it's more yellow than brown. 所以與其說棕色 它比較偏黃

Flavor-wise, it's very unique. 味道則非常特別

It's sweet, because it is sugar, 它是糖 所以當然甜甜的

but it has this additional fragrance. 但它有多一個香氣

It's kind of hard to explain or describe. 有點難解釋或形容

You have to try it yourself to figure out. 你要親自嚐試才知道

But the best way I could put it, 但最好的說法可能是

is that you can in fact, taste the sugarcane in this brown sugar, 這個黑糖裡其實吃得到甘蔗的味道

and I think that's quite unique. 真的很特別

Next time you folks are in Shanshang District, 下次大家有來山上區

be sure to pick up a bag of their awesome brown sugar. 記得帶一包超讚的黑糖回去

I mean, it's not just brown sugar. 它不單單只是黑糖

I see it as a crystallization of all the farmers' hard work. 我覺得它是農人的辛苦結晶

And it's very versatile. 它的用途也很多

You can eat it like candy, 你可以拿來當糖果吃

but you can also put it into you drinks, 但也可以放入飲品內

and you can make deserts out of it. 也可以拿來做甜點