During the early years when the ancestors of the Chiang family first immigrated to Beipu, the very first persimmon tree was planted in the present "Tienshui Hall", as persimmon has become one of the truly indispensable fruit produce of Beipu Township while the owner of this store is indeed a descendant of the Jiang family, who named the store, “Jiang Taigong Persimmon Store”, in the memory of the folklore of the ancestor of the Jiang family, Jiang Ziya, which has the added responsibility to promote Beipu’s dried persimmons.
This legacy responsibility is not just about sustaining the craftsmanship of making dried persimmons, but also about the narrative in articulating the origin of "a persimmon tree", where nine elderly ladies were taking in the local performance while sitting in front of Beipu Temple Street, and telling the tale of the origin of the Jiang family persimmon: " The ancestors of the Jiang family braved the ocean to arrive in Beipu to start a new life, and with them, brought the first persimmon tree, currently planted in the "Tianshuitang", called "Shi persimmon." Later, the tree was branched into different parts of Beipu and became what the well-renowned fruit produces it is today.
Jiang Taigong's persimmon cake starts its production around July and August in the lunar calendar, followed by the production season of Shi persimmon and Niu Xin persimmon from the end of September to the end of November in the lunar calendar, and finally the Bi persimmon season from the end of November in the lunar calendar to the Lantern Festival at the end of the annual Chinese New Year Holiday.
The dried dried persimmons are lighter in weight, hence not conducive to sales, but the production of Jiang Taigong persimmons still follow the traditional technique, as they are unwilling to air-dry to 50-60 % just for the sake of having the product weight increased, but insisting that the persimmons should be completely dried, which is ttime-consuming, and light in weight, but it has a full taste of succulent and sweet, as well as easy to preserve.
Jiang Taigong's persimmons insist on quality but not weight as it wins the hearts and minds of the consumers. Much like the fishing tale of its ancestor, Jiang Taigong, it is about enticing the customers. The namesake of the store name is a true reflection of such sentiment of encouraging the willingness to purchase with tasters, which allow customers to become long-term patrons.
