Tea
The Chinese Art of Tea Drinking
 Wherever Chinese go, the
custom of drinking tea follows. The Chinese were the first to
discover the tea leaf, and have drunk tea for uncounted ages.
When you arrive in the beautiful island of Taiwan, you may see
some elderly gentlemen seated in twos and threes, perhaps in a
temple up some old street. They may be leisurely gathered
around a simple but attractive teapot about the size of a
fist, each holding a small cup, mixing chat with drink. This
is the traditional Chinese "old men's tea" ceremony
(lao-jen ch'a). While strolling down the bustling streets of
metropolitan Taipei, your nose might also lead you to a
"tea art" shop, identified by a large sign with the
Chinese character for "tea" (ch'a) on it. If the
prospect of a tea-tasting experience intrigues you, an expert
on the beverage will initiate you in the basics of "kung
fu tea," or the traditional tea-steeping and drinking
ritual.
 Tea is an indispensable
part of the life of a Chinese. A Chinese saying identifies the
seven basic daily necessities as fuel, rice, oil, salt, soy
sauce, vinegar, and tea. The custom of drinking tea is deeply
ingrained in almost every Chinese, and has been for over a
thousand years. During the mid-T'ang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), a
man named Lu Yu entered the Buddhist monkhood early in life,
but returned when older to secular life. He was later best
known for summarizing the knowledge and experience of his
predecessors and contemporaries into the first compendium in
the world on tea--the Tea Classic (ch'a Ching). This work
helped to popularize the art of tea drinking all across China,
making avid tea drinkers of everyone from emperor and minister
to street hawker and soldier. Even the neighboring countries
of Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia came to adopt the tea
drinking custom.
Chinese were the first to discover
tea.
 In the early 17th
century, the Dutch East India Company introduced Chinese tea
for the first time to Europe. By the mid-17th century,
afternoon tea had become a standard ritual of the British
nobility. It is interesting to note that the two different
pronunciations for "tea" most common in languages
that borrowed the word from Chinese-cha and tee-originate from
different dialects of Chinese. Languages of countries that
once imported the leaves from the north of China, such as Turkey,
Russia, and Japan, adopted some variation of the sound cha,
such as chay, chai, or chya. Countries on the southern
maritime lines of China, such as Spain, Germany,
and England,
borrowed the word in the forms of te, Tee, and tea
respectively, based on the southern Chinese pronunciation.
Tea is made from the young, tender leaves of the tea tree. The
differences among the many kinds of tea available are based on
the particular methods used to process the leaves. The key to
the whole process is the roasting and fermentation. Through
fermentation, the originally deep green leaves become
reddish-brown in color. The longer the fermentation, the
darker the color. Depending on the length of the roasting and
degree of fermentation, the fragrance can range from floral,
to fruity, to malty.
Tea that has not been fermented is called "green
tea." Tea steeped from green tea leaves is jade green to
yellow-green in color, and gives off the fragrance of fresh
vegetables. Examples of green tea are "Dragon Well"
(Lung-ching) and "Green Snail Spring" (Pi-lo-ch'un).
The Chinese call tea that undergoes full fermentation
"red tea" (hung-ch'a); in the West it is known as
"black tea." Tea made from black tea leaves is
reddish-brown in color and has a malt-like aroma. Oolong, or
"Black Dragon" (Wu-Lung) tea is an example of a
partially-fermented tea. This tea is unique to China, and
Taiwan is one of its most representative areas of production.
 Oolong tea comes in three
degrees of fermentation: lightly fermented, moderately
fermented, and fully fermented. The identifying features of
lightly fermented Oolong tea, such as Paochung, are a full
aroma, clarity, and a golden color. Moderately fermented types
such as "lron Buddha" (T'ie-kuan-yin),
"Narcissus" (Shui-hsien), and "Frozen
Peak" (Tung-ting), have a brown color, a full
"mature" flavor that appeals more to the sense of
taste than that of smell, and a vaguely sweet aftertaste. Tea
infused from moderately to heavily fermented tea leaves like
"White Hair" Oolong (Pai-hao Wu-lung) has a
red-orange color and a fruity aroma.
To make a good pot of tea, special attention must be pald
to the quality of the water, water temperature, the amount of
tea leaves used, and the type of teapot. Soft water (water
with a low mineral content) that is clear and fresh is
required to steep tea; hard water should by all means be
avoided. The correct water temperature varies from tea to tea;
for most fully fermented and moderately fermented kinds it
should be near boiling (100 or 212); however, it may be low as
90 (194) or less for lightly fermented or green teas.
"Cultivating teapots"
through repeated use is a popular and refined pastime in
Taiwan.
 The proportion of tea
leaves to water also depends on the kind of tea leaves used.
The teapot may be filled from one-quarter to three-quarters
full with tea leaves, depending mainly on how tightly curled
the tea leaves are as a result of the rolling and roasting
processes. The teapot is then filled with water. Steeping time
starts at one minute, but varies from tea to tea. The time
required for subsequent brews from the same leaves must be
proportionally lengthened. The best kind of teapot to use for
most fermented teas is a purple clay ceramic pot. The size of
the pot should be in correct proportion to the size of the
cups. Ideally, the cups should have white interiors, to
facilitate accurate assessment of the color of the tea.
People enamored of tea drinking also usually enjoy the
beauty and feel of teapots. Small teapots are used to steep
tea (in the "kung fu" steeping method) in most homes
in the Republic of China today. This particular method has
been passed down to the present day from the days of Ming
Dynasty Emperor Shen Tsung in 16th century China, so it boasts
a 400-year history. The full aroma and sweetness of the tea
can be brought out when using a small teapot to steep tea.
During the Ming (1368-1644) and Ch'ing (1644-1911) dynasties,
the purple clay ceramic teapots of Yihsing, Kiangsu were the
most famous. Any pieces made by a master potter are sought
after everywhere, and are worth their weight in gold. While
master potters in the Republic of China continue to produce
traditional purple clay ceramic teapots, they have also
developed a number of creative new teapot designs which have
received enthusiastic public response. Collecting teapots has
become a fashionable pastime.
 Tea is China's national
drink. Tea contains vitamins, tea derivatives, essential oils,
and fluoride. It is a diuretic, attributed with the properties
of improving the eyesight and increasing alertness, so Chinese
believe that frequent tea drinkers enjoy an increased life
span. Its medical properties and benefits to the human body
have in fact been scientifically proven, and tea has come to
be generally recognized as a natural health food.
Tea is a cash crop in Taiwan.
Tea is a cash crop in Taiwan, an agricultural product that
is a source of foreign exchange earnings. Specialized tea
shops all over the island continue to actively promote the art
of tea drinking. New style "tea art houses" with
elegant, classical interiors have quickly become a common
sight around the island. Each local area also holds its own
tea-tasting competitions, attracting the participation of
large numbers of tea farmers, tea merchants, and tea
connoisseurs. The price of any tea that is designated as a
superior grade in one of these competitions immediately soars.
This feature gives tea competitions extra appeal and vigor.
The custom of tea drinking has become part of a sophisticated
spiritual life; and the "tea art" spirit, which
reveres nature and knows no bounds, is just like Chinese
interpersonal relations : warm and mellow. |
China's
Tea Culture