The Art of Tea Appreciation
Chinese tea culture or Cha Yi (茶艺) is the art of tea appreciation dating back to the Tang dynasty in China. The "Classic of Tea", Cha Jing (茶经), was one of the earliest monographs of tea culture, cultivation and preparation. The Cha Jing pathed the way of early tea appreciation and set the foundations to what would be a sophisticated art in modern day.
At first, tea appreciation was a simple tea-making ceremony invented by monks to help to concentrate their thoughts. It then gradually became a ritual that helps to purify mind and soul like meditation. Seasoned sippers can feel the tranquility of returning to nature and inspire the thoughts on the true meaning of life during tea appreciation. In the Ming and Qing dynasties when the art of tea appreciation flourished, the tea house became the main place for literati and politicians to exchange ideas.
Today the Chinese tea culture has been extended to literature, art and other fields, and has become a performing art with strong national characteristics, which is an important part of Chinese culture.
茶艺
The technique of tea appreciation has its roots back in the Tang Dynasty and was further developed in the Song / Ming Dynasty and the present day. Mouse over the sections below to find out more.
JianCha | 煎茶
Making tea in the Tang Dynasty
Tea leaves are grinded into powder, and then sprinkled into boiling water together with other spices. The byproduct is then served as soup, and sippers enjoy the soup, tea residue and spices together. The process is also known as "eating tea"(吃茶).
DianCha | 点茶
Making tea in the Song Dynasty
A unique way of brewing tea, destemmed white tea leaves are first steamed or baked, stone-ground and sieved into fine powder and subsequently brewed by fast whisking the mixture of water and powder with a chasen (bamboo whisk) to make fine and dense foam.
Diancha competitions were held in the Song Dynasty where the best teas often have tea foam which stays in the cup for long durations as a result of finely grounded tea. The Diancha method was later introduced to Japan in 1191 and gave rise to the now popularly known whisking technique for matcha powder.
PaoCha | 泡茶
Making tea from the Ming Dynasty to date
Loose tea is brewed with hot water in teapots or teabowls and steeped to one's preferred concentration level before removal of the residue before consumption. The aforementioned brewing method is the most common way of making tea in the world.
The Chaozhong kung fu tea ceremony, is the most representative of the PaoCha (泡茶) method and is widely used by tea connoisseurs to maximize the taste for teas, especially fine Oolong tea. The ceremony or performance as some describes it, includes: tea selection, water selection, tea cooking techniques, and tea setting art.
Cold Brewing & Blends | 冷泡
The modern way of making tea
Cold brewing, as the name suggests, is the brewing of tea using iced water over long durations. This method allows for the slow extractiong of flavours resulting in a smoother and subtle taste profile with lesser astringecy and bitterness.
In present day, cold brewed tea is usually blended with fresh fruits, milk or herbs to bring about enhanced and unique taste profiles and is very popular with the younger generation.