All the Tea in China: History, Methods and Musings

by Jian Wang (Compiler)

Wood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar and tea—otherwise known as "the seven things that open the door"—are the basic kitchen necessities Chinese people cannot do without in their daily lives. Among them, tea holds a very special place. It is not only a beverage, but also an integral part of people's hearts and minds, thus shaping a unique tea culture in China.


In All the Tea in China, you will learn everything about Chinese tea for practical uses, as well as for meditation. Discover the origin of tea, its different species, production method and drinking etiquette. Also, through the vivid illustrations, readers will gain information about what tea is and how to identify a good quality kind. At the same time, the quotations, poems, sayings, and stories in the book are presented chronologically so that readers can appreciate what tea has inspired and why it continues to delight the Chinese people. A joy to read, All the Tea in China will be sure to enhance your tea experience.

Genres: Tea, Nonfiction, China, Food

128 pages, Hardcover

First published September 20, 2012

Reviews

[Arizonagirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was given to me for my birthday and I read it quickly during a long car drive across country. This will be my July book in my attempt to read one book I own each month. It is a history of Chinese tea arranged according to each Chinese dynasty. It includes some basic information about tea, photographs of teaware in museums, paintings, sayings, poetry, and stories about tea, and profiles of Huangshan Maofeng, Biluochun, Keemun, Tieguanyin, Pu'er, Xihu Longjing, Wuyi Cliff, and White Haired Silver Needle.

Here are some thoughts and things I learned from the book:

-The use of tea can be traced back 4,000-5,000 years when tea leaves were eaten as a vegetable.

-In 1961 a 1,700-year-0ld tea was discovered with a height of 32.12 meters!

-The world's largest stand of wild tea trees was found in 1996 at 280 hectares in Jiujia township, Zhenyuan county, Yunnan province.

-Tea producing areas are divided into 4 regions, each with their own famous tea
1. South of the Yangtze River: Xihu Longhin (Dragon Well), Huangshan Maofeng (Feather Mountain), and Biluochun (Green Conch Spring)
2. North of the Yangtze River: Lu'an Guapian (Melon Strip), Xinyang Maojian (Feathertip)
3. South China: Tieguanyin (Iron Buddha), Wuyi Dahongpao (Crimson Gown)
4. Southeast China: Pu'er and Dianhong

- There are different ways to infuse green tea based on which type of tea it is.
1. All water first, then add tea. Used for Xihu Longjing, Biluochun, and Xinyang Maojian
2. Fill 1/3 full of water, add tea leaves, then top with water. Used for Huangshan Maofeng and Lu'an Guapian
3. Tea first, then add water. Used for infusing stir-dry fixed green tea during the winter.

- "When making tea and the water boils with a slight noise and bubbles like fish eyes, that is known as "the first boil." When it boils at the edge of the pot with a curtain of pearl-like bubbles, that is known as "the second boil." When it boils in waves that is known as "the third boil." To continue boiling after the third boil is to over-boil and is unsuitable for tea-making." - Lu Yu: The Classic of Tea

- I need to get a copy of The Classic of Tea by Lu Yu!

- Tea used to be milled by roasting a biscuit of tea and then grinding it in the groove of the mill into tea ends.

- "One bowl moistens the throat and two banish melancholy. Three scour the stomach to inspire writings by the volume. Four sweat life's troubles out by the pores. Five lighten the limbs and six brings ecstasy. Drink no more than seven and float forth on the breeze" Seven Bowls of Tea by Lu Tong. This reminded me of descriptions of getting tea drunk. There are several comparisons of drinking tea compared to drinking wine in the book and it makes me wonder if they had perfected the art of tea drunkenness. "Tea clear the mind but wine confuses the spirit." - Ancient Chinese saying

- I need to learn more about diancha fa. It is described as adding milled tea ends to a tea bowl, adding water, and stirring with a spoon so that the tea tips and the water are evenly mixed into a milky paste and foam forms on the surface. I guess this is the same as making matcha which I guess I mistakenly thought was only a Japanese process. Diancha fa is also described as adding water several times.

- "The fewer guests when drinking tea the better. A crowd of guests is noisy and noise detracts from the elegance of the occasion. Drinking tea alone is serenity, with two guests is superior, with three or four is interesting, with five or six is extensive and with seven or eight is an imposition. - Cai Xiang: A Record of Tea

- "At first tea tastes bitter and then sweet. This is like a principle of life; bitter in the beginning, but in the end one can enjoy a little ease" -Zhu Xi: Writings

- "The following situations are suitable for the drinking of tea: a mood of leisurely content, the absence of anxiety; the presence of intimates of a similar cast of mind; whilst sitting in peace in a secluded spot; whilst reciting poetry; whilst exercising the brush in calligraphy and painting; whilst strolling through courtyards; on waking up; on waking the gods. Drinking tea should be accompanied by fruit and tid-bits, the table should be prepared, the surroundings should be elegant, there should be a meeting of minds between host and guest; there should be understanding and discrimination in the enjoyment of tea and there should be a boy to serve the tea and hot water." - Feng Kebin

- "Water suitable for tea should be clear, light, sweet, and alive. Clear means that it should be translucent and and without sediment. Light means that its mineral content should be low since minerals can affect the taste. Sweet means that the water should taste sweet. Alive means that it should be running water as the oxygen content of running water is high and helps the dispersal of the fragrance.

- "Grain Rain, of the 24 Chinese solar terms. The period of the last ten days in April when plentiful rainfall benefits grain crops."

- When water is poured into the pot, the height of the pourer is dipping up and down three times to represent the host greeting his guests with three bows as an expression of courtesy and respect.

- Dragon Well tea can seem flavorless. "This flavorless flavor is the true flavor." - Lu Ciyun

- "Normally, tea picked before the Qingming Festival is known as "pre-Ming tea" and is one of the best quality. That picked before the Grain Rain is known as "pre-Rain tea" and is of lesser quality.

- Some teas should be steeped in transparent glass whereas some should be in earthenware, and some in porcelain.

- One of the reasons to warm the tea pot by pouring water outside of it is to bake the fragrance out of the leaves.

- "Tea should be drunk...with two or three friends with whom a decade of dreams may be realised in half a day's leisure". - Zhou Zuoren: On Drinking Tea

- The four qualities of picking Xihua Longhing (Dragon Well) tea:
1. Lotus Heart: Freshly opened buds picked during the three days before the Qingming Festival that resemble a lotus flower.
2. Flagstaff: The tea picked between the Qingming Festival and the Grain Rain known as Pre-Grain tea, a small leaf looks like a flag on a the staff of the stalk.
3. Sparrow Tongue: Picked at the Establishment of Summer (5-7 May), two leaves resemble a sparrow's tongue.
4. Stem Tea: Picked a month later.

- Different kinds of teas should be drunk according to the season:
1. Green Tea: Cooling, quenches thirst, and alleviates fever. Drink during spring, summer, and autumn
2. Red Tea: Warming, dispels cold and warms the stomach. Drink during the winter.
3. Wulong (Oolong) Tea: Neither cold nor hot. Drink during the autumn.
"Do not drink tea early in the morning on an empty stomach. Do not drink tea when taking medication. Tea should be drunk hot, do not drink it cold. Do not drink strong tea before going to bed."

[莲华栖贤]

"What's going on in the mountains? Brew wine with pine flowers, brew tea with spring water." In the poems and essays of Zhang Kejiu, a poet in the Yuan Dynasty, the rise and fall of the ages and the troubles of the world can be forgotten in a cup of tea. Starting from the Chinese legend that "tea is drunk, it originated from Shennong's family", a small bud leaf has traveled through five thousand years, carrying civilizations of different eras, and blended into a glass of clear water in the hands of the world. - https://www.souquee.com/news/642ba324...

[Nick Starr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically a nice little coffee table book (pardon the expression). A celebration of Chinese tea and culture, with some practical tips for brewing and drinking tea. There are some pretty glaring translation issues, and it's the kind of book that I finish and I'm not sure I've really *learned* anything, but it's pleasant enough to read over a couple days (or over a cup of tea!).

[Daniela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book even though it has lots of quotes and pictures. The information is useful and complementary.

[CW · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed how tea culture progressed in Chinese history as evidence by the paintings and poems and stories. I enjoyed the cartoon illustrations the most. If you don't already know something about Chinese tea, I think you will be very confused with the explanations about them, the explanations sometimes show up in random places throughout the book, it would've been better to put it all together at the end or beginning. I would've loved a chart at the end of each type of tea, optimal temp to make it, which type of tea pot, etc more than the dynasty chart at the end. I would've also loved maps that show where in China the teas come from because I'm not familiar with the places named. I'm not sure if it was just my copy but some pages in the 2nd half of the book, the font had a shadow blurring effect. It made reading the text on those pages very hard to do. Not expecting too much to be able to read the book I spent $15+ on, right?

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love tea and bought this small book while at the Ai Weiwei According to What? exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ontario today. The book was written in China and translated and beautifully presents the history of the use of tea in China through a long list of dynasties, describes the different types of tea, where they are from, when they are picked, how tea is prepared, the tea rituals and spiritual significance of drinking tea - even recommending with how many people tea should be enjoyed. Poetry, brushing drawings and stories tell the story.

I learned so much in this short read!

[Talbot Hook · Rating 1 out of 5]

The illustrations and quotes within this book are very enjoyable. It is also a very short book, which can be appreciated. However, what was unforgivable was the poor use of the English language. Somewhere, the translation went very wrong, culminating in an orgy of poor syntax, punctuation, and fluidity. And I do mean very poor.

[Marcella Bongiovanni · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute booklet about art and tea. It's made of quotations, beautiful paintings, photos, all together resembling a little museum guide. It adds a few tidbit on tea making, too.

It's not for the everyday tea drinker, but for China or Chinese tea aficionados.