Learn tea art from scratch
Learn tea art from scratch. Tea art is a unique culture in China. In daily life, making tea is a very simple thing. But to truly make a pot of tea, you need to master certain skills. Let’s take a look at how to learn tea art from scratch. Learn tea art from scratch 1
Basic knowledge of tea art 1: Essentials of making tea
The chemical components in tea are the basis for the color, aroma and taste of tea. When making tea, you should follow the According to the characteristics of different tea types, the temperature of the water, the soaking time and the amount of tea leaves can be adjusted to fully bring out the aroma, color and taste of the tea. There are four major factors in making tea: the first is the ratio of tea to water, the second is the temperature of the tea water, and the third is the number of brewing times.
Basic knowledge of tea art 2: Selection of water for making tea
Water is the mother of tea and utensils are the father of tea. It can be seen that the water used to make tea has an important impact on the quality of tea. Brewing and effects play a very important role. To make a good pot of tea, you should choose water with clear water quality, light body, sweet taste and active water source. Only in this way can you brew the pure taste of tea.
Basic knowledge of tea art 3: Selection of tea sets
Commonly used tea sets now include porcelain, pottery, glass and plastic. From the perspective of tea tasting, porcelain and pottery are the best for making tea, because they have good heat preservation properties, can obtain better color and aroma when brewing tea, and have beautiful appearance and artistic appreciation value.
Basic knowledge of tea art 4: Tea tasting
Tea tasting is a comprehensive art. There is no good or bad tea, it mainly depends on personal taste. Different tea types, different colors, and different tea qualities are also different. Therefore, different teas have different ways of tasting tea. When tasting tea, you can first watch the ups and downs, stretching and posture of the tea through the crystal clear tea soup, and then observe the infiltration, penetration and changes in the color of the tea juice, then pick up the tea cup, smell its fragrance first, and then take a sip.
The basic process of tea art
1. Clean hands and appreciate utensils
That is, washing hands and drinking tea are very important. Hygiene first. The tea host invites the guests to enjoy the tea, and then the tea utensils: when tasting tea, it is important to use Jingdezhen porcelain or Yixing purple clay pot. This is all to prepare for relaxing before drinking tea.
2. Hot cup and warm pot
This means rinsing all the tea utensils with boiling water. The purpose is also for hygiene and cleaning, and at the same time, it preheats the tea utensils, so that the tea will taste more fragrant. , pour boiling water into a purple clay pot, fair cup, aroma cup, tea tasting cup. Some friends also say this is called sanitary ware warming.
3. Ma Long Enters the Palace
Put the tea leaves into the utensil, which is the process of putting the tea into the teapot. The name is nice, the procedure is simple, and the performance can include appropriate tricks. It has more tea flavor.
4. Wash the tea
Pour the boiling water into the pot, let the water and tea leaves properly contact, and then pour it out quickly. The purpose is to remove unclean substances on the surface of the tea leaves, and to filter out the unfried tea leaves.
5. Brewing
Pour the boiling water into the pot again. During the pouring process, the spout "nods" three times. Don't fill the pot all at once. The procedure of the tea ceremony is actually just It's just pretty, but this step is commonly used by everyone. There is the so-called "Three Nods of the Phoenix" in the performance to show respect to the guests.
6. The spring breeze blows on the face
This is completely a requirement for artistic expression. The water should be higher than the spout of the pot. Use the pot lid to brush off the tea powder and remove the tea leaves floating on it. The purpose is to only drink tea and not let the tea leaves floating on it get into your mouth.
7. Sealing the pot
Cover the pot to preserve the aroma of the tea brewed in the teapot. This is also the purpose of pouring boiling water all over the pot.
8. Divide cups
In the first step of preparing to drink tea, use tea clips to group the scenting cups and tea-tasting cups and place them on the saucers for easy adding of tea.
9. Return the jade liquid to the pot
Gently pour the tea in the pot into a fair cup, so that everyone can taste the tea with the same color, aroma and taste. To give people spiritual enjoyment and sensory stimulation, simply put, it is to give each guest a cup of tea.
10. Divide the tea into pots
Then pour the tea soup into each guest's scent cup respectively. The procedure of tea ceremony is to pour the tea to seven parts full to show respect for the guests.
11. Serving tea
Put the cup in front of the guest with both hands and pay attention to the etiquette of pouring tea. It is the basis of ancient Chinese etiquette to serve guests with tea.
12. Smell the aroma
This is the step where the guest begins to comprehend alone. The guest pours the tea soup into the tea cup and gently smells the lingering fragrance in the cup. It is best to be intoxicated. like, expressing appreciation and admiration for the host's tea.
13. Tea tasting
Now it is finally time to drink tea. The guest takes the tea cup with three fingers, takes three sips and drinks slowly, then puts it down and can continue during the conversation. In this way, it shows the status and essential identity of tea in communication.
Learn Tea Art from Scratch 2
Chinese Tea Art - Art Tea
Chinese people drink coffee very differently from foreigners, especially the tea in the tea ceremony, as the heaven, earth, It is viewed through the unified process of objects and people. Therefore, regardless of the quality, origin, processing, production, and cooking of tea, it must not only comply with the laws of nature, but also include aesthetic perspectives and human spiritual sustenance. In modern times, advanced science and technology can be used to analyze the chemical composition, nutritional value, and medicinal effects of various teas. However, ancient Chinese tea experts used a dialectical and unified view of nature and people's own experience to analyze the spiritual and physical aspects of tea. Identify relevant issues through interactive experience. Therefore, craftsmanship contains not only the simple dialectical materialism of ancient my country, but also people's subjective aesthetic taste and spiritual sustenance. In terms of the combination of material and spiritual aspects, its achievements even surpass those of modern times.
Tea, in the eyes of the Chinese, is a spiritual creature between heaven and earth. It is born among the bright mountains and beautiful waters, and is accompanied by the green mountains. It uses the bright moon, breeze, and clouds as its companions to capture the essence of heaven and earth and bring blessings. to human beings. Therefore, a true tea master in ancient times not only had to know the etiquette of preparing tea to entertain guests, but also often planted and made tea himself, and taught children's art. Even if you don’t have the conditions to grow and make tea by yourself, you still have to go deep into the mountains to visit the best teas and understand the natural principles of tea. From the king of Han Dynasty teaching children how to make tea, to the famous monks planting tea trees in the Tang Dynasty, Lu Yu traveled all over the north and south of the Yangtze River, east and west of Taihu Lake, and climbed up the mountains. , staying in wild temples, deserted villages, until the Ming Dynasty tea people built their own tea gardens, etc., formed this practical tradition. The contemporary tea sage Mr. Wu Juenong and the tea master Mr. Zhuang Wanfang are both natural science experts and familiar with ancient books. Tea theory, and understand the implications. Therefore, the first element in Chinese tea art is "artistic tea". Regardless of the name of tea, the selection of origin, collection, and production, it is necessary to obtain the right place, the right time, and the right method.
"The Book of Tea" says: "Tea is the best wood in the south." "On the ground, rotten rocks grow on the top, gravel soil grows on the middle, and loess grows on the bottom." This is the soil condition for tea. It also says: "The wild ones are on top, the garden ones are next, the sunny cliffs are on the shady forest, the purple ones are on top, the green ones are on the next level; the bamboo shoots are on top, and the buds are on the next level; the leaf curls are on top, and the leaves are on the next level. The shady slopes and valleys are not suitable for harvesting. , sexual stagnation, and knotty disease. These are other natural environments and picking times for tea, and these conditions are mostly found in the famous mountains with a warm climate and quiet environment in southern my country. Therefore, the growth conditions of tea itself determine its natural environment. Scenic spots accompany you. Chinese tea drinkers deeply understand this principle and pay attention to being in harmony with nature from the beginning of tea selection.
In fact, in the Tang Dynasty, because the emperor loved to drink Yangxian tea. At that time, there were already many famous tea producing areas. The most famous ones were concentrated in the scenic Bashan and Shu Rivers, and the famous scenic spots around Taihu Lake. Lu Yu rated 31 states that were rich in famous tea, eight of which are today. At that time, there were hundreds of kinds of tribute tea in Sichuan. The most famous ones were Mengshan tea, Zhongfeng tea, Emei tea, Qingcheng tea, Purple Flower Bud on the Stone in the Gorges, Xiangshan Tea, Yun'an Tea, Shenquan Xiaotuan, Mingchanglu, etc., and Mengding Shihua is known as the first. There are many literati in Bashu. People in Tang Dynasty paid great attention to poetry. After poets recited it, Bashu's tea became more and more respected by the world. It produces famous tea, and the most famous one is called Guqing Purple Bamboo Shoot. This place is adjacent to Taihu Lake, with beautiful mountains and rivers, and clear springs. It has both the right climate and the essence of water and soil. There are Zhushan Mountains and many Buddhist temples. It was here that Lu Yu and Jiao Ran established the pattern of Chinese tea ceremony, and Guzhu tea became more important.
In the Song Dynasty, following the Southern Tang Dynasty, tribute tea was made in Jianzhou Beiyuan. The famous temple is adjacent to the garden, and the tea and water are good. In addition, the imperial court praised it, and its reputation increased. However, the production of tribute tea was too difficult and complicated, and spices such as borneol were added, so real tea drinkers did not think it was good. Even though Jianzhou folk tea competition Not only the wax noodles dragon dumplings, but also many tea drinkers visited famous mountains in search of good tea, and Rizhu tea, Mengding tea, Baoyun tea and other teas were regarded as the real top quality.
Ming Dynasty. People admired Luojie tea. It was called "Jie" when it was hidden in the mountains. The word "啕" is now known as "畕". According to legend, there was a Luo family who lived in Wuyi Mountain, and it was named Luojie tea because of its popularity among literati in the Ming Dynasty. The tea enthusiast Zhu Rugui visited Luoji every year for sixty years. There is also Mingyue Gorge in this mountain. Yao Shaoxian, a native of Wu, built his own small garden and planted tea in it. According to him, Xu Cishu wrote "Tea Book" because Yao Shaoxian told Xu the secret of tea tasting throughout his life and "entrusted it to him in a dream" after his death. , asked him to spread the "Tea Book", and Yao wrote a preface to it. With this mythical story, Wuyi Mountain tea was even more praised by people in the Ming Dynasty, including Shezhou Luosong Tea and Wu Zhihuqiu. Tea, Qiantang Longjing tea, Tiantai Mountain Yandang tea, Kuocangshan Dapan tea, Dongyang Jinhua tea, Shaoxing Rizhu tea, etc.
It can be seen that famous teas in history are often found in good mountains and good waters. , and only when the taste of tea is praised by literati can it be valued by people. It contains both scientific principles and aesthetic ideas. Zhuangzi believes that everything is good and beautiful when it is in harmony with nature. Chinese tea art This natural view is reflected from the beginning of the tea selection.
Good tea must be picked at the right time and made properly.
People in the Tang Dynasty did not have strict time requirements for picking tea, saying that it can be picked in the second, third and fourth month of the lunar calendar. After the Song Dynasty, there were strict requirements on the time for tea picking, often waiting for the Waking of Insects, and the best time was before the Qingming Festival. When the weather is sunny and dewy, if the tea is exposed to the sun, the cream will be consumed, the water will be lost, it will not be fresh and the essence will be lost.
When picking tea, use fingernails instead of fingers to avoid being contaminated by the warmth of your hands and stained by sweat. People in the Tang Dynasty were not very selective about tea buds, and those that were tall and straight were the best. After the Song Dynasty, the selection was very refined, and the grades were classified based on the shape of the buds and the old and tender ones. Generally speaking, the younger the buds, the better the tea. One bud is called a lotus stamen, as if the stamen is still open; the second bud is called a flag gun, like a spear with a tassel added to the end; the third bud is called a sparrow's tongue, like a bird's first opening of its beak. As the saying goes, hearing the good name first will make people feel happy without seeing it. Chinese tea art has a beautiful charm without any technique, which is difficult for non-ancient civilized countries to understand.
Good tea needs to be made properly. Therefore, tea making is also the key to tea art. Tea making in the Tang Dynasty was already quite sophisticated. There were four types of tea made in the Tang Dynasty: rough tea, loose tea, powdered tea, and cake tea. Crude tea is similar to modern tea bricks, which are convenient for storage and transportation but not refined. Loose tea is roasted and stored immediately, like modern loose tea, but it needs to be ground into powder when drinking, similar to the powdered tea used in Japanese tea ceremonies. These three are mainly for civilian use. Coarse tea is mainly for border people, and loose tea and powdered tea are popular among the people. However, as a tea art, it is difficult to achieve artistic effects, so Lu Yu focused on improving cake tea. The popularity of other products became less and less popular in the middle and late Tang Dynasty due to the fame of cake tea. Cake tea was originally made by Jing and Bajian methods. Lu Yu advocated taking only spring buds, steaming them, then pounding them into puree, patting them into cakes with a round mold, and finally punching holes, stringing them together, drying them over a warm fire, and storing them for later use. Cake tea is not only easy to use as powdered tea (because in ancient times, the powdered tea was mixed with water for drinking), but also easy to preserve, so it has become very popular since then. From the mid-Tang Dynasty to the early Ming Dynasty, he led Chinese tea art for more than 500 years.
In the Song Dynasty, the cake tea was made too fine due to tribute tea. Although it looked good on the surface, the true taste of the tea was lost. The tea ceremony is supposed to be the unity of matter and spirit. It loses its original material appearance and the fine art becomes artificial. However, from an artistic point of view, it is still a unique creation, so it is still necessary to introduce it.
The tribute tea of ??the Song Dynasty is named after dragon cake and phoenix cake. It is a cake tea pressed with gold and silver molds, also known as group tea. Tuancha tea in the Song Dynasty removed the perforations and was brewed many times to make it delicate and beautiful. It was added with borneol spices and waxed noodles on the outside to give it a pleasing luster. The big dragon dumpling weighs eight cakes per catty, and the small dragon dumpling weighs twenty cakes per catty. It’s called Tuan Cha, but it actually has various patterns. The dragon and phoenix dumplings are both round, the dragon dumpling is a square cake, the white dumpling is a hexagonal plum blossom shape, the Xueying dumpling is a hexagonal cake, the Yinian room jade is an oval, the Taiping Jiarui dumpling is like a white dumpling with a large dough, and is used for Duanyun. The dragon is as small as a big one, the Ever Spring Silver Leaf is in the shape of a hexagonal cusp, and the Longevity Jade Gui is round from the bottom to the top... Each cake is decorated with dragon patterns, auspicious clouds, and colorful phoenixes as patterns, and the patterns have been renovated in the past dynasties and appear in endlessly.
"Old Wulin Events" says:
In early February, Fujian Caosi introduced the first wax tea, named Beiyuan, to try out the new one. All are small in size. There are only a hundred swords in the royal palace. It is protected with soft yellow rhodium, borrowed from green noni, wrapped with yellow rhododendron, sealed with a huge red seal, and used a small box of red lacquer for the outside, with a gold-plated lock, and woven bamboo silk to store it. This is made from the buds of the bird's tongue water. One kuai is worth 400,000 yuan, which can only be used for a few ou of sipping ears.
Ouyang Xiu's "Long Tea Record·Afterword" says:
Tea is the most refined thing, and Xiaotuan is the most refined one. "Record" describes the so-called top-grade dragon tea. It was built since Junmo (Note: Gexiang, Yujunmo) and has paid tribute every year. Renyou cherishes it. Although he is a minister who assists the prime minister, he is not always given. Only on the eve of the fasting ceremony in the southern suburbs, four people each from Zhongshujiang secret courtyard were given a piece of cake. ...In the seventh year of Jiayou's reign, on the eve of the Ming Zhai Festival, the founder gave me a cake, and I also gave it to him, and I have kept it to this day. I served the imperial court as an admonisher until I ascended to the second mansion. It took more than twenty years before I was granted the title.
With Ouyang Xiu's position, it took more than 20 years to receive a cake from the emperor. It can be seen that the essence and preciousness of the dragon group are actually more rare than treasures. Su Shi was much luckier than Ouyang Xiu. He had obtained Xiaolong Tuan many times, so he said: "A small group has to be tried repeatedly, and dung is regarded as pearls and jade." A piece of tea cake is worth hundreds of thousands. If you compare it with pearls and jade, it will naturally be as good as dung. . However, although the goods are exquisite, they are too luxurious and are inconsistent with the purpose of our country's tea ceremony to cultivate integrity and elegance. However, the craftsmanship of dragon ball and phoenix cake in the Song Dynasty is indeed worth studying and exploring. Today's Tuo tea and brick tea are both large and thick, which is practical but not beautiful. If we can learn from the techniques of the Song Dynasty and improve them, wouldn't it be more beautiful?
During the Yuan Dynasty, the northern Mongolian people found it difficult to accept an overly delicate culture. The nomadic people liked brick tea, while the people mostly used loose tea. Tuancha was officially abolished in the Ming Dynasty. This was considered a meritorious act by Zhu Yuanzhang to understand the sufferings of the people, and loose tea, powdered tea and brick tea were all handed down. Semi-fermented black tea was born in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and the color, aroma and taste of the tea can be better reflected. Scented tea also came into being and became very popular because it conformed to the tea-drinking habits of northerners, especially those in the capital.
It should be particularly pointed out that the ancients made tea as both a production process and as a spiritual enjoyment. They experienced the principles of creation of all things from the tea-making process. Therefore, from naming to production, everything contains rules and aesthetic spirit.
Many literati drank tea. Some collected it temporarily, and some used semi-finished products to grind and roast them again. They experienced the joy of making their own tea and became more practical. Learn tea art from scratch 3
Tea art is divided into several steps
The first step: clean hands
Before pouring tea for guests, you must wash your hands first. Regardless of whether your hands are dirty or not, you must wash them first, and let the guests know that you have washed your hands. This is not only a hygiene issue when drinking tea, but also shows the host's respect for the guests.
The second step: boiling utensils
Before making tea for the guests, the host must also perform the "warming utensils", that is, a set of utensils for making tea. Rinse once with boiling water. This is not only for hygienic reasons, but also to preheat the tea set and make the tea taste more fragrant. More importantly, let the guests see the host’s intentions.
The third step: inviting tea
In the tea ceremony, people often call the third step "Ma Long Entering the Palace", which is to put the tea leaves into the teapot. Although the process is relatively simple, from the name, everyone can also see that the tea ceremony embodies respect for the guests.
Step 4: Washing the Tea
Before officially making tea, you must first go through the step of "washing the tea". Pour boiling water into the pot to allow the water and tea leaves to mix properly. The purpose of touching the tea leaves and then pouring them out quickly is to clean the impurities on the surface of the tea leaves so that guests can drink the tea with confidence.
The fifth step: making tea
Maybe everyone can do the first few steps during the process of pouring tea. As for the step of making tea, you must pay attention. After making the tea officially, during the process of pouring the boiling water, you must let the spout "nod" three times. This is also the so-called "Phoenix nods three times" in the tea ceremony culture to show your respect to the guests. pay tribute.
The sixth step: Brushing the cover
This step reflects the owner’s intention. "Lid-brushing" means that when making tea, the boiling water should be a little higher than the spout of the pot, and then the host should use the pot lid to brush off the tea foam floating on it to prevent guests from drinking the floating tea foam when drinking tea.
The seventh step: sealing the pot
"Sealing the pot" refers to closing the lid to preserve the aroma of the tea brewed in the teapot. This is also the case for pouring boiling water all over the body of the pot. Purpose. This step is to preserve the strong aroma of the tea and ensure the taste of the guests.
Step 8: Dividing cups
This step further embodies the culture of "tea ceremony". The host uses tea clips to group the aroma-smelling cups and tea-tasting cups and place them on saucers to facilitate adding tea to the guests. You must pay attention to this step. When dividing the cups, first arrange the cups in a row instead of directly dividing them in front of each guest.
The Ninth Way: Returning the Pot
Gently pour the tea in the pot into a fair cup, so that everyone can taste the tea with the same color, aroma and taste. This step also embodies the tea ceremony's culture of "justice, fairness and justice".
Step 10: Divide the tea
This step is to pour the tea soup evenly into each guest's aroma cup. Generally speaking, the tea only needs to be seven-tenths full. To prevent the tea from overflowing and scalding the guests when they drink it. Moreover, when pouring tea, the amount of tea in each cup should be consistent, and one should not favor one over another.
Step 11: Serving Tea
This step is the last step for the host in the tea ceremony. After the steps of making tea and pouring tea are completed, the host needs to serve the cup with both hands. In front of guests, this is also the basis of the Chinese etiquette of "serving guests with tea".
Step 12: Smell the fragrance
This is the step where the guest begins to comprehend alone. The guest pours the tea soup into the tea cup and gently smells the lingering fragrance in the cup. It is best to Being intoxicated shows appreciation and admiration for the host's tea.
Course 13: Tasting Tea
After smelling the aroma, guests can sip tea. Before drinking tea, the guest needs to pick up the tea cup with three fingers, take three sips and drink slowly, and then put down the tea cup to show respect and etiquette for the host. This can be continued during conversation and communication, showing that tea is in the communication. status and essential identity.