British Tea

While the English are known for drinking copious amounts of tea, we all know by now that they did not invent the leaf.  So…how did the leaf migrate from Asia to the British Isles?

Tea first reached Europe by the way of Dutch and Portuguese traders in 1610.  There is a legend that King Charles II grew up in exile in Portugal and become accustomed to drinking tea.  In fact, he married Catharine of Braganza who was both Portuguese and an avid tea drinker.  It is said that when she came to England to marry the monarch, she brought with her a casket of tea.  She was known as England’s first tea-drinking queen.

It is also said that it was the coffee houses of London that brought the teas for the masses.  One of the first was a house owned by Thomas Garway who started selling the drink and leaves in 1657.  In as 35tt3e as three years, he began advertising the selling of tea at £6 and £10!

Tea gained popularity in the 1700.  However, it was to the distress of the tea owners as it cut their sales of gin and ale.  This was also bad news for the government who depended on the revenue of liquor taxes.  In 1676, the government tried to slow the growing popularity by putting a tax on tea.  By the mid 18^th century, the tax had reached as high as 199%!  So the Brits created a whole new industry: tea smuggling.

Once tea became more accepted and the taxes lifted, this allowed for the creation of a new tea custom: Afternoon tea.  It is said that Anna, the 7^th Duchess of Bedford created the idea of afternoon tea as a bridge to gap lunch and dinner.  This eventually led to the popularity of cream tea for not only the high classes but the working classes as well.  This then enabled tea to embed itself into all aspects of British culture.

What a fascinating history, no?  I love a good cup of Cream Tea, don’t you?

Posted in Article, Black Tea, British Tea, Culture, Indian Tea, Mythology, Myths, Stories, Tea, Tea 101, Tea 201 | No Comments »

Pre-Whisked Dry Matcha

Whenever I walked into a tea shop, I had always seen the bamboo whisk pictured above but could never figure out what it had to do with tea…apparently it is all in the matcha.

Matcha is a powdered green tea of the highest quality in Japan.  This type of tea is traditionally used in chanoyu/the Japanese Way of Tea.  The directions on preparing the tea are simple: add the powdered green tea to hot water, use the whisk to thoroughly mix the powder and water, drink and enjoy.  No sugar is needed.  However, if you must indulge your sweet tooth, a sweet is allowed prior to drinking the matcha as long as it complements the tea’s flavor.

There are two types of matcha: koicha/thick tea and usucha/thin tea.  The names are quite self-explanatory.  For thick tea, more tea is needed in proportion to water.  The end result is a thick creamy soup.  On the other hand, for the thin tea it is more water needed in proportion to the tea.  Then the mix is whisked together to create a light and frothy beverage.

Matcha is grown in the Uji area which is southwest of Kyoto.   The leaves are picked in early May and lightly steamed in order to prevent fermentation as well as allowing the tea to retain its vibrant green color.  The leaves are dried then stored until November when the plants are stone-grounded when needed.

When storing your matcha, be advised that you should not store it like a normal tea.  Matchas should always be stored in a freezer in either an air-tight container or plastic bag.  When you are ready to drink your matcha, you must let the powder rose to room temperature and then strain it through a fine sieve.

So little did you know that not all teas come in leaf form! What do you think, dear readers?

Posted in Article, Ceremony, Culture, Japanese Tea, Matcha, Mythology, Myths, Stories, Tea | 4 Comments »

Huangshan

This green tea (also known as Huangshan Maofeng) is grown in the mountains of Huangshan (which translates to Yellow Mountain) in the Anhui province of China.  The rest of the tea’s name is derived from the furry down that is found on the bud when picked.  Once brewed, the tea becomes a yellow liquid that is well known for its flowery flavor.  It is said to have a gentle flavor of apricots and orchids.

The legend of this tea’s origin is actually a love story.

There was once a beautiful young tea picker.  She had fallen in love with a young and handsome scholar and he, too, was in love with her.  Their love was not meant to be.  A wealthy landowner saw the tea picker one day and became mesmerized with her beauty.  He knew that he must have her.  He went to the tea picker’s parents and convinced them to allow him to marry their daughter.  On the night before her wedding, the beautiful tea picker snuck out of her house and ran to her lover’s home.  She had wanted to see her handsome scholar at least one more time before she was wed to another man.  When she arrived at the scholar’s home, she was horrified to find that her lover had been murdered by the wealthy landowner.  The tea picker managed to find her lover’s grave.  She sat at the grave and wept.  She wept for days and nights until eventually she turned into the rain itself.  She continued to rain onto the grave until the first Maofeng tree grew.  The scholar’s body had become the tree.

What do you think of this story, dear readers?  Like any other myth on tea is full of magic and mystery.  I think it is a beautiful story.

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Green Snail Shell Tea

Green Snail Spring…just as the name suggests, you would think.  There are a couple of legends surrounding the origin of the name.  The first is the most obvious: the leaves are curly like snails.

But it would not have a place in the Chinese Mythology series if it did not have a magical story.  According to Studying the Art of Tea by Li Wei, there is a love story involved with the tea.

The story involves a beautiful young woman called Bilou Maiden (which translated literally to green snail) who was beautiful and kind with a beautiful voice that echoed.  She lived in the Dongting Mountain.

One day there was a four-legged beast that tore through the village frightening villagers and fishermen alike.  The height of that fear was the day the creature stole Bilou Maiden away.

Bi Lo Chun

In the village also lived a handsome young warrior by the name of Ah-Xiang.   He made the decision to battle the beast himself on behalf of village and save the beautiful Bilou Maiden.  Armed with only a pitchfork, he found the beast and Bilou Maiden at the lake.  He caught the beast off guard while it was bathing in the lake.  The handsome warrior rammed the pitchfork into the beast’s side.  Ah-Xiang and the beast then engaged in battle, a long laborious battle that waged for seven days and seven nights.  Ah-Xiang became wounded, his blood splattered onto a nearby tree.  The tree came to life, its branches waving in the air, lashing out at the beast until it was entrapped in the tree’s branches.  Upon hearing the beast’s capture, the entire village came with their own pitchforks and within moments the beast was overrun and destroyed.

Ah-Xiang was still severely injured.  Bilou Maiden saw how much this handsome warrior loved her for why else would he have risked his life to save her?  The girl then devoted her life to save the warrior.  Bilou Maiden tried everything to save her love but all to no avail.  Ah-Xiang still grew weaker and weaker.  Eventually Bilou Maiden tried one more time.  She went back to the lake, to the magical tree that was still stained with Ah-Xiang’s blood.  She picked the leaves, thinking that they would have healing powers.

Bilou Maiden brewed the leaves into a tea and gave it to Ah-Xiang.  Once the drink touched his lips, Ah-Xiang immediately began to recover.  He decided that he would continue to drink this tea until he recovered.  Daily he drank the tea and daily he recovered.  However, as he continued to recover Bilou Maiden began to grow weaker.  By the time our hero was completely healed, Bilou Maiden was too weak to sustain life and she died shortly afterwards.   In memory of the beautiful maiden they named the tea after her.

I think that’s such a beautiful and tragic story.  Do you think so, dear readers?

Posted in Article, Chinese Tea, Green Tea, Legends, Loose Tea, Mythology, Myths, Stories, Tea | No Comments »

Da Hong Pao's Big Red Robe

Da Hong Pao is a well known oolong tea from Wuyi Mountains of the Fujian province of China. There are four types of teas grown in this area and Da Hon Pao (Big Red Robe Tea) is by far the most popular.

According to legends , there was an emperor in the Ming Dynasty whose mother had grown gravely ill. The mother was given a cup of tea and within merely moments she began to recover. The emperor was so grateful that he had copious amounts of a rare red cloth to cover the trees during that winter to ensure their survival. The locals then began to call the tree Big Red Robe in honor of the cloth that was wrapped around these trees.

There are other legends that state that it was not the mother but the wife of the emperor who fell deathly ill. These legends tell the story that the empress grew up in the Wuyi Mountains and her illness was due to homesickness.

The emperor loved his wife dearly and employed any and every doctor of the land to try and save his wife. However, nothing could be done to save the dying empress.

Then there came a pious farmer who greatly loved the emperor and lived but a stone’s throw from where the empress originated. He prayed, hoping to glean and idea on how to save his beloved emperor’s wife. One night, he dreamed that a goddess came to him and told him the cure: a gnarled bush that grew on a high and steep cliff. The farmer bravely scaled the cliff and retrieved a couple of leaves.

The leaves were immediately sent to the emperor, who decided to take the risk and make the tea. As soon as the tea touched the lips of the empress, she was reminded of her home and quickly began to regain her health.

The emperor was so pleased and grateful that he gave the farmer imperial red robes to honor the farmer for his services of the emperor and his wife. In response, the farmer then called the tea ‘red robe tea’ and the tea was picked yearly for the empress to remind her of her home.

I think it’s such a beautiful story. I also believe that it speaks volumes on the healing power of tea. It may not bring people from the brink of death, but curing homesickness….sure thing. What do you think, dear readers?

Posted in Article, Chinese Tea, Legends, Loose Tea, Mythology, Myths, Oolong Tea, Stories, Tea | 1 Comment »