It's All About Tea — chinese tea ceremony

Chaozhou in Guangdong province is an enticing area of China holding mountains of tea traditions, literally. The city of Chaozhou is near Phoenix Mountain, the birthplace of aromatic Dan Cong Oolongs. There, the tea bushes grow semi-wild on high elevations amid fragrant fruit gardens.

Gong fu cha, the Chinese tea ceremony, originated in Chaozhou during the Song Dynasty. Even today, the province’s tea traditions are highly treasured and preserved. In other parts of China, you may find plenty of people practicing various tea brewing methods, like grandpa-style tea or western brewing. However, in Chaozhou, tea drinkers prefer to stick to their roots. If you happen to be in a local’s presence for long enough, they are likely to treat you to gongfu style tea. (Read more)

While we are not originally from a Chinese background, like many of our followers, we enjoy learning about the Chinese Tea Ceremony and everything it offers. It is easy to get carried away in the world of aromatic teas and breathtaking teaware. We are always eager to expand our knowledge of brewing techniques and proper tea preparation methods. However, today we will talk about the parts of Chinese tea ceremony culture that we don't part take in as often as we would in Gong Fu Style tea brewing. (Read more)

Nowadays, boiling tea is often seen as a way to spoil perfectly good tea leaves. However, if done right, this method of brewing tea deserves much more credit than it gets.

Boiling tea leaves is the most ancient method of making tea.
Back in the Tang Dynasty (618 to 907), when tea culture was gradually at its rise, tea leaves were boiled for prolonged periods. Sometimes they were cooked together with different spices. Different kinds of herbs, roots, fruits, and even chili and scallions weren’t uncommon accompaniments to tea leaves. (Read more)

For any tea enthusiast out there, an essential part of the tea discovery journey is visiting an authentic tea house. In a Chinese style tea hut, we can experience tea the way it has been traditionally enjoyed for centuries. Whether you’re a seasoned drinker, or someone just getting into the vast world of tea, it is important to know about some of the etiquette of tea drinking when you are visiting a tea house. (Read more)

Tea tastings are pretty similar to wine tastings. They are also fun to do and helpful if you are trying many new teas and want to memorize the flavor profiles or compare them to other teas.

Whether you are keeping track of your tea tasting or just doing it for fun, we put together a guide on how to do a tasting. With every consciously done tea tasting, you will see your palette grow and be able to recognize new and subtle notes. (Read more)