General Tea Facts
When you are in Chengdu, you will see teahouses everywhere on the streets. There is a saying: “China has the best teahouse in the world, and Chengdu has the best teahouses in China”. As soon as the guests enter the teahouse, the waiters or waitresses greet them with a smile on their faces, and they hold in their hands teapots and cups. After the guests have been seated, they set the cups on the table and pour the water from behind the guests or from above their heads. When the cups are almost full, the waiters or waitresses raise their hands high suddenly, but not a drop of water is spilled.
People who go to the teahouses are bot really thirsty. Retired people go to the teahouse and sit there all day long to chat with each other. Sometimes, people bring guests to the teahouses. They chat, drink tea and eat melon or sunflower seeds.
Chinese people like to drink tea. It is the same with Western people who enjoy coffee. Tea was first produced in China, and it has been a part of daily life in China for at least 1,500 years. Teahouses in China have always been the equivalent of the French cafes of the British pubs. Recently coffee shops and pubs have increased in Chinese cities, but there is no danger of them replacing teahouses.
The world “Tea” is one of the few words of Chinese origin used frequently in English. It is derived from the plant’s name as it is pronounced in South China. In standard Chinese it is pronounced “cha”. However, local people in South China have their own dialects, and they pronounce “cha” as “te” or “tay .” The vowel in “te” or “tay” sounds rhyming with the “e”.
There are two different sayings concerning the earliest spread of tea outside China.
In the seventeenth century, tea was introduced into Indonesia, where local people in Java picked up the sound of “te” or “tah” from South China. Later Dutchmen arrived there and soon learned how to drink tea . They brought tea back to Europe. Therefore, the “te” pronunciation was transferred into Europe. Therefore, the “te” pronunciation was transferred into Europe as well as Britain.
The other saying is that the Portuguese opened up the sea routs to China. Some say that the opening –up was as early as 1515. Jesuit priests were on the Portuguese ships, and they took the tea drinking habit back to Portugal. At that time, the sailors from the ships encouraged the Dutch merchants to enter the tea trade. By 1610, tea was shipped regularly to ports in France, Holland and the Baltic coast.
Tea was first used as medicine. Ancient man drank it to relieve poison. Shen Mong Benchao Classics is one of the Chinese medical books. It states that tealeaves tastes bitter, and can make people Spirited and think clearly. Hua Tuo said in The Eating Classics that a continuous drinking of bitter tea was good for thinking.
It is commonly believed that the habit of drinking tea originated in Sichuan. It happened three thousand years ago. Local people in Sichuan began to drink tea early in the Spring and Autumn Period. During the period of the Qin Dynasty the tea drinking habit began to spread into the other areas of China. According to a historic book by the name of General Sichuan History, local people began to plant tea during the Western Han Dynasty. Zhang Jingyang of the Western Jin Dynasty spoke highly of tea produced on Mt. Qingcheng near Chengdu. In his poem by the name of Climbing Chengdu Bai Tu Tower Zhang said, “The fragrant tea is superior to the Daoist Sixth Quietness, and its pleasant taste spreads to nine districts.”
The custom of drinking tea gradually spread out from Sichuan. Towards the end of the Western Han Dynasty, tea was regarded as the first –class drink in imperial and noble families. From the Jin to the Sui dynasties drinking tea became popular among the common people.
However, tea drinking was more common in the South than in the North. People in the North looked on tea drinking with contempt. They even said, “Though tea is offered at a dinner party, everyone feels distressed to drink it except people from the south”.
The fashion of drinking tea was prosperous in the Tang Dynasty. During that period, Sichuan was prosperous in the Tang Dynasty. During that period, Sichuan was considered as one of the seven key bases to produce tea. Lu Yu of the Tang Dynasty published his academic book called the Book of Tea. It was the first book about the tea subject in China. In his book he systematically illustrated the Sichuan tea plantation, tealeaves processing through the dry heat of an oven and the tea drinking habits. He also praised highly the bulk tea from Mt. Qingcheng.
There was a history book called the Supplement to the History of Tang Dynasty, which mentioned the tea from Mt. Mengding in Sichuan. The book said, “The local people have a custom to entertain their guests with good tea”. Even high quality tea falls into many different types. In the Jiannan area both Mengding tea and Shihua tea rank first in terms of their tastes and scent.
Since the Tang Dynasty the more popular, the way of drinking tea varied. Before the Tang Dynasty, people were not particular about their tea drinking. They drank tea for thirsty and medical purpose. In the Tang Dynasty, people tended to have more delicate tea tastes. The process seemed complicated. The tea drinker usually had to go through several stages before he /she could perform the preparation process properly. The first stage was to select tea, the second was to choose excellent tea cups and cooking utensils, the third was to prepare charcoal, the fourth was to get water, the fifth was to bake the chosen tea, the sixth was grind the tea, the seventh was to cook the tea, and the final one was to drink the tea.
People in the Tang Dynasty thought the taste might be better through the above procedures. They also took great care in the selection of water. The best water was from mountain springs, and the worst from ground wells.
From the Tang to the Song dynasties the output of tea production in Sichuan usually ranked first in China. During the Song Dynasty, the tea from Mt. Qingcheng continued to be on the list of tribute articles offered to the imperial court.
In 907, the Tang Dynasty finally fell and China split into a number of independent states. The South split into several kingdoms, which remained peaceful, and trade and commerce developed rapidly. The tea production in the southern areas at the present sites of Jiangshu and Zhejiang provinces developed so quickly that later these areas gradually became the center of China’s tea arts and culture.
People in the Song Dynasty drank tea more delicately than those in the Tang. Tea drinking was very popular among royal families in the Tang. During the Song Dynasty there were teahouses in some cities. Common people could go and drink tea there. In Chengdu some people set up tea service centers to offer tea for passers-by free of charge. It was called “official tea”.
In the Ming and Qing dynasties, tea drinking was different from the precious dynasties. People drank piece-tea instead of solid-tea. Tea-makers split the tea-leaf in an attempt to strengthen the tea-leaf’s flavor. People in the Ming Dynasty mainly drank green tea. Flower-tea came into being in the Ming Dynasty.
Since the Ming Dynasty the development of Sichuan tea began to be slow down. At the same time tea production advanced in Jiangsu and Zhjiang provinces in South China.
Down to the Qing Dynasty, jasmine tea was produced in Suzhou. Wuloong tea and black tea appeared in the Qing Dynasty, also. Incidentally, “black tea” was translated into Chinese as “red tea”, and gradually people accepted the translation. Well, what’s the main difference between the green tea and the black tea? The green tea is the variety which keeps the original color of the tealeaves without fermentation during processing. The black tea is fermented before baking, then it is developed on the basis of the green tea. There is semi-fermented tea like Wulong tea. The jasmine tea falls into the category of semi-fermented tea.
Jasmine buds are intentionally added into the tea, which produce an agreeable scent. Customers usually buy jasmine tea according to its quality grades, which may come in as many as ten or more grades. For example, jasmine tea in grade one is regarded as the best tea.
In the early days, people usually crushed tealeaves to powder or tiny pieces before they were soaked in a liquid. This custom has passed over to the Japanese tea ceremony. Teashops in China sell nearly all tea in leaf form to maintain the natural flavor.
Tea Culture in Sichuan
Traditionally, local people enjoy drinking tea. Usually local people drink tea before or after a meal. It is also drunk at any time of day or night. A tea drinker commonly brews his/her tea in a cup first by dropping a bit of dry tea leaves into the cup and then fills the cup one-third full with hot boiled water. The drinker refills the cup before he /she starts to drink. People often say that the tea water smells and tastes the best after the third water infusion. Sometimes a heavy tea drinker brews his/her tea twice or even three times.
People usually drink Jasmine tea when they sit in teahouse. Jasmine tea is the most enjoyable local tea . In Chengdu teahouses abound in and out of this city. Teahouses sprawl over Chengdu sidewalks, in back –alley sections and suburbs. Teahouses offer hot boiled water and tea snacks, and have a more comfortable setting with bamboo armchairs, low tables and sooty kettles. Local people, especially the elderly usually go to teahouses to sip tea and chat. They enjoy their pastimes and stay in their teahouses all day! Sometimes you will see that in teahouses many of them play games or cards. Some teahouses present performances like singing, local opera, and story telling.
At present it is hard to get to know how teahouses were “invented’ in Chengdu as well as in Sichuan. However, ever since the ancient times local teahouses remain busy because local people have made it a habit to spend part of their leisure in a teahouse.
In Chengdu, tea drinking utensils are made of bronze or ceramics. They consist of mainly teapots, cups, tea bowls and trays etc. Some first-class teahouses are equipped with high quality tea utensils. The use of tea wares has a long tradition in China. Unglazed earthenware is still used in Sichuan for brewing tea today. It reminds us of the earliest utensils used in ancient China. In the Tang Dynasty tea wares made of metals were used in ancient China. In the Song Dynasty tea bowls became common. They were glazed in black, dark-brown, gray, gray/white and white colors. Gray/white porcelain tea wares predominated in the Yuan Dynasty, and white glazed tea wares became popular in the Ming Dynasty. Teapots made of porcelain and purple clay were very much in fashion during the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Porcelain wares made in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province and purple clay wares made in Yixing, Jiangsu province occupied the top places among various kinds of tea wares.
A servant who offers customers tea in teahouses is respectfully called the Tea Service Master. They provide good service and skillfully brew tea for tea customers. The Tea Service Masters ware a traditional costume and prepare tea water in the traditional way. They have a good knowledge of tea and skillfully mix tealeaves. In fact, the tea servants normally go through years of intensive training before they are able to obtain the title of the Tea Service Master. These experienced masters will not spill even a single drop as they pour the steaming hot water into the tiny teacup in front of tea drinkers.
In Chengdu, some large teahouses are also fixed places for a variety of Sichuan local style entertainment. They include Sichuan Opera, Sichuan dialect storytelling, ballad singing, and puppet shows. They are performed by professionals, amateurs, or retired workers. Such places are difficult to locate, so it’s best to find a local tour guide to take you there. Other kinds of entertainment include mahjong and chess playing.
In Chengdu, teahouses also function as places for the exchange of current information. Most Chengdu teahouses cater to tea drinkers, young and old, who come to meet and have a chat about everything ranging from the bride’s dowry to a fierce political debate. Sichuan is an inland province in China and transportation is not as convenient as other coast provinces. However, as you sit in teahouses and start to chat with other customers, you will soon know everything under the sun.
Teahouses are places for people from various businesses and organizations to get together. They have some social activities or hold trade talks. Sometimes when people have a quarrel, a mediator will bring them to the teahouses. After their dispute is settled, the person who is wrong will pay for the tea. It is interesting that as soon as the quarrelers enter the teahouse and sit down to drink tea, they almost cool down. Their disputes can be easily settled with the help of the mediator. In the old society before 1949, reactionary fangs were popular in Chengdu as well as in Sichuan. The old teahouses served as their office places to conduct their business. Gradually some more functions came into being. Mass units in all walks of life tended to meet in teahouses for get-togethers. Non-government court was set up in teahouses to settle strikes or disputes among folks. Some local culture and art activities were held in teahouses where artists composed poems, painted pictures and watched performances.
Today all the traditional functions in teahouses are still working except the reactionary gangs’ office business. Some more changes have taken place in Chengdu teahouses downtown. They are a sort of pub-type teahouses with a nice balcony view and a pleasant interior decoration. The pub-type teahouses are usually busy in the afternoon and evening. They mainly cater to young people, who come to chat or talk business. However, traditional family-type teahouses are still popular in the suburbs. On weekends, citizens and their families from all walks of life depart from where they stay downtown and walk into teahouses in the beautiful countryside, where they enjoy drinking tea, chatting, playing cards or dozing off in their armchairs. Many pleasant weekends can be spent here over a cup of flower tea at a low cost.