Recent Tea Reads [Migrated Post]

I've never really showed my share of books on tea around here. It's always been a series of random books that I personally find interesting, which can range from business books to traditional fairy tales (you're most likely to find me in bookstores around town ...). But since you're here now and probably a fellow tea and books lover, I want to share with you some of the most fascinating reads on tea, its origins and making, as well as the cultural connotations that the cup carries.

How to Make Tea: The Science Behind the Leaf by Brian R. Keating and Kim Long

For a 160-page book, this is a comprehensive read on tea basics and technical aspects of making the brew. If I have to sum it up in a short sentence, it'll be "A definitive how-to article of everything you need to know about tea in book form" :p Not formal and definitely non-boring, so please don't judge the book by its title :) If you're a newfound lover of tea, I highly recommend How to Make Tea as your brewing companion. P.S. The book features simple diagrams and lined illustrations along with its texts.

识茶·泡茶·品茶 (彩图版) by 徐馨雅

If you can read and understand simplified Mandarin Chinese, you should definitely get this book. I found it at a Kinokuniya bookstore, and it was on sale. So yeap, how could I not get it?! Everything you need to know about tea in China, with an encyclopedic introduction to the different types of Chinese teas along with how to best enjoy them respectively spanning the first half of the book, and with traditional tea recipes and their health benefits for soothing all sorts of ailments covering the second half of it. What I love most was that it's modern, easy to understand, and highly applicable. So get the gem from the Chinese-language sales section of Kinokuniya, stat.

The Tea Book by Linda Gaylard

Better known as The Tea Stylist, Linda Gaylard is your go-to gal for learning how to love the cup of joy. Just because tea originated from China doesn't mean Indians, Africans, Japanese, the Brits, or even Indonesians cannot enjoy the brew. Personally, I think this is highly condensed book about tea for the general public, but what I find helpful in your tea journey was the beautiful visuals and infographics throughout the pages - they really help you learn. The contents were neatly divided according to what the average Joe Schmoe would be interested in when he's first introduced to tea, but probably still hasn't delved deeper yet into its world. If you can't tell the difference between Chinese red tea and rooibos tea, I highly recommend getting this guide for your toilet reading ;) The last chapters of the book features both tea and tisane recipes for you to try at home. Neat, huh?

The Ancient Art of Tea: Wisdom From the Old Chinese Tea Masters by Warren Peltier

Now if you're the artsy-fartsy type (like I am) and is reaaally into the long, complex history behind the beverage, what made it so popular around the world, and the rich culture that it's bore, I super duper recommend The Ancient Art of Tea. Just a couple of weeks ago I discussed what I learned about the factors affecting the taste of your tea when it concerns to companionship - do you enjoy it better in solitude, or with a friend? Turns out the ancient practitioners, i.e. the experts, claimed that tea is best enjoyed alone. I would argue that it's best when you make it for your good tea-loving friend, but that's just one of the interesting things you'll learn from this handy 6-inch (square) hardcover. Its customs, rituals, and etiquettes are all classic wisdom for making tea your natural way of life.



Love, Stace

Tea And Company [Migrated Post]

Don’t know about you, but I grew up preferring having my cup of tea alone. Warm matcha with dark chocolate bits have been my most loyal and trustworthy companion ever since my high school days, to soothe me in the late afternoons of crying over boys and lift me up during the boring bits of trashy novels. Throughout those years I’ve grown this intimate relationship with the entire process of preparing tea. So to say the beverage is a non-living thing is almost a sin. Much more than it is a beverage to be drunk, it’s a sensation to be felt, and nothing else in the world can compare to experiencing tea at its essence.

Of the many factors that affect the volatile essence (and consequently taste) of tea, the presence of company is one that fascinates me the most. Two commentaries from the wide array of tea books published during the Ming Dynasty 明朝 took note of this almost sacred solitary act of brewing and steeping tea, both mentioned in Chapter 4, ‘The Taste of Tea’, of Warren Peltier’s The Ancient Art of Tea: Wisdom From the Old Chinese Tea Masters. Calligrapher-painter Chen Ji Ru 陈继儒 described in his Majestic Affairs on Cliff Couch:

In tasting tea, one person can taste tea’s essence;
two people can taste tea’s delight;
three people can taste tea’s flavor;
but six or seven people together can only be called
using (drinking) tea.

Scholar Zhang Yuan 张源 further elaborated on this commentary in Record of Tea later on, stating:

Drinking tea is most valued when there are few guests;
where there is a multitude of people there is clamor;
when there is clamor tasteful interest is lacking!
Solitary sipping is called peaceful;
two guests are called elegant;
three to four people are called a delight;
five to six people are called common;
seven to eight people are called depraved.

I find these commentaries to be very true – even three is sometimes a crowd when it comes to tea, as if with every additional company, its full flavor, color, and aroma gets diluted.

There is healing when you listen to waters ripple as they flow to your teacup; there is pleasure even just watching the tea leaves expand during steeping. But as I grow older, I found that the best tea experience is when you’re having the jade nectar with your favorite tea-loving friend, immersed deep in the most intimate conversations over a leisurely cup of delight.

What about you? Do you enjoy tea more during your private hours or with a friend?



Love, Stace