Tea culture is an important part of Chinese traditional culture. With the social development and progress, tea not only has played a good role in driving the development in economy, but also has become a necessity in people’s lives. Moreover, it has gradually developed into resplendent tea culture and become a bright pearl of the spiritual civilization of the society.

The emergence of tea culture brings the spirit and wisdom of human beings to a higher ambit. Tea has an extremely close relationship with culture, covers a wide field and has very rich content. It not only has the embodiment of spiritual civilization, but also the extension of ideological form. No doubt it is beneficial in enhancing the cultural accomplishment and art appreciation level of people.

Classification

There is no agreement on the classification of tea. Tea can be classified by procedure, quality, preparation methods, and so on. Here tea is classified by the method of processing.

Green Tea is the most popular in most places in China. It is the best drink for sultry summers as it is cool and fights off inflammation, or relieves fever.

Fresh tea leaves are baked to remove the bitter taste. Quality green tea is picked around Pure Brightness (beginning around April 4-6) and Grain Rain (beginning around April 19-21). The water is clear and the leaves remain green.

The temperature of water should be varied according to the type of green tea. Generally, water temperature of 85 Celsius degree is the best.

Well known green teas include Longjing from the West Lake, Biluochun from Wu County, Suzhuo, Jiangsu Province, Huangshan Maofeng from Mt. Huangshan in Anhui, and Junshan Silver from the Hills of Junshan, Dongting Lake, Hunan Province.

The tonic effect of green tea has long been known. Its radiation-resistance effect makes it a top choice for people who sit before computers for long hours. Since it reportedly helps keep one fit and has a whitening effect on skin color, women prefer it.

Fresh tea is not appropriate for everyone, as some unwholesome substances may not have oxidized because of its certain medical effect.

Black tea is fermented tea. Unlike green tea, black tea does not lose its fragrance easily so it is suitable for long-distance transportation. This may explain why it was exported to the West. Black tea is believed to warm the stomach and is good in autumn and winter.

The most famous black teas include Qi Hong, Dian Hong and Ying Hong. Hong means red; black tea is called Hong Cha, red tea, in Chinese.

Qi Hong originates from Qimen, Anhui Province. It has been the favorite black tea among Chinese black tea connoisseurs since it was developed in 1876. By 1939 this type of tea accounted for one-third of black tea consumed in China. Qihong, Darjiling from India and Uva from Sri Lanka are the world's three major types of black tea.

Dian Hong is from Yunnan as Dian is the short name for Yunnan. The area's favorable climate ensures the widespread production of black tea, especially in southern and western areas.

Ying Hong is from Yingde, Guangdong. The British royal family enjoyed its unique sweetness with the flavor of milk.

Oolong tea reminds tea gourmets of gongfu tea, which features a whole set of tea wares from a small oven to a tea pot and tiny tea cups. Gongfu means skill. Tea is poured into tiny teacups one by one. The mellowness of oolong tea as well as that of friendship is strengthened as time passes by. The three major oolong growth areas are Fujian, Guangdong, and Taiwan. Tieguanyin has become the representative of oolong tea although the most precious is Dahongpao (Big red robe), which was once used as a tribute.

Tea compressed into the shape of brick is called brick tea. It is very popular among the Tibetan, Mongolian and Uigur for making yak butter tea or milk tea. For nomads, this kind of tea is easy to transport. There are many places in China producing brick tea, including Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, Yunnan and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Sichuan is the largest producer, while pu er tea is grown in Yunnan province. Pu erh has come into vogue among white-collar workers in major cities owing to its unique earthy mellowness.

Scented tea is a mixture of flowers with green tea, black tea or oolong tea. The flowers include jasmine, orchid, plum, gardenia, rose, and sweet-scented osmanthus with jasmine being the most popular. There are strict rules about the proportion of flowers to tea. If there are too many flowers, the scent of flowers will dilute that of tea; if too few, the tea is not perfect. Scented tea is sweet, pleasant and delightful to the palate. Fuzhou in Fujian Province and Suzhou in Jiangsu Province have long been famous for jasmine tea.

Strolling around the famous West Lake, can you smell the sweet fragrance of tea from the mountains behind? It is the Dragon Well Tea, world famous for its "four wonders" - emerald green color, aromatic flavor, sweet taste and beautiful appearance. Because of its nutritional value and extraordinary effect on people's health, it is favored by both the domestic and foreign markets.

Dragon Well Tea (Longjing Tea)

Production Area

Dragon Well Tea flourishes in the mountainous area where mild climate and plentiful rainfall are plentiful year-round. Around West Lake, Shifeng Peak, Longjing Village, Yunxi Mountain, Hupao and Meijiawu Region offer such prime conditions. The history of planting tea trees is rather long in these areas, as the tea sage Lu Yu mentioned in his Book of Tea. The teas grown in these areas were called Shi, Long, Yun, Hu and Mei respectively in the past. Now, with an increase in production, it is generally classified into Xihu (West Lake) Longjing Tea, Qiantang Longjing Tea and Yuezhou Longjing Tea, among which the Xihu Longjing Tea is the best.

Production Process

The excellent quality of Dragon Well Tea is guaranteed by a super elaborate production process. The picking of the tea leaves emphasizes the importance of timeliness. As a famous among tea growers saying goes, "Tea leaves are a treasure if picked earlier while it is useless as grass if picked too late." Dragon Well Tea leaves are picked during different periods of time. Generally speaking, the best tea is picked before Qingming Festival, which is called Mingqian Tea. The tea leaves picked before Grain Rain are fairly good and are called Yuqian Tea. The selection process of tea leaves is very strict. Only the delicate and complete tea leaves are to be picked. After the fresh leaves have been picked, tea makers should first grade them, as different qualities of leaves need to be dealt with different temperature and techniques. Tea masters will bake the tea by hand using specially made iron pans. Traditional method of making Dragon Well Tea has many ways - grasp, toss, shake, pile, throw, buckle, press, and grind. Experienced tea masters know well how and when to use the certain movements according to the temperature, color and moisture content of tea leaves. Usually, Dragon Well Tea is graded using a scale of six levels from superior quality to low quality. Different levels of tea have different methods to bake.

Infusion of Tea

Good tea must be made with good water, so its flavor can be totally infused. The Dragon Well Tea and Hupao Spring is a perfect match. With less soluble minerals and higher concentration levels of organic nitride, Hupao water is favorable for producing the flavor and fragrance of Dragon Well Tea. The 212F boiled water is not suggested because the high temperature will break the nutrition and taste.  Instead, boiled water at around 185F is appropriate. Usually people use glasses as the tea ware to infuse Dragon Well Tea because the beauty of the tea leaves rising and falling in the water can be enjoyed through the transparent glass. Like the newly-opened orchid, the tea leaves extend their waists gently and slowly. It is no doubt an inspirational experience.

Dragon Well Tea adds luster to West Lake and has become another reason for travelers to visit the lake. It is a heavenly unforgettable experience for visitors to take in the beautiful views around the lake while enjoying a cup of Dragon Well Tea.

Tea Wares

Though not as strict as the tea ceremony in Japan, certain rules govern the Chinese understanding of tea. Take tea wares as an example. Green tea goes with white porcelain or celadon without a cover; scented tea with celadon or blue and white porcelain with a cover; black tea goes well with purple clay ware with white inside glaze, or with white porcelain or warm colored wares or coffee wares; and Oolong tea is also excellent in purple clay ware. In a word, the harmonious combination of function, material, and color of tea ware is essential to excellent tea.

Tea wares consist of ovens, tea rollers, teapots, cups, tea bowls, and trays and so on. Nowadays with the development of tea procedure, we can make a cup of tea with a single porcelain cup. In the following passage, we will focus on the most essential tea ware-tea cups and teapots.

The custom of drinking tea propelled the development of the porcelain industry. Tang scholars preferred green porcelain from Shaoxing, Zhejiang province. This kind of green porcelain was like crystal or jade with elegant design and exquisite decoration. Since the true color of tea was set off beautifully in this dainty cup (ou in Chinese), it was number one in Lu Yu's Tea Classics. As to function, the size and design of the cup best suited to the tea drinking habit of that time allowed for cooking tea powder with green onion, ginger, dates, tangerine peels and peppermint, then drinking the whole liquor-like soup.

The preference for green porcelain or white porcelain was suddenly changed to black glazed teacups in the Song Dynasty. Scholars emphasized the white foam that formed when boiled water was added to the teacup. The most desirable foam was white, best presented in black tea ware. Furthermore, it was easy to observe the foam in the upturned dipper-like teacups. Black glazed tea ware from Fujian was dominant, while purple clay tea wares emerged in Yixing, Jiangsu.

In the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, tea was made by pouring boiled water onto loose tea leaves. The tea liquor turned yellowish white, so snow-white teacups replaced the black-glazed tea ware of the Song Dynasty. In the middle of the Ming, with the advent of purple clay tea ware, focus was not limited to the color contrast of tea liquor and tea ware, but switched to the fragrance and taste of tea. The production of various teapots came to its pinnacle.

Tea wares made for the royal family in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, shone brilliantly among numerous tea wares. New designs of teapots and cups increased with the development of tea types.