Drink Tea and Fly like an Eagle

By INESA PLESKACHEUSKAYA

As home of the tea plant, China is synonymous with this refreshing beverage.

A drink made from the leaves of the plant Camellia Sinesis is described in Shennong Bencao Jing (Materia Medica of Shennong) of 2737 BC as “health giving” and one that “brings joy to the heart.” Tea drinking was strictly for medicinal purposes until the end of the Han Dynasty in 220. It then became an essential aspect of intellectual debate, particularly in the state of Shu of the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280) where it was preferred to wine. Buddhism has also played a supporting role in this Chinese love affair with tea. According to legend, the very first tea seedlings sprouted from the eyelashes of the monk Bodhidharma, in answer to his prayer for something that would help him stay awake during long nights of meditation. For centuries Chinese simply boiled tealeaves in a pot like soup and did not use the infusion method until the 14^th century. It was during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) that tea drinking became a stylized ritual and that a state monopoly on tea production and trading came into force.

Tea drinking only became fashionable in Europe and America in the 17th-18th centuries, when trading with China began. People think of tea as a traditional English drink, which is certainly true, but how did this come about? Tea was first drunk in China and next in India. It was expansion of trade and reduction in import tax in 1746 that gave birth to the famous British “tea at five o’clock” tradition.

There are five categories of Chinese tea. Most popular within China is green tea, which retains its original color, and whose leaves are heated to prevent fermentation or oil effusion in boiling water. The most famous green teas are Longjin (Dragon Well) from Zhejiang Province, Maofeng from Huangshan Mountain in Anhui Province and Biluochun from Jiangsu.

Black tea in China is called hong cha – “red tea.” Its leaves are fermented before being heated and it contains oils that dissolve in hot water, giving it its darker color. This kind of tea making has only been popular in China since the 17^th century. The finest of hong cha are Qihong from Anhui, Dianhong from Yunnan, Suhong from Jiangsu, Chuanhong from Sichuan and Huhong from Hunan Province. 

The third category of tea is unique to China and has no equivalent in any other country. It is oolong tea, which is partially fermented and occupies an intermediate position between green and black tea. oolong specialists are all situated in China’s southern provinces – Fujian, Guangdong and Taiwan. The most famous black tea is “Iron Guanyin.”

Compressed tea produced in briquettes is convenient for storage and shipping. Often referred to as “black,” it is not the same as the black tea drunk in Europe.  It is produced mainly in Hubei, Hunan, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces.

Aromatized tea is a mixture of tealeaves and flowers, although tea made exclusively from flowers is no rarity. Jasmine tea is most popular in northern China, where it is believed that aromatized tea improves the digestion through helping to break down fats. 

In many restaurants tea is served before anything else, regardless of whether or not it has been ordered, and is very often free of charge. Diners order oily and spicy dishes without fear of gastric repercussions, as a drink of green tea ensures easy digestion.

To Chinese people, tea is like a faithful and beloved wife who commands complete loyalty. Virtually every citizen of the Celestial Kingdom has their favorite tea from which they seldom stray. They take it with them in a tea flask to work or public functions. As may be observed from televised participants in governmental conferences bring their own tea that they place in the cup provided and which is periodically topped up with boiling water. This is one attribute of tea particularly appreciated by the thrifty Chinese: that a portion lasts for several hours and retains its quality.

There is a Chinese saying: “It is better to live three days without salt than one day without tea.” Tea is considered a remedy for many diseases within traditional Chinese medicine. Practitioners insist that bitter tea relieves inflammation, prevents upset stomachs, whets the appetite, and restores good spirits. Tea is rich in vitamin C, which combats cholesterol, arteriosclerosis and hypertension. The vitamin B in tea helps to clean blood-vessel walls and soften capillaries, and its other vitamins prevent formation of blood pigmentation and melanoma. Another tea ingredient – tannin – soaks up melanin and flushes it out of the body, keeping the skin soft and healthy looking. Tea also contains alkaline minerals that decompose fats and help digestion, which means regular tea drinking is an effective method of weight control. Finally, the caffeine in tea stimulates the metabolism and produces insulin, which is why many diabetics drink it as a therapeutic agent.

Chinese tea must be made the correct way if it is to be truly enjoyed, and great store has always been laid on implements and ingredients, the most important being, of course, water. By the 9^th century tea-drinking connoisseurs had formulated 16 rules in regard to heating water, one of which was that it should be boiled over flames fueled by coal from the same area as where the tea plant originally grew. Well water being considered inappropriate, the best water was deemed to come from mountain springs containing melted snow and bamboo dew. Correct tea implements were also essential to a good cup. For a long time teapots were made of metal – gold, silver, copper, tin and alloys. During the Tang Dynasty (618-907) they were fashioned in white and grey-green porcelain that, when tapped, emitted a sound like “sorrowful jade.” Later black cups were used, and during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) white porcelain painted with cobalt became fashionable. It was at this time that ceramic teapots came commonplace.

Here’s to happy tea-drinking! 

INESA PLESKACHEUSKAYA is the Beijing bureau chief of the Belorussian national newspaper Belarus Today and the National TV channel ONT.