Posted 2018/5/29
With the immense popularity of bubble milk tea and the quirky modern creation of green tea-flavor Sprite, it’s easy to forget the real meaning of a good cup of tea, even in China where tea leaves have been consumed for roughly three centuries.
Sun Yuping (孙玉萍) is the tea master of Shanghai Fenghe Teahouse.
The 53-year-old woman has been practicing the art of tea for more than 12 years, from boiling water to the precise temperature to pouring the beverage with the best angle.
We sat down with Sun -- over a cup of tea, of course -- to chat about tea: when to drink it, how to prepare it, and why you should love it.
1. Spring is the best season to drink green teaSeason matters when it comes to the quality and taste of tea leaves.
Normally, green tea (绿茶) is collected before the Qingming Festival and the fresh batches are called xincha (new tea).
Xincha tastes fresher and more fragrant when enjoyed during that season.
“Xincha is so fresh that it smells just like you’re drinking grass,” says Sun Yuping, "but in a good way."
2. The best time to drink Tieguanyin is the fallLooking for good Tieguanyin (铁观音)? You'll probably have to wait a few months for this premium variety of oolong tea.
“Generally, the best time for Tieguanyin is the fall,” Sun says.
“After the spring and summer picking season is over, the plants have lost some their nutrition, ” she continues, “leaving the rest relatively infertile, resulting in lighter fragrance, which appeals to a lot of people.”
3. Never pour a full cup of tea
“Like wines in Western culture, tea in China is more of a sense and concept than taste,” she explains. “You should never completely fill your tea cup, it's considered impolite.”
So next time when you are served with a cup of not fully filled cha, you should feel extra fulfilled.
Many Chinese experts believe that tea should only fill 70 percent of a cup while the other 30 percent is "space for your emotions," says Sun.
4. Water temperature affects the tasteNot any boiled water will do for tea.
Water temperatures between 80 and 90 C are fine for Longjing tea (龙井茶), 75 C is best for Biluochun tea (碧螺春), and aim for 100 C for tieguanyin, notes Sun.
According to Sun, customers can refuse the order if the tea is not offered at the right temperature in Shanghai -- too low and the taste won't have developed, too high and the flavor is destroyed.
5. Kung fu tea is for real tea lovers
“Tea lovers ought to have a try of kung fu tea," says Sun. "That’s real art."
Kung fu tea isn’t a type of tea or a martial art, but an exact brewing process.
Its art lies in a combination of the right amount of tea leaves, high water temperature, particular brewing time and special tea utensils made with purple, sandy clay, which requires time to appreciate.
"Although most local tea houses can prepare tea like this," says Sun, "you usually need to ask for it, and you should. The process and taste are worth the effort."
6. Do judge tea by its appearance, except for Pu'erUsually, you can make pretty good snap judgements about tea just by looking at the buds -- all but Pu'er tea (普洱茶) that is.
Pu'er is a type of post-fermented black tea originated from the city of Pu'er in Yunnan Province.
“It’s unwise to judge pu'er by appearance, especially the compressed tea-leave cakes, as merchants put in lots of impurities,” Sun says. “The safest way to tell good pu'er is to taste it.”
“Excellent pu'er tastes smooth and a bit bitter with a sweet aftertaste,” she adds.
7. Certain types of tea help sooth sore throat
A cuppa with tea with arhat fruit (罗汉果) or malva nuts (胖大海) is good for a sore throat, according to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).
"If your profession relies much on your voice, it’s good to have these two at hand," says Sun.
Both fruits are unique in Asia -- arhat fruit in south China and north Thailand and malva nuts in southeast Asia -- and are considered natural medicines by the Chinese.
“Specifically, arhat fruit (luo han guo in Mandarin) has noticeable effect on curing a cough," she continues, "while malva nuts (pang da hai in Mandarin) helps to relieve a hoarse voice.
"Just be careful with the dosage -- drink in moderation."
