Tea Sets a Great Tradition in China

To the Chinese population, tea is an extremely important part of each day. Tea consumption and preparation has a large role in Chinese culture. Having been tea drinkers for many hundreds of years, the Chinese have great experience and knowledge about tea and tea making.

There are several steps involved in the proper preparation of tea. The first step is selecting the most appropriate tea set. This is crucial to the process of preparing good tea, and the role that the set plays is more than decorative, as the proper brewing of tea is part of the process.

What then, are the proper components of a Chinese tea set? A good set includes tea saucers, tea bowls, a teapot, and a tea tray. There are various design characteristics that are traditional, and the sets themselves often become a significant part of the artistry of drinking tea and making tea.

In fact, the value of some tea sets is astronomical, depending on the design and artistry, as well as the age and other factors. These sets would not be used for everyday consumption, but rather would be considered more like art pieces in the home, and perhaps kept in lovely cabinets on display for most of the year. Only on special occasions would they be brought forth for a special tea ceremony, such as at a wedding. The other tea set in the home would be used for everyday meals and small gatherings, and would also be highly valued and considered part of the family, and part of every meal.

It is not very difficult to select the right tea sets and identify their use. The selection of a Chinese tea set for every day use depends primarily on the types of the tea that the owners will be drinking. To some degree it even depends on in what region the people live.

For example, floral teas (which are considered herbal teas) are most commonly consumed in the eastern as well as northern regions of China. Since large teapots are commonly employed to boil the tea in water when brewing floral tea, this would be the teapot most commonly selected for everyday use in those regions. These teapots are generally ceramic, and their size varies according to the number of people to be served.

In the Kangnam region, green tea is the favorite, so lidded ceramic teapots are most commonly seen. Other regions favor oolong tea, so in Fujian or Guangdong provinces, a regular kettle will be used for brewing most of the time.

Gongfu or Hong teas are suited to either regular kettles or ceramic pots. But some of the more special teas such as Jun-shan-yin-zhen, Ton-ting-bilei-chun, or Xihu-long-jing, call for clear glass cups instead of the regular tea cups.

Small tea cups are most appropriate for fine-leaf teas, rather than large cups. The reason is that large cups allow the ratio of water to tea to change, and the leaves will brew too quickly, discoloring the leaves and changing the fragrance and flavor of the resulting tea. Another interesting element is the addition of a modern thermos to the traditional tea set. Many people enjoy keeping green tea in a thermos, to enhance the flavor and color. You can find thermoses in many of the sets for sale today.

Several other items may or may not be included in a Chinese tea set, including tea set cover cloths, tea plats, and trays. Some sets are rather large, but don't forget that often the more traditional, historical sets were quite simple, and don't assume that more is better. The storied tradition of drinking tea is time honored, so get yourself on the right path to proper tea drinking by buying a Chinese tea set for yourself soon.

Article Source: Main Articles

Author Dugan Venfield writes for several established web sites, on anti aging products and health news themes.
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