Some quick Chinese tea drinking customs for all you, erm, Chinese Tea fans: The youngest person of a family or Si Dai’s of a kung fu school should serve the tea by pouring for the eldest/most senior person there, i.e. granny or Si Fu/ Si Mo and then so on down the ranks. Often that means that the server doesn’t get any tea. Luckily I’m a senior in my kwoon. Mmmm, tea. As the tea is being poured, the people being served will often tap the table with the index finger and the immediate fingers either side, with the index finger being slightly extended. This shows gratitude and apparently signifies bowing with the index finger representing the head and the fingers either side the shoulders. To score refills in a restaurant simply leave the teapot lid at a jaunty angle. This will have the effect of the waiter/waitresses rushing to fill your teapot with boiling water. Alternatively you can ask for more tea verbally which is rather archaic…
Interesting stuff Chimp! Not tried the jaunty angle teapot thing yet, they tend to come and fill our pots constantly anyway
Tea also plays an important role in Klingon culture where tea is an extremely powerful drink, so much so that it can be deadly to humans if it is not prepared correctly. In Star Trek: TNG, Dr. Pulaski injected herself with an antidote before partaking in Klingon tea drinking ceremony being performed by Worf as an appreciation of her help in hiding his illness from the rest of the crew.
While not a Chinese tea, I like Yerba Mate in the mornings. It's got some caffeine in it, but seems very mild. The taste is acquired, I think, but I really enjoy it now. Rooibos is great. I can drink that any time. Su Lin, do you contaminate your tea with milk or sugar?
That's 'cos he's secretly a GAHEEEEEEK!!!! Su - how do you about making these teas without using a teabag? Do you have bits floating around when trying to drink it?
There’s a “tea” drinking ceremony at my kwoon when peeps become Kwan Dai (The God of War) students. Before the alter of the Kwan Dai and past masters and kneeling in front of the Si Fu we would drink the “tea” from the same cup. I say “tea” as it was really some kind of alcohol. The sons of the Si Fu also did the same but as they are the sons and the familial inheritors of the school the “tea” is also poured across the ground in front of the Kwan Dai.
Isn't he just! If you use a teapot you can get infusers or strainers . For most teas such as green or white they tend to be flowers or twig type things so I tend not to bother straining it as they usually stay at the bottom of the cup.
many tea pots have a screen that keeps the floaties out. Or you can buy a tea ball, like a reusable bag, sort of. http://www.teaontheweb.com/images/teaballswhandles_300.gif Su Lin, I'm glad to hear that. I prefer my tea unadulterated, too.
Ah so that's what a tea pot's for. I always thought it was just for keep the tea warm until you drink it
When I was younger (27 to 28) I would amuse myself in restaurants by filling a cup so full that the meniscus and surface tension are the only things holding back a tidal wave of boiling hot tea from spilling onto the servee’s lap. Ahhhhhh, memories.
I'd question the teaspoon amount for loose leaf tho sulin, one for a two person pot, just a pinch in a glass cup for one person, also keep topping up with hot water and you should get four or more cups if the tea is any good, the taste gets better as you go along too. What puts a lot of people off green tea is the bitterness you get when it's made too strong - it put me off for years coz my Taiji teacher made me some and it was wayyyyy too strong for me (especially true of japanese tea also), once I had some made by a Chinese person it was a revelation and I've been hooked ever since! A glass cup is best for taste too imho.
Ey up, never mind that foreign Chinese muck. tha wants to get thee some real tea down thas neck. Try som a this, till warm thee rite up it will. Yorkshire tea, like tea used t be