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UWI TODAY
– SUNDAY 6 MAY, 2018
If you are not slurping your tea,
you are doing it wrong.
The UWI St. Augustine’s Confucius Institute hosted a series
of workshops in February as part of their Chinese New Year
and Spring Festival celebrations.
One was a Tea Appreciationworkshopwhere Instructor
Han Lipeng taught a packed room the history of tea or chá,
as it is known in mandarin, and the art of drinking tea at
home. Here’s what you need to know:
Step 1:
Sterilize and warm your tea cup by dipping it in a
bowl of water with a wooden stick.
Step 2:
Add loose tea or cháyè into your fairness cup or
gong dao bei (A clay teapot or pitcher meant to be shared
with everyone fairly).
Step 3:
Pour hot soft water (definitely not tap water) over
the loose tea in the fairness cup and then pour the water out
– this is to let the tea leaves open up to give it a full-bodied
aroma.
Step 4:
Pour the hot water into your fairness cup again
and let it brew. The length of time will depend on the type
of tea. Green tea for example, requires a very short brewing
time of 30 seconds or else it gets bitter.
Step 5:
Pour the tea for your guests in a small fragrance
cup also known as a tea sniffer. Place the small teacup over
the tea sniffer and flip it over.
Step 6:
Sniffing is not just for wine; tea has a fragrance
too! Take the tea sniffer out of the teacup and pass it
around to your guests. Let them enjoy the fragrant, complex
tea aroma. Trust me, you do not want to skip this multi-
sensory experience.
Step 7:
Pour sieved tea into tea cups for your guests.
Remember not to fill to the brim to avoid scalding and
other tea-related injuries. Now it’s time for
pǐn chá
or tea
tasting – again like wine, you want the tea to cover all of
your tongue to taste every aspect of it so make sure to slurp.
No, it’s not rude at all. Slurp. Slurp. Slurp and savour!
(Jeanette G. Awai)
CAMPUS NEWS
Instructor Han Lipeng identified the different types of tea and how to drink them.
PHOTO: CONFUCIUS INSTITUTE
Members of The UWI community tried some tea therapy.
The Art of
Drinking Tea
