Asian Adventure: The kung fu Chinese tea ceremony

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/04/2012 (5022 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

­The Kung Fu Tea Ceremony (Gong Fu Cha, 工夫茶) in China showcases the development and art of a cultural Chinese staple, tea. Exact physics and chemistry are used to brew the perfect batch of tea for the public. People watch in awe as a tea master performs complicated and fast pours across a tea table, while speaking of the particular kind they are making. This is where the kung fu comes in. The movements are not about fighting, but rather about seeking perfection in the performance. It is fun to watch.

Our tea master, Chen, started off in Beijing, learning the family business and studying the methods that would later become her livelihood. The shop would eventually come to rest on the Salt Merchant Street of Yangzhou. It is there where her and her sister safeguard the cultural history of Chinese Kung Fu Tea brewing by performing the ceremony and selling five different kinds of tea. To supply the store, Chen’s older sister has to travel to Yunnan province once a year where their specialty tea, Pu Ehr, is grown. It is a long journey and vital to the business. Which is why we found Chen by herself and willing to enlighten some Westerners.

The ceremony itself is free to watch. It provides an incentive for people to buy the tea and sample the wares of the shop. The first thing that happens in a tea ceremony is the cleansing. Using boiled spring water, Chen disinfects every part of the tea tray, cups and utensils that will be used. Then, she breaks off a large piece from the block of fermented Pu Ehr leaves, adding both leaves and spring water to the teapot. The first tea she pours is a second cleansing of the tea tray. The tea at this point is generally weak and useless except as a way to get the smell out into the store. It is not exactly wasteful either. You can add water up to 20 times before this type loses its flavour. Even if you only have a little bit you definitely get your money’s worth.

After that you drink no less than your body weight in tea. Well, maybe not that much but you definitely do not leave without sampling at least two different kinds a dozen times each. While doing this, Chen shows off the different pots and utensils in the store along with the oldest tea that they have: a 24-year-old Pu Ehr that is about $60 (Canadian) a gram. It is pretty much only for the tea connoisseur who has money to burn. But we were not immune to her selling. Krista and I eventually bought a packet of Pu Ehr and Chen threw in a free sample of a more expensive variety. It was only through sheer willpower that we left without buying the store.