Which tea do you think tastes better, loose leaf tea or bagged tea?

Many people may think that loose leaf tea tastes better, but is that true?

What is the difference between tea bags and loose leaf teas?

Tea bag is a portion served with measured tea leaves in a small tea bag, whereas loose tea is the tea served as is.

Loose leaf teas take more work to make, but you can adjust the weight of tea leaves to change the strengths of your tea according to your mood, and loose leaf teas are normally more reasonable than tea bags.

On the other hand, tea bags are easier to be made, cleaned afterward and carried.

There have lately been more households without teapots as they only have tea bags to make teas.

Tea bags and loose leaf teas are from the same tea leaves?

Some people think that bagged tea doesn’t taste as good as leaf tea, but that’s actually not true.

Same tea leaves are used to make tea bags and loose leaf teas.

In addition, there have lately been more tea bags designed to taste better as they are particular about the materials and shapes. Therefore, it is not true that bagged tea tastes less than loose leaf tea.

How to brew good bagged tea.

We are going to share how to make good bagged tea.

The good thing about tea bags is that you can make tea with no techniques, but you can make your bagged tea taste better by knowing some tips.

Pay attention to the temperature

Like loose leaf tea, you use hot water at 70-80 degrees celsius to make bagged tea. However, make sure to check the tea leaves to use as boiling water is more likely to create aromas in black tea and roasted teas like hojicha.

Do not dunk tea bag too much

Some people dunk their tea bag to diffuse more quickly / produce a stronger cup.

However, dunking the tea bag should be up to 4-5 times since crushing tea leaves by too much dunking may cause unpleasant flavours.

No pouring hot water directly on tea bag

With the same reason mentioned above (to avoid crushing tea leaves), gently pour hot water from the edge of the mug to avoid directly touching the tea bag.

Steep time is 2-3 minutes

Steep time varies according to the tea leaves. Check the direction shown on the package.

The feature of bagged tea is that you can easily drink it when you want to.

Although it surely tastes good simply by pouring hot water in, we recommend these tips for those who want to make their bagged tea taste better.

The highest quality green tea gyokuro is reputably called “King of green teas”. It is very valuable and rare, and some high-class gyokuro is even valued 20 times higher than the ordinary teas.

Although gyokuro is not so common to drink, if you have an opportunity, hope it is brewed in a genuine way to fully enjoy its goodness.

Taste and flavor of gyokuro

Gyokuro tastes less bitter, and smooth with strong sweetness and umami. It also has a characteristic aroma called “Oika” that’s only in gyokuro and smells like green seaweed. The taste of gyokuro is stunning and absolutely unforgettable.

Before brewing gyokuro

First of all, let’s see what you need to know to brew gyokuro.

Utensils

The tools to brew gyokuro are mostly the same as sencha’s, but we also introduce some good-to-have tools to use for the more genuine brewing.

Hohin (teapot)

Hohin is a kyusu teapot with no handle. It is used when wanting to thoroughly extract umami from teas like gyokuro and high-end sencha.

No handles needed on the teapot when brewing gyokuro as it is thoroughly brewed at a low temperature and the teapot wouldn’t get hot.

Hohin is not generally available in households, but it is very common to have in the Uji area where a great amount of high-end teas are produced.

But, if you don’t have one, there would be no problem using a kyusu instead.

Yuzamashi (cooling pot)

Yuzamashi is used to cool boiling water. Since gyokuro is brewed and thoroughly extracted at a low temperature, hot water cooled in the yuzamashi is used to brew gyokuro.

If you don’t have a yuzamashi, pour boiling water in a kyusu and pour the water in yunomi, then pour it back in the kyusu....,and repeat a couple of times.

Yunomi (teacup)

Gyokuro is to enjoy small sips rather than gulps.

Therefore, we recommend using small yunomi tea cups.

If you don’t have one, there would absolutely be no problem using the general size yunomi tea cups or mugs.

Chasaji (teaspoon)

If you don’t have a chasaji, you can use a teaspoon or a measuring spoon instead.

The weight of tea leaves for one cup is measured about 3g which is also about one heaping teaspoon.

There are actually a variety of chasaji designs, which attracts so many chasaji collectors.

If you don’t have one yet, you may be interested in searching for your favorite. You would see so many cute ones you may fall in love with.

Using these tools is good enough to brew gyokuro, but we recommend using tetsubin (iron kettle) to brew gyokuro better.

Tetsubin is a tool to boil water and made out of iron. The water boiled in tetsubin would taste smooth as the iron from tetsubin dissolves in.

Also, since the water temperature plays an important role in brewing gyokuro, we recommend using a thermometer for those who want to be more careful about the temperature.

Water and temperature

There are soft water and hard water, and the suitability depends on the tea

Hard water contains more calcium and magnesium than soft water, which prevents bitterness and ruins the original taste balance in tea.

Soft water can extract the ingredients and flavors from tea leaves, and the most suitable type of water to brew Japanese teas like gyokuro is soft water.

There would be no problem with tap water to brew tea as tap water in Japan is mostly soft water.

The water temperature for gyokuro should be as warm as 50-60 degrees celsius that‘s about 20 degrees lower than sencha’s.

For those who want to go further about the tea-temperature relationship, check this out.

How to brew gyokuro

Here are the instructions to brew gyokuro below;

Pour water in hohin

Pour the boiling water in a hobin (teapot), then pour it in yunomis (teacups) to serve.

Cool the boiling water

Pour the water out of the yunomis into a yuzamashi t(cooling pot) ill the water temperature lowers to 50-60 degrees celsius.

If you want to cool quickly, pour the water back and forth between the yuzamashi (cooling pot) and yunomis (teacups)

Put tea leaves in hohin (kyusu teapot)

Put 3g of tea leaves per cup.

Gyokuro is the highest-class tea and the tea leaves are delicate. Make sure to gently scoop up the tea leaves so that they don’t get damaged..

Pour hot water in hohin and let it sit

Pour the cooled water out of the yuzamashi (cooling pot) into the hohin.

Wait for about 2-3 minutes while the tea leaves gradually open.

Pour tea around in yunomis

Pour the tea around in yunomis (teacups)to serve.

Shake the hohin (teapot) at the end to make sure to pour out till the very last drop.

Since the tea leaves have already opened from the first brew, use a little warmer water for the second brew.

You can enjoy the second brew with a different taste and flavor from the first one.

There may be few people having brewed oolong tea.

Many of you may not drink oolong tea hot but cold/iced.

Brewing oolong tea takes some work but it tastes nice and warm. Are you interested in brewing oolong tea now?

Taste and flavor of oolong tea

Oolong tea is characterized by its brown color, particular roasting aroma compared to green tea and black tea, and a little bit of bitterness.

With its refreshing aftertaste, it is more likely to be drunk after having heavy meals like Chinese food.

Before brewing oolong tea…

Oolong tea takes some work to brew and requires tools that are not so known.

In this article, we are going to introduce genuine ways to brew oolong tea and tools to use.

Utensils

You need a lot of utensils to brew oolong tea.

If you want to brew in a genuine way, you would need the utensils mentioned below, but, if you just want to brew at home, there would be no problem using your teapot and teacups to brew.

Chaban(Tea tray)

Oolong tea has a process of frequent pouring and dumping hot water.

Chaban is like a small tea tray that receives the dumped / overflowed water.

Chatsubo (Chinese teapot)

Chatsubo is a Chinese teapot designed to brew Chinese tea.

Chinese teapots are usually smaller than Japanese ones.

Also, there are alternate tools to be used such as; “Gaiwan”: a yunomi teacup to directly brew tea in with a lid on to steam, and “Hobyo”: a teapot with no handle that’s also used to brew high-end teas like Gyokuro in Japan.

Chahai (Chinese tea cup)

Chahai is a small Chinese teacup to drink Chinese tea.

As Chinese teas mostly taste strong, they are to enjoy small sips in a small teacup rather than gulps.

Chabune (Small tea tray)

Chabune is a tray to receive hot water when pouring onto the chatsubo (teapot) and chahais (teacups) to warm up.

Chakai (Tea server)

Chakai is a tool to diffuse evenly, which is like a tea server pot for English tea.

Chaka (Teaspoon)

Chaka is used to put tea leaves in a teapot. It is like a teaspoon, and other types of spoons can be used as well.

Chabasami (Tongs)

Chabasami is like tongs used to pick up chahais (tea cups).

For those who want to brew in a more genuine way, we recommend using a tetsubin that’s an iron pot to boil water because the pot makes the water taste smooth as the iron of the pot dissolves in water.

Water and temperature

Black tea and green tea can be affected by the types of water, whereas, oolong tea can hardly be affected by water unlike other teas. Therefore, it doesn’t matter using soft or hard water.

The best water temperature to brew oolong tea is 95-100 degrees celsius. Green tea would taste bitter when brewed at a higher temperature than it should be, while oolong tea can taste more aromatic when brewed at a high temperature.

If you want to know more about the tea temperature, here’s more below;

How to brew oolong tea

First of all, we are going to introduce the genuine way to brew oolong tea.

Warm the tea set

Place a chatsubo (teapot) and chahai (teacups) in the chabune (small tea tray) and pour hot water onto them to warm up.

Transfer to chaban

Transfer the warmed chahais (teacups) to the chaban (tea tray). The chahais will be picked up with the chabasami (tongs), instead of hands, and transferred one by one.

Put tea leaves into chatsubo

Put tea leaves into the chatsubo (teapot) till the bottom is covered.

Rinse tea leaves

Fill up the chatsubo with boiling water and pour in chakai (tea server) immediately.

Then pour the tea out of the chakai (tea server) into the chahais (teacups). Make sure to thoroughly pour the tea out of the chatsubo without leaving a single drop.

Since oolong tea leaves are hard and dry, the rinse softens the tea leaves and makes tea leaves easier to extract ingredients and aromas.

Fill up chatsubo with boiling water

Refill up the chatsubo (teapot) with boiling water. Pour in till it gets overflowed.

Skim off scum

There will be foam (scum) on the surface of the tea in the chatsubo, use its lid to skim off the foam then put the lid on.

Warm up chatsubo (teapot)

Pour the tea that was in the chahais (tea cups) into the chatsubo (teapot) to warm up.

Transfer the tea in chakai (tea server)

After about 1 minute, turn around the chatsubo (teapot) once to drain the water on the bottom and pour the tea in the chakai (tea server) to diffuse evenly.

At that time, make sure to pour the tea out thoroughly to the last drop.

Pour tea

Pour the tea out of the chakai (tea server) into the chahais (teacups) to finish. Enjoy the nice and hot tea.

These are the genuine instructions to brew oolong tea.

If you just want to brew oolong tea with what you have at home, brew with the same water temperature and weight of tea leaves. Pour only on the teapot and teacups to warm up. Then put tea leaves in the warmed teapot and pour boiling water in. Wait for 1 minute after pouring hot water in, then pour the tea in the teacups.

The instructions are pretty much the same as green tea’s, but using boiling water is the important tip to brew oolong tea.

Compared to green tea, there may not be many people brewing black tea.

Although bagged tea tastes good enough, leaf tea brewed on your own would taste exceptional.

Hope this article will encourage you to have a luxury tea time with good brewed tea.

Taste and flavor of black tea

Compared to green tea and oolong tea, the taste and flavor of black tea are elegant and gentle, and its color is dark red.

There are a variety of tastes of black tea, from unique and strong to light and universal, and the feature is that each taste of black tea is clearly distinguishable.

Before brewing black tea

If you are looking for the easiest way to brew black tea, it would be good enough if you have a tea strainer and a mug. Whereas, those who want to brew in a genuine way would need tools mentioned below;

Utensils

Now, we are going to introduce each one of the tools to use to brew tea.

Kettle

There would be no problem using a pot or kettle as long as the water can be boiled.

However, water matters when brewing black tea, as the water with rich oxygen makes black tea taste better.

Using a kettle that boils water quickly is recommended as boiling water in a short time can prevent water from losing oxygen.

Particularly, copper kettles have excellent conduction and are used by many English people when brewing black tea.

Teapot

The most important step to brew good black tea called “jumping” depends on the teapot.

Jumping is that tea leaves move up and down inside the teapot, which makes tea leaves open and extract the ingredients.

Therefore, we recommend round shaped teapots so that tea leaves can easily move up and down inside.

Teacup

Hope you’ll find your best teacup from many cute designs.

If you don’t have teacups, using a mug or yunomi teacup would be no problem.

Tea strainer

There are teapots with a strainer like kyusu teapots, but if not, you need a tea strainer. Make sure to choose a fine mesh tea strainer.

Good-to-have

Let us share “optional but good-to-have” tools for those who want to be more particular.

Tetsubin (Iron Kettle)

Tetsubin (Iron kettle) is a tool to boil water. This is made out of iron and can directly be heated. Then the water would taste smooth as the iron gets dissolved in it.

Tea server

We recommend tea servers when having 2-3 cups so that the tea doesn’t get too extracted. Particularly, it would look more elegant when serving guests.

Tea measuring spoon

It is literally a spoon to measure tea leaves. It’s also called “teaspoon”, “candy spoon” and “doseur”

If you don’t have a tea measuring spoon, you can use a teaspoon instead. It is about 1 teaspoon of tea leaves to make a cup.

Water and temperature

It is said that black tea can especially be affected by water, compared to other teas.

There are two types of water called “soft water” and “hard water”, and soft water is suitable for black tea. Tap water in japan is mostly soft water and it is specially suitable to brew black tea.

Hard water prevents tannin from extracting in tea, which makes tea taste less bitter. Whereas, soft water can extract the exact ingredients of tea leaves.

Besides, compared to green tea, water at a higher temperature that’s 90-100 degrees celsius is used to brew black tea.

How to brew black tea

We are going to share how to brew good black tea.

Boil water

Boil water till it gets bubbles.

Warm teapot and teacup

Pour the boiling water in the teapot and teacups to warm, then dump the water.

Put tea leaves in teapot

The weight of tea leaves is about 2.½ - 3g per cup. If you don’t have a tea measuring spoon, you can use a teaspoon that is probably a medium to heaping spoon per cup.

Pour water in

Pour boiling water in the teapot: approximately 150ml per cup. At that time, tea leaves will “jump” up and down, which makes good tea. But no need to pour hot water aggressively in to make tea leaves “jump”. Just pour in properly like you usually do.

Set proper time to steam tea leaves

As the duration varies according to tea leaves, check the duration shown on the package.

Make sure to time properly since inaccurate duration may cause insufficient extraction and/or unpleasant bitterness/astringency.

The duration is approximately 2.½ -3 minutes for small tea leaves and 4-5 minutes for big ones.

Pour tea in

Use a tea strainer to pour tea. Pour in around to make the tea strength evenly.

Kenya is an equatorial country famous for its coffee production. However, Kenya is also one of the world's leading tea producing countries.

In this article, I’m going to introduce the history of tea making in Kenya.

The history of tea in Kenya

Kenya, like India and Sri Lanka, was a former British colony.

The history of tea in Kenya is surprisingly short, and tea cultivation started in the early 1900s.

Let's take a look at the history of tea cultivation in Kenya.

Origins of tea cultivation in Kenya

Tea was first brought to Kenya from England in 1903, and the cultivated variety was Assam originally from India.

Kenya’s rich soil and favorable climate conditions for tea cultivation made it a promising tea growing area.

However, it was only after Kenya gained independence from Britain that commercial tea cultivation started in Kenya. This is because, during the colonial period, it was not allowed for individuals to grow tea freely in Kenya.

Within 50 years of its liberation from Britain, Kenya's tea industry had grown rapidly and became one of the world's leading tea producing regions, after India and Sri Lanka.

Tea making in Kenya today

Currently, Kenya has about 140,000 hectares of tea under cultivation, producing 320,000 tons of tea annually.

Also, when the production and distribution industries of tea are included, the number of people involved in tea production is about 4 million, which is 10% of the total population.

It’s easy to see why Kenya remains one of the world's leading tea producing countries today.

Expansion into East Africa

With the success of the tea industry in Kenya, tea production has spread to East African countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi and Mozambique.

The largest exporting country of these countries is the United Kingdom.

For example, 90% of the tea produced in Malawi and 80% in Mozambique is exported to the UK.

While Myoe Shonin made great achievements as a Buddhist monk, he also laid the foundation for tea cultivation in Togano, Kyoto. In this article, I’m going to introduce Myoe Shonin.

Priest Myoe Shonin

Myoe Shonin entered the Buddhist priesthood after the death of his parents at an early age. He studied the Kegon sect and the Shingon Misshu sect one after another and was a promising priest.

At the age of 34, he was given land in Togano, Kyoto by the retired Emperor Gotoba, and opened Kozan-ji (Temple).

Myoe Shonin believed that it was more important to follow the precepts of Buddha than to stick to the sect, and he put them into practice..

He was also active in helping vulnerable people such as women who lost relatives in war. He died at the age of 59 after receiving support from many people who were impressed by his efforts.

Myoe Shonin, the founder of tea in Kyoto

Meeting with Eisai

Myoe Shonin, who studied Mahayana Buddhism regardless of sect, visited Eisai to learn Zen.

At that time, Eisai taught Myoe Shonin not only about Zen but also about the “tea” he learned in China.

Eisai conveyed the knowledge he had learned about tea to Myoe Shonin.

Eisai taught him how to utilize tea in Zen practice, its effects, cultivation methods, and suitable land for cultivation and recommended tea drinking.

By the way, at this time, tea was drunk by the method of the tea ceremony. It is a way of drinking tea made by grinding tea powder with a millstone and stirring it with a tea whisk, just like today’s Matcha.

Tea seeds from Eisai

Myoe Shonin returns to Togano, Kyoto, and receives tea seeds in the Chinese jar (Aya-no-kaki-hetachatsubo) from Eisai.

Myoe Shonin started growing tea and he also explained the benefits of tea to the monks who were practicing Buddhism. He actively promoted the tea drinking.

From a single seed to a tea garden

The cultivation of tea in Togano, started by Myoe Shonin, has flourished for about two centuries since then.Togano was a good place to grow tea, so it produced high quality tea. At that time, because of its high quality, Togano’s tea was called “honcha (real tea)”, while the tea from other regions was called “hicha (not real tea)”.

In Kozan-ji (Temple), the “Tea Dedication Ceremony” is held every November, where the first tea of the year is presented to Myoe Shonin in gratitude for his achievements.

From Togano to Uji

Myoe Shonin, who learned about the land and climate suitable for tea cultivation from Eisai, spread tea cultivation to Uji, Kyoto.

As the poem states, he judged Uji to be a suitable place to grow tea due to its cool climate and the presence of a river mist.

His judgment was correct, and later Uji tea became widely known throughout the country as “the best tea in Japan”.

At the temple gate of Manpuku-ji (Temple) in Uji, there is a stone monument which is inscribed with the poem of the following story.

When the people of Uji were given tea trees from Togano and did not know how to plant them, Myoe Shonin taught them to plant tea trees in his footsteps as he rode into the field on horseback.

The Ten Commandments of Tea

Myoe Shonin carved the on the Ten Commandments of Tea side of the teapot.

Divine Protection

The vitality of tea, which has strong roots and keeps green throughout the year, protects those who drink it.

Good health

Drinking tea can help you stay healthy and free from disease.

Gratitude to parents

The deep taste of tea regulates the mind and fosters a sense of gratitude for parents.

Friendship and harmony

The custom of drinking tea leads to a talk of close relationships and deepens relationships.

Demon surrender

The ingredients of tea relieve physical and mental fatigue and also remove any hesitation in the mind.

Practicing true mind discipline

The civility and manners of drinking tea are effective for mental training.

Sleep self-exclusion

Tea dispels drowsiness.

Disappearance of earthly desires

Drinking tea extinguishes worldly desires.

Harmonizing five organs

Drinking tea helps to improve the condition of your internal organs.

Not distracted by the end of life

Tea drinkers are not distracted by the prospect of death because they are physically and mentally fit.

In this way, we can see that the awakening and calming effects of tea, which are still known today, have been recognized since then.

It is thought that Myoe Shonin himself recognized that the effect of tea influenced the personality of Myoe Shonin, who was loved and respected by many people including the Emperor.

While SEN-no-Rikyu is called the founder of Wabicha, Baisao (Koyugai) is known as the founder of Sencha (steeped green tea). In this article, I’m going to introduce the life of Baisao, who spread Sencha and greatly influenced the cultural people of his time.

About Baisao

Koyugai (1675-1763), also known as Baisao, was born to a doctor of the Hasuike domain (present Saga Prefecture). He became a monk, “Gekkai Gensho” (his Zen priest name) under Kerin Osho of the Obaku sect Ryushin-ji (Temple).

Baisao, who had practiced asceticism for nearly 50 years, was disappointed by the corrupt Buddhist world and left the priesthood to live in Kyoto.

Baisao opened his own tea house, the “Chatei Tsusentei” and also did something like the “mobile selling” to go to scenic places and sell tea.

Many cultural figures attracted to him by his personality began to gather around him, and from this point on he began to be affectionately called “Baisao” (it means old tea seller).

After that, he gave up his name as a priest, changed his name to “Koyugai” and continued selling tea, but as he grew older and his physical strength declined, he stopped selling tea, and died at the age of 89.

Baisao as seen in the episode

Origin of “Koyugai”

Baisao had the name “Gekkai Gensho” as a monk.One day, when he was asked about his current lifestyle, he replied “I live like this” , but they mistakenly understood “He live a very elegant life.”.

It is said that Baisao was amused by this and called himself “Koyugai”, which means “elegant” in Japanese.

Getting people to know the benefits of tea is the first thing

The signboard of Tsusentei (teahouse) said, “The cost of tea ranges from 2,000 koban (more than 100 million yen today) to half a penny (about 30 yen today). Just give me as much as you want to. You can drink it for free. We cannot make it any cheaper.”

From these words, we can see Baisao’s attitude that the first priority is to let people drink tea and to let people know the benefits of tea.

Promoting a new style of Sencha

Promoting new style of Sencha, Baisao did not like the tea ceremony at that time, which had become only a formality connected with power. He idealized the style of Lu Yu and Lutong of the Tang Dynasty.

The style of sencha by Baisao, which removes unnecessary manners and things and simply enjoys tea, spread to the common people.

Baisao, admired by the most advanced intellectuals

Although Edo (Tokyo) have been the center of Japan, Kyoto was still the most advanced city of culture.

It was there Baisao became very popular with the cultural crowd.

Baisao's high level of education, his style of living freely with conviction, and his witty way of speaking fascinated people.

Inspired by this way of life and thought, some of the leaders still make their names today, such as ITO Jakuchu, YOSA Buson, WATANABE Kazan, MATSUDAIRA Sadanobu and TANOMURA Chikuden.

Burning his own tea ceremony utensils

When Baisao became too old, to sell tea, he burned his precious tea utensils by himself.

It was from his love for the tea utensils that he spent together on the path of poverty. Baisao wrote about his feelings. “It was you (tea set) who supported me because I was poor and had no one to rely on. However, I cannot use you anymore. If I were to die and you were to be humiliated by vulgar hands, you would resent me. For this reason, I would cremate you.”

This is an episode that conveys his deep love for tea utensils, but it was a big loss that “Baisao's style of tea” did not remain in the future due to the burning of tea utensils.

Baisao's goal of “tea”

He chose to leave the floating world of Buddhism and achieve spiritual heights while living on his own.

Baisao’s means of living was the sale of tea. The tea he chose to sell was not “Matcha” but “Sencha” because he was rebellious against the tasteless world of Chanoyu. I think Baisao aimed to turn the place of selling tea into a “Salon”.

In fact, Baisao was surrounded by people of all walks of life from the common man to the cultured. There was a lot of discussion and interaction between people who enjoyed the tea and also improved each other.

Considering that some of these people are famous painters and literary men, Baisao's plan may have been successful.

The joy and essence of life Baisao pursued can be found in the time chatting and enjoying a cup of tea with those close to him away from the chores of daily life.

India is one of the world's leading tea producing countries.

In fact, the history of tea was established against the background of British colonial policy.

In this article, I’m going to introduce the history of tea in India.

The history of tea in India

India is famous for the origin of black teas such as Darjeeling and Assam.

In this section, I will introduce the history of tea in India in chronological order.

East India Company's trade monopoly and the Opium War

In order to understand the history of tea in India, it is necessary to first give a brief description of the situation in England at the time.

Around the 17 century, the Dutch brought tea to Europe, and since then tea has boomed in Britain as a simple pastime.

In England at that time, tea was enjoyed by a wide range of people from court nobles to common people.

Its popularity was so great that tea caused two wars.

The first was the Anglo-Dutch Wars, which arose due out of a backlash against the Netherlands having monopolized the trading rights of Chinese tea.

The East India Company won an exclusive trading right to import tea from China.

However, the demand for tea in Britain had rapidly increased and there was a significant trade imbalance with China, which was importing tea. It triggered the famous Opium War.

Realizing that the supply of tea would no longer be met solely through imports from China, Britain decided to cultivate tea in its own colony, India.

Discovery of Assam cultivars and development of plantation agriculture

The reason why the British were able to venture into tea cultivation in India was the discovery of a new tea tree called “Assam cultivar” in the 19th century.

In fact, Britain had previously attempted to transplant Chinese tea to India, but was repeatedly frustrated because the Chinese cultivars did not match the Indian climate.

Under these circumstances, the discovery of the Assam cultivar suitable for Indian climate led to the development of large-scale plantation agriculture in various regions of India.

Also, as tea cultivation developed in India, it was discovered in 1841 that Chinese cultivars grow in the Darjeeling region.

As India was able to produce two types of tea, its exports have grown rapidly and it became known as a Tea Country.

Assam and Darjeeling, which are famous cultivars of tea even today, were born against the background of British colonial rule.

The Origin of Chai

India became one of the world’s largest tea producers as a result of British colonial policies, but good tea was still a “for export” commodity and was not available to the Indian people.

Therefore, among the people of India, “Chai” came to be a regular drink.

Chai was originally made from the scum of green tea leaves, but the scum is too bitter to drink.

So the Indians drank tea brewed from the scum of tea leaves mixed with sugar or milk to make it taste better.

Thus, Chai gradually became popular among Indians and became a national drink in India.

Nowadays, Chai is found on the Starbucks drink menu and is loved not only in India but all over the world.

In recent years, Taiwan has been attracting attention due to the boom of tapioca milk tea.

In this article, I’m going to explain the history of tea in Taiwan in detail.

The history of tea in Taiwan

Let’s take a look at the history of tea in Taiwan in chronological order.

Origin of tea in Taiwan

It is said that tea was first introduced to Taiwan around 1796 when Taiwan was under the rule of the Qing Dynasty.

It was the beginning of Taiwanese tea when a Chinese merchant named Kacho brought to Taiwan oolong tea seedlings from Fujian Province.

In 1862, a leader from Fujian Province introduced method of tea production, and began making tea in Chinese style.

Expansion of Taiwanese tea

Taiwanese tea expanded rapidly with the support of John Dot, an English man.

In 1865, he established a trading company called “Bao Shun” in Tanshui, Taiwan, and brought large quantities of tea plants and seeds from Fujian, China.

Then, he established a system in which he loaned it to farmers around the country and bought the tea leaves again after harvesting.

In 1866, Taiwanese tea leaves exported to the United States and Australia via Fujian Province in China.

Taiwanese tea, which is of high quality and has gained particular popularity in the United States, began to be exported under the name “Formosa Tea” (Tea on the beautiful island) in 1969.

Taiwan also began exporting its tea to the United Kingdom in 1972, expanding its sales channels gradually.

Influence of Nittoh Black Tea

Nittoh Black Tea is a famous Japanese brand that has been popular in Japan for a long time.

However, Nittoh Black Tea was originally produced in Taiwan.

I will describe the influence that Japan had on the tea industry in Taiwan during the War.

Promotion of Taiwan tea industry

With Japan's victory in the Sino-Japanese War in 1895, Taiwan came under Japanese rule.

In 1903, it was decided to set up a testing site for tea as part of its governance policy, to further promote the tea industry in Taiwan.

Entry of Mitsui Gomei Kaisha

Mitsui Gomei was one of the companies that entered Taiwan soon after the start of Japanese rule.In 1908, the company established a branch in Taiwan to introduced the British method of mass production of tea.

Mitsui, which has played a central role in Taiwan's tea industry, set up tea factories one after another in such places as Dairiao, Daxi and Miaoli.

The company began full-scale tea production in 1924, and selling canned “Mitsui Black Tea” and (later renamed “Nitto Black Tea”) in Taiwan.

After that, Nitto Black Tea came to be consumed by middle class and above people in Japan and gradually became recognized as a Japan’s tea brand.

After liberation from Japanese occupation, Taiwan Agriculture and Forestry took over all facilities and capital of the tea industry.

Of course, the domination of Taiwan by the war is unforgivable, but it is true that Mitsui’s business is the foundation of the tea industry in Taiwan.

Modern times

The tea industry is still thriving in Taiwan, and oolong tea and black tea are highly valued around the world.

This is because Taiwanese tea is grown on a slope 600-800 meters above sea level, and has s unique aroma.

One of the attractions of Taiwanese tea is that we can enjoy a wide variety of tea.

Various types of black tea are grown, including:

• Taiwanese Tea No.7, Taicha No. 8 (suitable for milk tea)
• Taiwanese Tea No.18 (cinnamon and mint fragrance)
• Taiwanese Tea No.22 (floral fragrance)
• Taiwanese Tea No.23 (refreshing aroma like lemon or yuzu)

Among them, Taiwanese Tea No.18 is favored by Westerners, while No.23 is favored by young people.

As more varieties are developed to attract new customers, Taiwan’s tea industry is expected to continue to develop.

Tea is also a popular luxury in Europe and the United States, and in the past there were even wars over its import and export.

In this article, I will explain the history of tea in Europe and the United States in detail, from the introduction of tea to modern tea consumption habits.

The history of Tea in Europe and the United States

Let's take a look at the history of tea in Europe and the US along a timeline.

The introduction of tea

Tea was first introduced to Europe from China in 1610, and it was the Dutch “East India Company” that brought it back.

Europe has an image of black tea, but it was not black tea that was first introduced but green tea.

However, when tea was first introduced, it was considered to be a luxury product that only the upper class enjoyed.

Tea was introduced to England from the Netherlands, and created a big boom among the aristocracy.

Expansion and Decline of the East India Company

The Dutch East India Company had an exclusive trade with the rest of Europe, including monopolizing trade with Southeast Asia, China, Japan.

Therefore in Europe at that time, products from East and Southeast Asia such as tea could only be obtained through the Netherlands.

The East India Company, which monopolized trade, seemed to be making a lot of profit, but it gradually lost its momentum due to internal improprieties and the war against the UK over tea.

In the 18th century, the power of the UK became even stronger and the Netherlands had no choice but to dissolve the East India Company.

The Opium War and the beginning of the plantation

Tea from the Netherlands became very popular in the UK in the 18 and 19th centuries.

The UK, which became the largest tea consumer in Europe, would import large quantities of tea from China.

At that time, the UK was paying for silver in exchange for tea, but the trade imbalance gradually increased and the inflow of silver from the UK became very large.

The UK was dissatisfied with this and decided to sell opium to China as a countermeasure.

As a result, opium was widespread in China, and the country was in trouble.

The Chinese dynasty set out to ban opium imports and crack down on smuggling, but the UK countered by force.

This was the famous “Opium War”.

In the end, Britain won the war and would demand from China the price of the opium it had confiscated and a large amount of reparations.

The beginning of the plantation

At first the UK relied on Chinese exports for most of its tea it consumed, but in the 1830s it began growing tea in its colony, India.

The reason for this was the discovery of tea trees in the Assam region of India.

By the way, the name of Assam tea which is a cultivar of black tea that is popular even today, comes from this Indian name.

As a result, high-quality tea has been cultivated in India that it fetched the highest price at an auction held in London in 1839.

The Assam Corporation, the plantation-based tea production company was launched under the auspices of the British government.

In addition to the Assam region, plantations have been developed in a wide range of states, including Bihar and Bengal.

Especially, the tea grown in Darjeeling, West Bengal, is famous even today.

Modern tea consumption habits

Historically, tea has been so popular in Europe and the US that wars broke out over its import and export.

It's true that tea is still very popular today, and if you look at the top 10 consumption of tea in the world, you'll see that Western countries such as the UK and the US are also ranked.

Although tea was originally just a luxury item, in recent years there has been a trend to capture tea from a different angle.

For example, it is a hot topic that Gyokuro and Sencha (steeped green tea) are sold at Starbucks Coffee in the United States because of their health benefits.

As evidenced by the 6.5 fold increase in tea exports from Japan to the US from 2000 to 2014, the habit of consuming tea as a healthy food has taken root in many people.

As you can see, tea is a drink that transcends time and borders and continues to be loved around the world.

China is the world's No. 1 country in terms of tea production and consumption.

In this article, I’m going to introduce the history of tea in China along a chronological line.

The history of tea in China

Let's take a look at the history of tea in China along a timeline.

Tang Dynasty (618-907)

The custom of drinking tea spread throughout China during the Tang Dynasty.

However, the common people were unable to drink tea, which was a luxury item, and it was generally recognized as a present to the emperor or a drink for the aristocracy.

It is said that the mainstream of tea at that time was solid tea called “Heicha”.

Heicha is a kind of tea made by solidifying steamed tea leaves. You can drink it by putting it in hot water after roasting it with fire.

By the way, Heicha was first introduced to Japan through Japanese envoys to the Tang Dynasty.

Origin of Chakyo (Tea Sutra)

Also during the Tang Dynasty, the oldest book on tea in the world, Chakyo (Tea Sutra) was written.

The author of Chakyo was a literary man, Rikuu, who is said to be the originator of the tea ceremony.

In this book, he wrote all kinds of information related to tea such as the origin, production method, history and production area.

Also, he wrote that tea is not just a beverage, but is described as “should be drunk by a man of virtue”.

Song Dynasty (960-1279)

In the Song Dynasty, not only aristocrats and government officials but also the wealthy common people started to drink tea.

In this period, the production method of Heicha, which was mainstream in the Tang Dynasty, became a little complicated and came to be called “Dancha”.

Also, it was around this time that the culture of “Tocha (tea ceremony)” which was practiced in Japan from the Kamakura to the Muromachi periods, began to flourish.

Tocha is a kind of game to determine the origin and quality of the tea by drinking it.

Development of tea utensils

In the Song Dynasty, tea utensils began to be recognized as an important tool for the enjoyment of tea.

This led to the development of technologies for making white porcelain to enjoy the color of tea, and celadon porcelain to enjoy the color of containers.

Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)

In the Ming Dynasty, tea became even more popular, and not only the rich but also the common people began to drink tea.

Dancha required time and effort to produce and its taste was not so good.

In the Ming Dynasty, the tea called Sancha was made by crushing the tea leaves into small pieces with a mortar or other tool.

It is said that Sancha had become popular because the taste and aroma have greatly improved compared to Dancha.

Until the Ming Dynasty, kyusu (teapots) were mainly made of iron or silver, but in this period, ceramic kyusu were made and used.

The Qing Dynasty (1616-1912)

The Qing Dynasty was the most prosperous of tea in Chinese history.

Oolong tea, which is familiar to us today, was developed in Fujian Province during this period.

It also gave birth to a culture of taking time to enjoy tea with a focus on tea utensils.

Here I will introduce some of the tea culture and historical backgrounds of the Qing Dynasty.

Formation of various ways to enjoy tea

In the Qing Dynasty, people enjoyed tea in various ways.

Specialty tea was produced in various regions, and six major teas (blue tea, Chinese black tea, green tea, black tea, white tea, and yellow tea) were sold in the market.

In addition, it seems that the preferred tea in each region was different.

People in Zhejiang and Jiangsu preferred to drink green tea, while people in the northern region preferred to drink flower tea.

Export of tea to England

One of the characteristics of the Qing Dynasty was the mass production of black tea.

Especially after the Qing Dynasty allowed European countries to start trade in 1685, a large amount of tea was exported to other countries.

England was its largest trading partner, and for the Qing, tea was a great means of obtaining silver.

However, while England imported a large amount of tea, China did not import much from England, creating a significant trade imbalance.

So England tried to recover the silver by selling opium to China, which triggered the famous “Opium War”.

In this way, China at that time was proud of its tea production so much that the domestic situation was affected by the tea.

Modern times

In modern China, tea is popular as a national drink.

Both production and consumption are the highest in the world, and today’s China can be said to be a “Tea Country”.

“The most popular tea in China is not oolong tea or jasmine tea, but green tea.” says Wang Jing of Osaka University, Depatment of Tourism.

Chinese green tea differs from Japanese tea in that it is roasted in an iron pot without being steamed, so it has a simple taste than Japanese tea.

Sri Lanka is the birthplace of the world-famous Ceylon Tea.

In this article, I’m going to introduce the history of tea in Sri Lanka.

The history of tea in Sri Lanka

The history of tea making in Sri Lanka began with the British colonial policies.

I will introduce the history of tea making in Sri Lanka along the time line.

Was it once a major place for coffee?

Sri Lanka is now well known for its tea production, but it was originally known as one of the world's leading coffee producing regions.

This is because the Netherlands, which at the time had a major influence in Europe, had been cultivating coffee in Sri Lanka since 1658 as part of its colonial policy.

The tropical climate of Sri Lanka made it a great place to grow coffee because coffee can only be grown where there is a lot of rain and sunshine.

As a result, the amount of coffee produced in Sri Lanka increased rapidly.

By the 19th century, Sri Lanka had grown into a major coffee producing region, ranking the first in the world in terms of coffee exports.

The end of coffee farming and the beginning of tea production

Initially Sri Lanka was ruled by the Netherlands, but in 1802, the country was changed to Great Britain.

Even after that, coffee farming flourished in Sri Lanka, but in 1868, the “rust disease” spread to the coffee plantations.

Rust disease is a kind of infectious disease, which is caused by mold with orange spots on the leaves. Plants that are infected with rust eventually die.

Devastated by rust disease, the coffee industry declined and was replaced by the production of tea that was so prevalent in Britain at the time.

The first tea cultivar brought to Sri Lanka was Assam, which was discovered in India in the 19th century.

At that time, India, like Sri Lanka, was dominated by the United Kingdom, and large-scale plantation farming was practiced as a tea producing area.

Sri Lanka was chosen as the land to increase the productivity of the tea industry based in India.

The birthplace of “Lipton”

As mentioned above, Sri Lanka used to cultivate Assam cultivars that were originally brought from India.

Assam cultivars were brought to Sri Lanka by a man named “Thomas Lipton”.

He is the founder of Lipton, a tea company that is still famous today.

He entered the tea business at the age of 39. He bought up all of tea gardens in Ceylon and stared his tea business.

Lipton, a man of great business ability, created the catchphrase “From the tea garden to the teapot” and launched a campaign in various countries.

The campaign was so successful that the names “Ceylon Tea” and “Lipton” spread around the world.