When we face our ancient and young art of tea ceremony again today, we don’t need to worry about any art form issues. As long as you have the fresh eyes of a child, fully devote yourself to doing every little thing in the moment sincerely, and enjoy the beauty flowing out of your heart, the form will continue to grow and change, and the beauty itself will gradually mature.

One of the basic skills: three elements of tea making

We like the warm company of the aroma of tea. Many times, we just want to drink a cup of good tea easily. I hope that making good tea is not difficult, as long as you practice carefully, you can do it.

The amount of tea leaves, water temperature and time are the three changing factors of making tea.

We need to calm down and make tea, carefully taste the taste of each cup of tea, and pay attention to the influence of water temperature and time. The increase or decrease in the amount of tea leaves, the change in water temperature, and the length of soaking time will immediately change the aroma and taste of the tea soup.

If you want to improve the skills of making tea, the simplest and most effective way is to make comparisons. The more comparisons you make, the better your basic skills will be.

When comparing, the key is to soak twice in a row, and only change one condition each time, so that the feeling will be clear, otherwise the feeling will be blurred.

For example, we want to try different amounts of tea leaves to explore our favorite taste and concentration. The best way is to brew two or three times in a row. The amount of tea should not be too different each time. Just make a few minor adjustments. However, the water temperature and soup brewing time should remain the same. That is, the tea brewing method should be consistent. Only in this way can we compare the changes in aroma and taste before and after, and see which effect is better and what is the difference. The impression gained in this way will be very profound and there is no need to force it into memory.

The process of comparison is a very interesting journey of discovery, which often brings us surprising experiences and joy.

The more time you put in, the better the tea will be.

Basic skill two: water selection

When tasting tea, you must first select and test the water. Various types of water contain different substances, which have a very obvious impact on the quality of the tea soup. There have been many studies throughout the ages. To sum up, the ancients evaluated water mainly from two aspects: water quality and water taste. The quality of good water must be clear, lively and light, and the taste of water must be sweet and cold.

Clear, water quality should be clear and pure, without impurities.

Live refers to flowing water, not still water.

Lightness, the lightness and heaviness of water, are very similar to the soft water and hard water we talk about today. If you use soft water to make tea, the tea soup will be bright and the aroma will be fresh. On the contrary, if you use hard water to make tea, the tea soup will be turbid and the tea will taste astringent and light.

Sweet, Cai Xiang of the Song Dynasty said in "Tea Records": "The spring water is not sweet, which can damage the taste of tea."

Lie means cold. The spring water can be sweet and refreshing. Most of the water sources are surrounded by mountains or buried deep in the ground. After many times of infiltration and filtration by rocks, it emerges from the deep layers of the earth's surface, so the water quality is particularly good. Tian Yiheng of the Ming Dynasty said in "Boiled Spring Essays": "The spring is not difficult to clear, but difficult to be cold." Sweet water quality is the most rare.

What kind of water should we use to make tea today?

Spring water - spring water far away from human habitation and sources of pollution is still our favorite. Due to different water sources and the regions it flows through, the salt content and hardness of the water vary greatly. Not all spring water is good for making tea. There are many suspended solids in the spring water taken during the rain. You have to wait for the weather to clear up and then go to collect water in a few days before the water quality will be clear and delicious. Mountain spring water should not be left for too long. It is best to boil the water for tea while it is still fresh.

Mineral water - There are many brands of mineral water on the market. The trace elements contained in some water are very beneficial to our health, and some water tastes delicious. However, water suitable for drinking may not be tea-making, and may not be suitable for making tea. Only through actual trials and comparisons can we find out the water that is good for making tea.

Filtered water - The easiest thing we can get in life is tap water. The quality of tap water varies greatly from place to place. In some areas, the water sources are seriously polluted and are no longer drinkable. In some areas, the mineral content in the water is too high. Even though it has been treated by a water purifier, it is still not possible to make tea. Even tap water with good quality cannot be used directly to make tea, because the water contains disinfectant chlorine, which will destroy the aroma of the tea and damage the freshness of the tea soup. It must be filtered before making tea.

Basic skill three: boiling water

The flavor of tea soup is not only closely related to the quality of the water, but also to the material of the kettle, the fuel of the tea stove and the degree of boiling of the water.

When boiling water, you should pay attention to distinguish the boiling condition of the water and clearly grasp the degree of boiling in order to prevent the water from being "too tender" or "too old". Neither too young nor too old is good.

The so-called "too tender" means that the water temperature is not enough. If you make tea with water that is not hot enough, the tea flavor will not be released, and the aroma and taste will be very thin.

The so-called "too old" has two meanings. One means that the water temperature is too high, and the other means that the water has been boiled too high. If the water temperature is too high, the tea will taste bitter. If the water is boiled too much, it will lose its activity, the water will lose its sweetness and freshness, and the brewed tea will have a dull feeling and lack of freshness.

Find your favorite flavor

We all have a similar experience. Whenever we drink a cup of good tea, the deep sense of satisfaction can bring indescribable relaxation and calmness to the mood. But we have no way to explain the taste and aroma clearly, and we always feel that the language we can express is really limited.

Since our senses are an ever-changing process, the feeling of tasting delicious is also quite subjective. Even the same person often has greatly different sensitivity and judgment to the same smell.

When we are nervous, sleep deprived, tired, have a cold, or feel uncomfortable, our sensitivity will decrease;

Strongly irritating foods can also temporarily weaken sensitivity, such as garlic, raw onions, cigarettes...all make our senses dull;

Changes in light, color, sound, temperature and humidity around the environment also affect our sensory abilities.

Moreover, everyone’s sensitivity and judgment towards taste are quite different. For example, everyone's taste buds have slightly different feelings about bitterness and astringency, and their preference for them is also different. Some people are not very tolerant of bitterness, some are not very tolerant of astringency, and some people love both. They like the bitterness to melt away and turn into a mellow throat flavor. However, the intensity or intensity of bitterness varies from person to person.

Therefore, we should happily pursue our favorite tastes, and we should also learn to understand and respect other people's favorite tastes, and learn to appreciate different aesthetics.

Aim at Taoism and enjoy art

Our hometown, China, produces rare and good tea in the world. In order to enjoy the precious tea with friends, we decorate the environment, arrange flowers, listen to music, and display some unpretentious and carefully selected tea sets... The tea ceremony has gradually become a part of our lives.

The factors that promote the development of this "game" are our nature to love beauty and want to create. Although our land lacks sufficient aesthetic education, we ourselves have discovered a way to make up for the shortcomings in our hearts in the art of tea ceremony. At the same time, the tea ceremony also leads our hearts to pursue a peaceful, broad, and serene realm.

We can experience the realm of "playing in art" mentioned by Confucius in the tea ceremony. Living a creative life, wandering in the free "game", makes us feel deeply satisfied, feel the joy, and feel rich deep within us.

The Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore said: "Life is as gorgeous as summer flowers, and death is as quiet and beautiful as autumn leaves."

(Editor: Li Mengqi)

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